Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Every year, Senator Mary Kiffmeyer and I host multiple town halls around our community which we absolutely love because of the opportunity to meet with the great people of our community, have great conversations, and answer questions! Due to COVID this year however, Sen. Kiffmeyer and I will be hosting our annual town hall live online this coming Tuesday evening February 2nd from 5:30 – 6:30 PM. The online live-stream will be able to viewed via the following Facebook link here. Please reply to this email to submit questions you have for us.
GOVERNOR WALZ PROPOSES GIANT TAX HIKES
Tuesday this week Gov. Tim Walz released his whopping $52.4 spending proposal for the 2021-22 biennium. His plan includes a $1.7 billion tax increase on hardworking Minnesotans.
I oppose tax increases. Individuals, families, and businesses across our great community and state continue to be crushed with the pain of reduced income and job losses resulting from Gov. Walz shutting Minnesota down with reckless, one-size-fits-all mandates for nearly a year now. Minnesota families have tightened their budgets over the past year and government absolutely must do the same.
In addition to crafting a budget to fund all of state government for the coming two years, the projected $1.2 billion deficit for the previous two-year budget cycle must be resolved. In other words, the state overspent $1.2 billion beyond what was received from tax revenue collection. Hardworking Minnesota families and Main Street businesses expect and deserve a budget that protects them from harmful and immoral tax hikes at a time when people have lost their jobs.
A new two-year budget by June 30 to avoid a state government shutdown.
LETTER TO GOVERNOR WALZ
This week my Wright County legislative colleagues Reps. Joe McDonald and Marion O’Neill as well as Senators Mary Kiffmeyer and Bruce Anderson joined me sending a joint letter to Gov. Walz after we learned his administration cancelled the COVID vaccinations originally promised to Wright County area school districts who are utilizing in-person learning. The Gov. Walz administration instead redirected the vaccinations to urban/metro area districts who are utilizing only distance-learning. A copy of the joint letter can be viewed at this link.
BILL INTRODUCTIONS
I’m working hard on dozens of bills related to K-12 school funding, election integrity, roads and bridges transportation, pro-life, pro-second amendment, data privacy, and much, much more. Below is a list of the bills I introduced this week as I continue drafting additional bills for the coming weeks.
- H. F. 341, A bill for an act relating to K-12 education; creating the Student Data Privacy Act
- H. F. 420, A bill for an act relating to energy; repealing the current prohibition which prevents construction of new nuclear power plants in MN
- H. F. 423, A resolution memorializing Congress and the President to support the principles of federalism
- H. F. 425, A bill for an act relating to K-12 equity in education finance; creating a minimum revenue guarantee for low revenue school districts
- H. F. 453, A bill for an act relating to elections; changing MN from presidential electors winner-take-all to being awarded by congressional district
- H. F. 454, A bill for an act relating to taxation; providing a tax deduction for the cost of health insurance premiums
- H. F. 455, A bill for an act relating to K-12 equity in education finance; creating a new source of state aid for school districts with low general education revenue and low property wealth per pupil
- H. F. 456, A bill for an act relating to higher education; prohibiting those with illegal immigration status from being taxpayer subsidized with lower, in-state resident tuition rates at colleges and universities
- H. F. 457, A bill for an act relating to government data practices; requiring colleges and universities to keep certain student information private and requiring consent before collecting certain types of student location data
- H. F. 461, A bill for an act relating to crime; providing for the crime of digital picture and recording misrepresentation, more commonly known as deepfake
- H. F. 462, A bill for an act relating to public safety; expanding crime of unauthorized computer access to include accessing a computer without penetrating a security system
- H. F. 465, A bill for an act relating to public safety; limiting use of facial recognition technology
- H. F. 466, A bill for an act relating to public safety; prohibiting any state loan, grant, or assistance for persons convicted of offense related to protest, demonstration, rally, civil unrest, or march
STAYING IN TOUCH
Each and every day I’m continuously humbled at the opportunity to represent and fight for the values and priorities of our great community!
Please contact me to share any issues, concerns, or feedback you have to assist me best represent you. The best way to reach me is by email at Rep.Eric.Lucero@House.MN or by phone at 651-296-1534.
Sincerely,
Eric Lucero
State Representative District 30B Albertville, Hanover, Otsego, Saint Michael, and the Wright County portion of Dayton