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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Laurie Halverson (DFL)

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Legislative Update - March 2, 2017

Thursday, March 2, 2017

Neighbors and Friends, 

The fast-paced action continues at the Capitol. Committees are also picking up pace with full agendas that have led to evening hearings in anticipation of the first committee deadline.  

Community Happenings

I had the privilege of gathering with Eagan community leaders to honor the 2017 grant recipients from the Eagan Foundation. The mission of the Eagan Foundation is to make Eagan the best place to live, learn, work and play. The Foundation raises money to support local nonprofit work and to provide scholarships to Eagan High School students. This year marks record investment in the community and our students by the Eagan Foundation. As a former board members, I am thrilled to see the continued growth of this organization. This year’s grantees include the Eagan 4th of July FunFest, Eagan Art Festival, The Link, Meals on Wheels and more. Learn more about the Eagan Foundation at eaganfoundation.org. 

Action at the Capitol

Sunday Liquor Sales

Last week, the House of Representatives voted to approve Sunday liquor sales and Monday, the Minnesota Senate followed suit. This issue is an annual rite of spring at the State Capitol, and attempts to legalize Sunday sales have been regularly defeated due to concerns from small business owners. However, this year is different. Passage in the Legislature was helped along by an important compromise proposal that sought to address some of the concern of small “mom and pop” liquor storeowners. I voted for the compromise proposal, and this may be the year that Sunday liquor sales becomes law in Minnesota. 

Real ID

HF 3 would bring Minnesota into compliance with the federal Real Id requirements, allowing Minnesotans to board airplanes and enter federal and military facilities. Unfortunately, the bill passed by the House contains a controversial and unnecessary provision that targets immigrants and increases costs to state and local governments. To be clear, undocumented immigrants are not able to obtain RealID compliant licenses. The insistence by the House author to include this provision slows the passage of RealID. Minnesota business groups and military organizations are urging quick passage of the bill so that Minnesotans are able to travel across the country and visit military bases. I am supportive of quick action on Real ID, without the addition of unnecessary provisions to the bill.  

State Budget Forecast

Tuesday, the office of Minnesota Management and Budget released the updated state budget numbers. The news for Minnesota is good. For the fourth year, Minnesota is projecting a positive budget balance, and the projections show that the state has a structurally balanced budget for at least four years. In addition, Minnesota has once again met its obligations to its rainy day fund, which has lead to the reinstatement of our AAA finance rating from Fitch. This news is quite a change from my first term in office when our state had faced a decade of budget crises, where our bond rating was downgraded, where our state was unable to meet obligations to schools, to higher education and to transportation infrastructure. 

The February budget forecast announcement is an important step in our biennial budget process. House members now await budget targets so that we can create our budgets in each division. I serve on Health and Human Services Finance, and advocates are anxious to know if the House leadership is willing to invest in priorities such as a long-promised pay increase for homecare workers, or funding to create additional shelters for youth who have been sexually trafficked, or additional safety resources for the St. Peter Security Hospital. These priorities have been on the table for years, but have yet to receive the vital resources—instead we have made significant cuts to HHS. I am advocating that we invest in these long overdue promises that promote dignity and safety. 

Meetings with Constituents

I continue to enjoy daily meetings with constituents who are coming to the capitol to advocate on a wide variety of issues include Arts and Legacy investments, school nutrition, higher education support, and transportation infrastructure investments. I had a great time getting to meet with these students from St. Catherine University—my almamater!

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Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.

 

Sincerely, 

Laurie Halverson

 

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