Category: SD46

CAPITOL UPDATE: END OF SESSION 2019

It was an honor to serve the Senate District 46 community during the 2019 legislative session. This year, the only divided state Legislature in the United States found a way to strike a compromise aimed at moving our state forward. With Governor Tim Walz at the helm of the executive branch for the first time, a newly-elected and Democratic-controlled House, and a slim Republican-controlled Senate, there was much winning and losing for both sides in the final compromise.

We successfully fought off cuts to programs and crucial services that millions of Minnesotans depend on every day. We also succeeded in furthering investments in E-12 education, higher education and public safety, passed a bill that intends to mitigate the opioid crisis, continued the provider tax at a 1.8% level, and agreed to many other important measures that will assist in moving our state in the right direction. However, I am disheartened by the lack of progress in some areas or even the outright blockade of sound bipartisan bills. Continue reading “Sen. Ron Latz (SD46) Update: June 10, 2019”

CAPITOL UPDATE SPECIAL SESSION 2019

Recently, the Legislature adjourned until Tuesday, February 11, 2020. However, much of the Legislature’s 2019 work is yet to be completed. With a $48 billion agreement between the Senate, House, and Governor, a Special Session is happening now. I am confident that the three sides can come together and find a compromise in a timely manner, but that task is often difficult to complete in a divided government.

Senator Latz thanked a Hmong veteran who served in the U.S. Vietnam War on April 30 during the celebration of the dedication of Hmong Veterans Day. Pictured to the right is Attorney General Keith Ellison and Senator Foung Hawj. We thank all of the Hmong veterans for their brave service to our country.

Included in the agreement that was struck Sunday evening were global budget targets. These global targets are essentially an agreement on the amount of funding each committee receives with some micro-level details, but leaves room for negotiations between the three parties. For example, the Governor and Legislature agreed to remove the Provider Tax sunset and settle at the reduced rate of 1.8% – compared to 2.0% previously – in the Health and Human Services budget. However, other policy provisions and budget items are in the process of being negotiated between the three parties. Continue reading “Sen. Ron Latz (SD46) Update: May 25, 2019”

CAPITOL UPDATE APRIL 12, 2019

As the Minnesota Legislature reached its third deadline on April 12, committees produced packages of budget bills and other policy-related omnibus bills. As the minority lead on the Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee, I was very disappointed that a number of important state initiatives, some of which are outlined below, were left out of this particular majority-led caucus budget bill.

The Senate majority caucus has the power to put forth a budget that reflects their priorities. This week, the Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee put forth a budget that would cut funding to our state’s many public safety criminal investigation and prevention programs. A budget is the ultimate moral document because the money that we spend as a state reflects those philosophical and moral priorities. It’s not merely about whether you agree with the Governor. This is a choice by the Senate majority caucus to cut funding for a program that helps our veterans coming back home to prevent domestic violence and save their families as well as themselves. This is a choice by the Senate majority caucus to cut funding for the Department of Corrections that will save the lives of our corrections officers and other offenders living in those facilities, and whether we’ll have the funding to treat offenders so when they go back to their homes and their community, they aren’t reoffending and creating more victims. The budget put forward by the Senate majority is their preferred budget, and I don’t accept it as simply a negotiating ploy. They must do better. If you’d like to see my full committee speech, please click on the YouTube link below. Continue reading “Sen. Ron Latz (SD46) Update: April 12, 2019”