What a COOL opportunity (pardon the pun). Congratulations and good luck, Rick!
Greetings,
Hello from the Capitol, where on Monday Minnesota’s 2022 legislative began with tax relief and improved public safety at the forefront.
The state has a historic surplus of $7.7 billion and, while that’s better than a shortfall, it also is a clear indication Minnesotans are overtaxed. This surplus cannot be viewed as a license to spend even more on bloated government programs.
The state is fully funded for the next two years and it’s time to give these tax dollars back to their rightful owners – Minnesota taxpayers – with permanent relief. House Republicans already have introduced numerous bills to make that happen, including one that would eliminate the state tax on Social Security.
Public safety also is a top priority this year and I look forward to working on solutions to help get a handle on the surge in violent crime that has gone unchecked in our state. The horrific violence that recently took place in Richfield is just the latest incident calling attention to this issue. My prayers go out to the victims.
Let’s show Minnesotans we are listening to them by hitting the ground running on improving public safety and providing tax relief this year.
We also need to work this year to tighten the parameters by which a governor can exert unilateral authority in our state. Minnesotans largely were deprived of the representative system of government provided under our Constitution for nearly a year and a half as we lived under the governor’s unilateral rule.
Peacetime emergencies may have their place and time, but we need more checks and balances to prevent emergency powers from being abused like this ever again.
Stay tuned for more on this subject and others as the session progresses. In addition to receiving my legislative updates via email, the House of Representatives provides a number of online tools to help people track the latest developments at the Capitol. Here are several I hope you’ll find useful:
As always, I welcomes your correspondence throughout the session because it helps me continue doing my best to represent the citizens of District 29A.
God bless and have a good weekend.
Regards,
Joe