Dear Neighbors,
Thank you to all who attended our Community Listening Session with Attorney General Keith Ellison. Attorney General Ellison and I share the appreciation for such strong involvement from our community. Decisions we make at the State Capitol have an impact on our neighborhoods and for us to best advocate for you, this direct engagement is critical. I intend to have more events like this in the future.
Several initiatives to curb youth tobacco use are moving ahead. Last week the Health and Human Services Policy Committee, which I chair, voted to approve bills raising the age to purchase tobacco to 21, to add e-cigarettes to the state’s definition of smoking under the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act, and to invest in programs to help Minnesotans quit. These are all key items to protect the health of Minnesotans and save lives. I especially want to thank the young adults who visited the Capitol in support of this bill.
I also had the opportunity to visit with “Girls in Action” last week, an amazing group of emerging leaders.
African American Family Preservation Act
From initial reporting, screening, and assessment, wide disparities exist within our child protection system with African American children removed from their homes at a rate over three times that of white children. Last week, Sen. Jeff Hayden and I renewed our effort to pass the African American Family Preservation Act. The bill has measures to end this disparity through oversight and accountability at every stage of the process, and it will create the African American Child Welfare Advisory Council within the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
Too often, when children are taken from their homes and put in the child protection system, it leads to them entering the criminal justice system. In many cases, there are more effective strategies to ensure the safety of children while looking toward their long-term best interests. I’m hopeful this bill will give us a pathway to explore these. You can watch our press conference here.
Conversion Therapy
Everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity, and loved and valued for who they are. Under one practice referred to as “conversion therapy,” LGBTQ people are coerced or worse, tortured, in an effort to change their identity. Groups like the American Medical Association and American Psychological Association note the practice lacks scientific credibility, and this can lead to depression, substance abuse, and suicide.
Last week, the Health and Human Services Policy Committee approved a bill to prohibit conversion therapy in Minnesota for children and vulnerable adults. This is an important step forward to show we value LGBTQ people for who they are, and not allow them to be subjected to discredited “therapy.”
Community-Centered Probation Reforms
Last week the House Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Committee discussed a series of proposals to reform probation in the state of Minnesota. Minnesota’s incarceration rate is low, ranked 47th out of 50 states, but the rate of Minnesotans on probation or community supervision is high, ranked fifth. With such high caseloads, this means less attention is available for high-risk offenders while putting many low-risk offenders potentially back in prison for technical violations. There are also significant racial and geographic inequities within our probation system and there is a bipartisan effort to address these disparities.
Reforms proposed include capping probation at five years, expanding the Alternatives to Incarceration Program to allow for treatment instead of incarceration for nonviolent drug-related probation violations, and to require the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission to establish probation terms for offenders based on the characteristics of the offense and the offender. These community-centered solutions will enable Minnesotans to fully reintegrate with our society, lower recidivism, and help end mass incarceration.
Please continue to contact me with your viewpoints, ideas, and concerns. It’s an honor to represent you.
Sincerely,
Rena Moran
State Representative
Rep. Rena Moran
Chair, House Health and Human Services Policy Committee
575 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
www.house.mn/65A
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Phone: 651-296-5158
E-mail: rep.rena.moran@house.mn
Legislative Assistant: Alyssa Fritz, 651-296-2491