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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Paul Anderson (R)

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It's finally summer; dairy and manufacturing update

Monday, July 1, 2013

By Rep. Paul Anderson

 

After an unusually cool and wet spring, our weather has taken a turn for the better. The past weekend was beautiful, and more comfortable summer-like conditions are forecast, which should give us a great Fourth of July holiday. Here’s hoping you can get outside to enjoy Minnesota at its best, whether it be camping or just having a family picnic. Our campgrounds and resorts have a large impact on our state’s economy. The tourism and hospitality industry provides thousands of jobs, with one study showing around 10,000 just in this three-county area of Stearns, Pope and Douglas. Have a safe holiday as our highways will probably be packed at times with folks heading for their favorite vacation spot. As we celebrate the beginning of our great nation, let’s not take for granted all the freedoms we have in the good ol’ USA!

 

The parade season gets busy now as summer hits full stride. We were in Melrose last Saturday and had a great time. The evening was perfect for a parade, and folks lined the entire main-street area of downtown to enjoy the festivities. Villard has its annual Fourth of July parade this Saturday, and Starbuck’s Heritage Days celebration is also on tap this weekend. The Starbuck parade will be later in the day Saturday, at 5:30 p.m., while Villard starts earlier that same day, at 2 p.m.

 

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Took a tour last week at a modern dairy operation south of Murdock called East Dublin Dairy. Housing more than 6,500 animals on-site, around 6,000 are milked twice each day on an 80-cow rotating parlor. Fifty people are employed full-time at the farm, and tour guides told us that animal welfare and worker safety are key objectives of the operation. Manure is separated, with the solids re-used as bedding and the liquids pumped into a huge lagoon that’s fully covered to reduce odor. The dairy works closely with approximately 30 area farmers in raising crops for feed inputs and spreading the liquid manure, which is a valuable fertilizer. We were told it takes about half an acre of corn silage and a quarter of an acre of chopped hay to feed a cow for one year.

 

I also attended a meeting last week of the Central Minnesota Manufacturers’ Association. Our state has a strong manufacturing industry, and our area plays a prominent role. The sentiment of those in attendance seemed to be that business activity is picking up slowly, although there is a certain amount of uncertainty about the future. The two things mentioned were the new taxes that go into effect this week in Minnesota, in addition to concern about what’s going to happen with health insurance as the Affordable Care Act begins to take effect. The Health Exchange that the Legislature recently approved is scheduled to be operational by October 1, but with anything this new, there are technical issues to be worked out. Nine insurance companies have applied to the state to sell plans on the exchange but, according to current rules, no rates or costs will be released until the start-date in October. Residents should be able to purchase insurance coverage on the Exchange by January of next year.

 

It remains to be seen if this huge new government program will actually lower the cost of health insurance. The cost just to set up the Minnesota Exchange is well over $100 million so far, and a tax of up to 3.5 percent will be assessed on each policy to help cover operational costs. On the federal level, several new taxes will be utilized to cover the cost of this health plan. Several states, including Wisconsin, have decided not to go along with the federal expansion of the Medicaid program. Minnesota did expand its program, but the concern voiced by many is the federal government’s ability to cover its portion of the cost into the future.

 

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