Hello from the State Capitol,
The 2015 legislative session is officially underway as all 134 members of the House took the oath of office Tuesday afternoon. It is an honor to once again represent the people of District 25A. I am looking forward to getting to work on the issues that matter to you and your family.
Committee Assignments
Committees will begin their work this coming week. My committees assignments are as follows: Education Finance; Health and Human Services Reform; Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance; and Property Tax and Local Government Division.
I will be serving as vice-chair in the Property Tax and Local Government Division. I look forward to protecting the pocketbooks of Minnesotans and working with local units of government to ensure stability when it comes to Local Government Aid and property tax rates.
Bill Introductions
On Thursday a number of bills that I chief authored were introduced. Below is a list and brief summary explaining each of these bills:
HF 21: Permit reform at the Public Utilities Commission that would allow private businesses to invest in infrastructure to support the transportation of propane and other forms of fuel. This bill would seek to address some of the problems that served as a catalyst for last year’s propane shortage.
HF 22: Mitigates hardships for individuals who would have to be quarantined during an outbreak of an infectious disease.
HF 23: Requires law enforcement agencies to comply with federal immigration detainers.
HF 24: Prohibits taxpayer paid, union release time, for political activities by public union employees.
HF 31: Assists identity theft victims by creating a process and documentation that will make it easier to regain control of their identity, and prevent issues with law enforcement if someone uses their identity to commit a crime.
HF 32: Ensures that medical sites, that do 60% or more of their business with patients from outside Minnesota, would not fall under the health care provider tax.
HF 33: Requires cities who receive additional Local Government Aid dollars due to old or dated housing, to use those funds to revitalize, renovate, or renew that outdated housing.
How to Stay Connected
If you or your family are planning on making a trip to St. Paul this session, please make sure to be aware that my office number has change to room 571 of the State Office Building. I look forward to seeing you in St. Paul this year.
Additionally, check your email inboxes weekly as I will continue to update you on important topics that are taking place in St. Paul. As always, I encourage you to contact me with any questions you may have related to legislative matters. I can be reached at rep.duane.quam@house.mn or 651.296.9236. Mail should be sent to Rep. Duane Quam, 571 State Office Building, 100 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155.
Thank you,
Duane