State Issues 27 , CD3 DFL

House Passes Phillips Bill to Rename Wayzata Post Office in Honor of Former Rep. Jim Ramstad

Phillips: “May his name grace the Post Office in the town he loved, and the town that loved him back, for generations to come.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill authored by Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) to rename the Wayzata Post Office in honor of former Minnesota Rep. Jim Ramstad. The legislation was cosponsored by the entire Minnesota Delegation and now moves to the Senate, where Sen. Amy Klobuchar (MN) leads the companion proposal.

Phillips, who represents the same district Ramstad once did, offered a tribute to the late statesman before the vote. Watch here.

Remarks as prepared:

Madam speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 772, to designate the Post Office in—and I’ll say it slowly—Wayzata, Minnesota, on the shores of Lake Minnetonka, as the Jim Ramstad Post Office.

House Early Childhood Finance and Policy Committee advances paid family and medical leave

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, the House Early Childhood Finance and Policy Committee advanced legislation that expands access to paid family and medical leave. The bill, authored by Rep. Ruth Richardson (DFL – Mendota Heights), gives Minnesota workers time to bond with a new baby, care for a family member, or recover from illness.

“The first weeks after birth are a critical time in the life of a child and a family,” said Rep. Dave Pinto (DFL – St. Paul), the chair of the committee. “Paid family and medical leave gives workers time to be with their loved ones during the most joyful and challenging moments of their lives. House DFLers are committed to providing greater economic security for working families and ensuring that our youngest Minnesotans get the great start in life that they deserve.”

The legislation provides workers with up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave per year. Minnesotans could apply for leave to bond with a new child, take care of a family member, or get medical attention for themselves. While on leave, workers would receive a percentage of their regular wages.

In the Know: February 24, 2021

Governor Tim Walz
Gov. Walz highlights partnerships with community organizations to connect Minnesotans with COVID-19 vaccine, KSTP
Walz to soon announce new COVID-19 vaccine priority groups, Star Tribune
GOV. WALZ ANNOUNCES NEW SNAP OUTREACH CAMPAIGN, KIMT3

Minnesota Legislature
New bill would allow some elderly inmates to be released early, Star Tribune
Minnesota Democrats renew push for universal 12-week paid family leave protections, West Central Tribune
Lawsuit pushes Minnesota’s redistricting process into the courts, where it was likely to end up anyway, MinnPost
MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION PASSES IN MINNESOTA HOUSE COMMITTEE VOTE, KIMT3

Minnesota News
Minnesota PUC to formally investigate surge in gas prices, KARE 11
Federal Reserve Study Shows Minnesota Mothers Were Disproportionately Hit By Pandemic Job Losses, WCCO
Latest on COVID-19 in MN: Waiting on shots as pandemic picture improves, MPR

Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Weekly Update: February 19, 2021

More Than 1 Million COVID-19 Vaccine Doses Administered to Minnesotans

Minnesotans have received more than one million doses of COVID-19 vaccine, Governor Walz announced today. The state reported 1,016,210 doses had been administered as of today’s official report. The seven-day rolling average of doses administered is now 29,705, a pace that has accelerated since Governor Walz took action to increase the rate of vaccinations across the state.

Minnesotans, Organizations, Legislators Launch 2021 Driver’s Licenses for All Legislation

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA. — On Feb. 18, Minnesotans and state lawmakers kicked off the 2021 initiative to provide driver’s licenses for all regardless of immigration status. Video of the press conference featuring Minnesotans’ personal stories is available here.

“By denying the right to a driver’s license we’re denying people living in our communities access to jobs and opportunity, endangering public safety, and criminalizing families’ efforts to participate in civic life,” added state Representative Aisha Gomez (DFL – Minneapolis). “This denial hurts families, businesses, and all of Minnesota. We have worked on this issue for years and shown repeatedly how this would benefit our state, let’s finally make roads safer, and reject a politics that would divide people living side by side as neighbors.”

All Minnesotans used to be able to get a driver’s license regardless of immigration status, until the rule was changed in 2003, making it impossible for undocumented immigrants to obtain a legal driver’s license.

“I have lots of family and friends in MN who don’t have a license and are constantly at risk of being torn apart from their families by ICE. This is a form of torture and punishment. A license should NOT be treated as a privilege that some politicians use to divide certain communities,” said Carlos Urrutia, an ISAIAH faith leader. “We should make sure undocumented immigrants have a driver’s license under a belief that we are created and loved by God and we are deserving of being connected to our families no matter who we are or what our immigration status is.”

The driver’s license proposal is supported by a statewide coalition of non-profit organizations, unions, immigrants’ rights advocates, community-based groups and collectives, faith-based organizations, workers’ rights advocates, and businesses. In 2019, the Minnesota House made history by passing the same legislation for the first time.

“All Minnesotans should be able to work, live and take care of their families, but COVID-19 is making it even harder for workers and families to just get by,” said Majority Leader Ryan Winkler, the bill’s chief author. “Providing a driver’s license to everyone who can pass a test and buy insurance will improve public safety for everyone, help the state economy, and treat our immigrant communities with dignity and respect. Immigrants come here for the promise of freedom and opportunity, and they contribute to the culture, economy, and community of our state. They are bold, brave, and hard working; and they are among the people who have sacrificed and risked the most to keep all of us healthy and safe during the pandemic.”

Public hearings about House File 1163 are in the process of being scheduled and will be announced soon.

Senate DFL Week in Review: September 19, 2021

Senate DFL announces 2021 legislative priorities

As the most diverse caucus in the history of the Minnesota Senate, Senate DFLers offer a vision for a better Minnesota with priorities that will improve people’s lives and protect their fundamental rights. This week, members of the Senate DFL held a press conference to announce their priorities for the 2021 legislative session. Their goal is to be committed to work together to build the state all Minnesotans deserve. Read more >>

Minnesota launches the COVID-19 Vaccine Connector

A new tool launched this week will help Minnesotans find out when, where, and how to get their COVID-19 vaccine. Current eligibility for vaccines is still limited to Minnesotans over 65, health care workers, long-term care residents, childcare, and K-12 personnel, but the Vaccine Connector will be a helpful way to notify other Minnesotans once it’s their turn to get a shot and connect them to resources to schedule an appointment. Read more >>

Bill to reopen schools provides no resources to help with pandemic

Legislation passed this week in the Minnesota Senate that would prohibit future governor’s from directly safeguarding schools and students during peacetime emergencies. The bill provides no re-opening plans or resources for districts to use to keep students and staff safe. Although there have been seven special sessions in 2020, no hearings were held on school re-openings or other plans to help school districts with pandemic protocols or procedures. Read more >>

Minnesota unveils online COVID-19 vaccine tool, reopens lottery for seniors

Shortage of doses continues to frustrate providers.

Minnesota debuted an online COVID-19 Vaccine Connector on Thursday that will notify all residents when they are eligible for shots and give senior citizens immediate access to a lottery for appointments at state-operated sites.

While initial doses are reserved for 1.5 million seniors, health care workers, educators and long-term care residents, Gov. Tim Walz said the tool at least gives people confidence that they will know when it is their turn to get the vaccine. Registrants provide their birth date and contacts, but also can opt to enter demographic and employment information, which can be used later on to determine their vaccine eligibility.

“We still have a frustratingly limited vaccine supply from the federal government, but every Minnesotan should know their chance to get a vaccine will come,” Walz said. Continue reading.

House committees hold hearings on electric vehicles and transportation

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, the House Climate and Energy Finance and Policy Committee and the House Transportation Finance and Policy Committee both held hearings on electric vehicles and transportation.

“In Minnesota, transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions,” said Rep. Jamie Long, Chair of the Climate and Energy Finance and Policy Committee. “In order to combat climate change, we need to find clean and convenient ways for Minnesotans to travel in their communities and throughout the state. Investing in electric vehicles and other bold solutions will help protect our air and our planet for generations to come.”

“Today we heard bold and visionary strategies to electrify the transportation sector,” said Rep. Frank Hornstein (DFL – Minneapolis), Chair of the Transportation Finance and Policy Committee. “Electric vehicles are a key part of addressing the climate crisis and creating jobs in the clean energy economy.”

House Public Safety Committee discusses Rep. Moller bill to update state criminal sexual conduct code

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Thursday, the House Public Safety & Criminal Justice Reform Committee approved legislation authored by Rep. Kelly Moller (DFL – Shoreview) to comprehensively update Minnesota’s criminal sexual conduct (CSC) statute. In 2019, Rep. Moller successfully championed legislation to create a working group to fully examine the current law, which is full of contradictions, loopholes, and other shortcomings which all create barriers for survivors to receive justice. That working group has completed its final report, and Rep. Moller’s bill reflects those recommendations.

“This bipartisan bill is a major step toward the systemic change survivors are counting on to deliver justice, hold offenders accountable, and come closer to our shared goal of ending sexual violence,” Rep. Moller said. “Thank you to the working group members for taking on this challenge, and most importantly, to the brave survivors who have continued to tell their stories, highlighting how the criminal justice system has failed them. They share their stories in public knowing it won’t likely change the outcome regarding their own case, but don’t want the same thing to happen to someone else.”

The bill makes a wide variety of changes including:

Legislation establishing a new Department of Early Childhood advances

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Thursday, the House Early Childhood Finance and Policy Committee advanced legislation to establish a Department of Early Childhood. Under the bill, authored by Rep. Dave Pinto (DFL – St. Paul), early childhood programs that are currently administered by multiple state agencies would be transferred to a single, dedicated, cabinet-level agency.

“The earliest years of a child’s life set the foundation for everything that follows,” said Rep. Pinto, the chair of the committee. “But Minnesota’s programs focused on young children and their families are located deep within multiple separate agencies. This fragmented approach hinders coordination, accountability, and – most importantly – support for families.”

The bill creates a new state agency called the Department of Early Childhood to administer all of the state’s early childhood programs, including home visiting, child care and early learning, and many more. These programs are currently housed in the Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services.

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