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Legislative News and Views - Rep. John Poston (R)

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Capitol Newsletter

Friday, February 24, 2017

Dear Neighbor,

This past weekend, I attended the Cass County Republican BPOU meeting. It was great to hear from folks in our community about the issues important to them for this session.

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I also toured the new addition to the Central Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge. They added more facilities for outpatient care.

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This week, I met with students from Central Lakes College, and Minnesota State Community and Technical College-Wadena.

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I also met with the Minnesota Telecom Alliance to discuss broadband coverage in our area and Lora Foust (Occupational Therapist) from Wadena.

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I was also visited by Staples Motley FFA students.

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Last Friday, I was appointed to serve on the Legislative Water Commission. The Commission was established to review water policy reports and recommendations of the Environmental Quality Board, the Board of Water and Soil Resources, the Pollution Control Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Health, the Department of Agriculture, the Metropolitan Council, and other water-related reports. The Commission then makes recommendations to assist in formulating legislation.

REAL ID Compliance:

On Thursday, The House passed House File 3, which puts Minnesota in compliance with a federal law, known as the REAL ID Act.

To recap: the U.S. Congress passed REAL ID in 2005 with the intention to make it more difficult for potential terrorists to obtain a fraudulent identification card. The state of Minnesota needs to be in compliance by January 22, 2018; if the state is not compliant by then, Minnesotans will not be able to board airplanes, or visit military bases and federal buildings.

The differences between what a REAL ID compliant license would look like and the current driver's license are minor. The REAL ID verifies the license holder’s legal status in the United States and ensures they are not licensed in more than one state. The bill that passed Thursday allows for a dual track system for Minnesotans to become REAL ID compliant; you can either apply to get a REAL ID, or use your current state driver's license and a passport as your forms of identification.

I am hopeful for swift action by the Senate and for the Governor’s signature.

 

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If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns regarding any issue related to state government, please feel free to contact me at either 651-296-4293, or rep.john.poston@house.mn.

Sincerely,

John