Category: SD50

Dear Neighbors,

As we prepare ourselves for the 2020 Legislative Session, this week, Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) released their latest budget and economic forecast, which we’ll use as a guide for our work next session.

Our state budget forecast projected a $1.3 billion surplus. Our state’s fiscal stability is good news, but there is reason for caution and no reason for complacency. The projected surplus is not the same as “money in the bank.” It doesn’t account for inflation and could change. And the reality is far too many Minnesotans are struggling to get by. Health care, housing, and child care costs continue to place a heavy burden on Minnesota and our state’s racial disparities are unacceptable. Our focus must remain on the kinds of investments that will create economic security for all.

Republicans are already trying to use today’s surplus to push their agenda for giveaways to the corporations and ultra-wealthy. Of course, if the state faced a deficit they would be pushing this same, tired, trickle-down agenda that has never yielded positive results – at least not for the vast majority of Minnesotans. We must reject it and move forward with a bold agenda to solve our housing crisis, address the high cost of health care and prescription drugs, and eliminate racial disparities. Continue reading “Rep. Michael Howard Update: December 6, 2019”

Recent ruling underscores need for Police Officer Task Force

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – With the recent ruling that a former Minneapolis police officer can be reinstated after he was fired for kicking and severely injuring a man that was handcuffed, Rep. Howard (DFL – Richfield) renewed his call for reform to promote excellence in policing. This ruling is the latest example of an officer who was fired for a serious breach of the public trust being reinstated. Howard is calling for passage of legislation he authored last session to create a Peace Officer Excellence Task Force to bring a diverse group of stakeholders together to study this issue and provide recommendations to the Legislature to repair a broken system.

“Police officers that seriously betray the public trust should face serious consequences, but current systems in place reveal a broken process that is fracturing the trust that Minnesotans have in law enforcement,” said Howard. “The vast majority of police officers serve our communities with dignity and respect, and many departments are taking important steps to strengthen trust with their community. The excellent work of Minnesota’s public safety officers is threatened by a broken system, and it’s necessary that we all come together to make changes.”

Rep. Howard introduced the task force legislation in response to an incident in which a Richfield police officer was reinstated by an arbitrator after being fired for striking a Somali youth and then failing to report it. That case was taken to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which stated “No doubt many observers would find this officer’s actions disturbing,” but found the state statutes and city contracts provided no alternative remedy but to uphold the decision of the arbitrator. Continue reading “Rep. Howard calls for reform to promote excellence in policing”

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Rep. Michael Howard (DFL, Richfield), vice chair of the Minnesota House Housing Finance and Policy Division, released the following statement in support of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s “Homes for All Act” announced today:

“We need bold solutions if we are to meet the crisis facing Minnesota families who cannot afford their homes, and Congresswoman Omar’s plan is the kind of bold thinking we need at all levels of government,” said Rep. Howard. “Every Minnesotan should have access to housing stability. This aspirational goal is within reach, but only if we take an all-hands-on-deck approach to our housing crisis and take urgent action across the continuum of housing. That means solutions to eliminating student homelessness, building new homes, preserving existing affordable housing, creating accessible housing and empowering renters. We can do this.”

The “Homes for All Act” would establish a permanent federal funding stream for making homes more affordable, while also lifting the federal prohibition on funding new public housing projects. Over the next decade, Congresswoman Omar’s plan would invest $1 trillion in affordable housing projects, including the creation of 12 million new housing units.

In Minnesota alone, more than a quarter of Minnesotans pay more than they can afford on their housing. In addition, Wilder Research released a study earlier this year showing a 10% increase in those experiencing homelessness over the last three years, many of them children.

Rep. Howard said he looks forward to the 2020 session and efforts to make housing affordability solutions a key priority.