Neighbor,
Just want to pass along a few things from this week, including a reminder about a long-term care meeting I will be co-hosting in Glenwood 10 a.m. this Saturday March 14 at Glenwood Retirement Village (719 2nd St. SE).
You are invited to join Rep. Joe Schomacker of Luverne and me for what should be a good discussion regarding the challenges our area faces in long-term care and some bills that are being proposed to help our situation. This impacts all of us one way or another, so please show up and share your thoughts. Rep. Schomacker chairs the Aging and Long-Term Care Policy Committee and can provide an overview of proposals the House has introduced this session to help our state meet rising demands for long-term care.
At the Capitol this week, Gov. Mark Dayton's proposal regarding his 50-foot buffer zones was heard in a committee. This proposition is a large undertaking with significant local impacts that, in total, could touch more than 100,000 acres in Minnesota. This is one of those things where we will be better off for having this discussion so we can act appropriately. Many questions remain unanswered.
Otherwise, committees have been in high gear this week as we approach the March 20 deadline for bills to receive preliminary hearings. I have presented seven or eight of my bills and will provide updates as progress is made. Our attention will start shifting from committee work to hearing bills in their final form on the House floor as we make our way to the second half of the 2015 session.
You may have seen a column I submitted to District 12B newspapers this week with information about the first-ever case of “highly pathogenic avian influenza” identified in a commercial poultry flock in Minnesota. This is a serious issue that has resulted in efforts to contain the outbreak, but the public's risk reportedly is very low. Click here for my column with more on this subject.
Hope you can join us for that long-term care meeting on Saturday. If you cannot attend, please send me your thoughts, ideas and concerns through email.
Sincerely,
Paul