Dear Neighbors,
Minnesota received positive news on the COVID-19 vaccine front this week: the pace of vaccination has picked up significantly, we’re on track to exceed the goal of vaccinating 70% of Minnesotans 65 and older by the end of the month, and as of Wednesday, the CDC ranked Minnesota 3rd among states for the percentage of doses received that have been administered. I’m optimistic that the arrival of the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine in our state will only help quicken efforts to get as many shots into arms as possible.
To date, 975,781 Minnesotans have received a first dose of the vaccine, with 516,422 completing the series.
If you haven’t done so yet, I encourage you to sign up for Minnesota’s Vaccine Connector, which will notify you when you’re eligible and connect you with vaccination opportunities.
Survey
Hearing from and engaging with community members is the most important part of public service. I hope you’ll take a moment to share your input with me on various issues moving through the House by taking my 2021 legislative survey. Questions vary from how you’ve been impacted by the pandemic to what your thoughts are on adult-use cannabis legalization. Thanks in advance for sharing your views!
Legislation Progress
Our work continues in the Minnesota Legislature. Over the past week, House and Senate committees have been working into the evening, carefully vetting, and reviewing legislation to help get our state on track post-pandemic. This year has been understandably challenging for our youth, and this week, I presented a few of my bills to support students and their healthy development. You can read more about them below:
MN Youth Council
This week, I presented my bill that would invest in the Minnesota Youth Council. Current and former MYC representatives Paula Akakpo, Ava Kalenze, Neese Parker, Weston Loughmiller, D’Andre Gordon and Bridget Westrum gave testimony that spoke to the importance of MYC to the Minnesota legislature and our state.
Protecting Early Childhood Develoapment
I presented my bill to limit individual screens for students in preschool and kindergarten in the Early Childhood Education Finance and Policy committee this week. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screens before 18 months and no more than 1 hour per day for ages 2-5. Developing brains need free play and relational experiences, not solitary individual screens. Good Morning America covered my legislation last year, and you can read more here.
Community Spotlight
It was great to meet with constituent Rob Wudlick, who is living with a spinal cord injury himself and does a tremendous amount of work and advocacy on behalf of Minnesotans living with spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury. He’s currently advocating for a bill that would maintain and strengthen the SCI/TBI research grant program. Thanks for all you do, Rob!
It was such an honor to present Randy Maluchnik with a House Resolution honoring his service to our community last night during the Carver County Veterans Council meeting tonight. He has served selflessly in so many different capacities: a veteran, an advocate for veterans and their families, and a dedicated and hard working Carver County Commissioner, to name just a few. Thank you for your service, Randy!
Upcoming Town Hall Meeting- Save the Date!
I’m looking forward to our next opportunity to gather online for a virtual town hall meeting on Saturday, March 20 at 10:00 a.m. Stay tuned for details on how you can join.
Keep in Touch
Please continue to reach out anytime at rep.kelly.morrison@house.mn or 651-296-4315 with questions, input, or to let me know how I can be of assistance.
Thank you for the honor of representing our 33B residents and families in the Minnesota House!
Enjoy the beautiful weekend.
Take care,
Kelly