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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Rob Ecklund (DFL)

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Legislative Update - January 31, 2019

Thursday, January 31, 2019
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Greetings Northlanders,

Yesterday, the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities held their annual Day at the Capitol. This was a good opportunity to listen to the priorities of our rural communities for the coming legislative session, namely a boost in local government aid, infrastructure improvements – including transportation and wastewater, addressing child care shortages, and investments in broadband. I enjoyed spending time with local officials including Councilmember Heidi Omerza and Mayor Chuck Novak of Ely, and thank them for traveling to St. Paul for this gathering despite the weather.

Essar Global

Earlier this week, the Minnesota DNR sent a letter to Mesabi Metallics CEO Gary Heasly indicating that they are working to debar Essar Global, parent company of the former Essar Steel project in Nashwauk, from doing business with the state of Minnesota. After many years of broken promises and efforts to throw sand in the gears from Essar, this is a positive step forward. I thank the DNR and Governor Walz for recognizing that on the Iron Range, we’ve been beyond patient, waiting over a decade to see this site come to life and create new job opportunities. These are our natural resources, and we deserve to have only companies with proven track records doing business on the Iron Range. Hopefully looking forward, Essar has no part in this.

Rep. Julie Sandstede of Hibbing and I released a statement which you can see here.

Addressing the Opioid Crisis

Wheels are in motion for bipartisan legislation to address the state’s opioid crisis. The impact from this continues to devastate families across the state, with too many of them especially here in northern Minnesota and in our tribal communities. Last week, the House Health and Human Services Policy Committee traveled to the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe to hear their input about how we can best partner on this issue. Yesterday, the committee approved a bill creating an Opioid Stewardship Program, a dedicated fund of money for prevention, treatment, and recovery strategies. Money for this would come in part from fees paid by pharmaceutical manufacturers, who, despite their enormous profits, have yet to be part of ending this crisis.

As this crisis continues to cause unspeakable tragedies here in the Northland and across the country, I’m committed to bipartisan solutions to save lives.

Paid Family Leave

Yesterday the House Labor Committee advanced legislation to enact a statewide Paid Family and Medical Leave policy. The hearing room was packed with Minnesotans voicing their strong support for this overdue measure to help ensure all families have a strong sense of economic security. Too many Minnesotans unfortunately don’t have any type of meaningful paid leave, leading to tough decisions about whether to return to work too early after giving birth, or going without pay to take care of a loved one.

The state policy would be modeled after unemployment insurance, with both employee and employer contributions, and would provide up to 12 weeks of leave. The United States is one of just a few countries worldwide to lack such a requirement, and it’s time for Minnesota to be a leader in this.

If you haven’t yet done so, I’d encourage you to check out my new State Representative Rob Ecklund Facebook page; “like” or “follow” it to stay up to date.

Please continue to reach out with your feedback, ideas and input. It’s an honor to represent you.

Sincerely,

Rob Ecklund

State Representative


Rep. Rob Ecklund
409 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155

www.house.mn/03A
 
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Chair, House Veterans and Military Affairs Policy and Finance Division

Phone: 651-296-2190
E-mail: rep.rob.ecklund@house.mn
Legislative Assistant: Josh Kilgard, 651-296-3918