Dear Neighbors,
I hope you’ve recovered from the jump forward to daylight saving time. I’ve been tired all week! I support doing away with the spring forward and fall back every year. I don’t seem to be alone either — legislation has started moving through committees in both the House and Senate! The tricky question is whether to stick with daylight saving time or standard time. Stay tuned — I think there will be more discussion on the topic.
Here’s a quick update from the Capitol.
Protecting and expanding access to reproductive health
On Thursday, I joined fellow legislators and advocates in support of reproductive health care and family planning services. Birth control is something that 9 in 10 women will rely on during their lifetimes. It is critical to educational and economic advancement for women, on top of its numerous health benefits.
Reproductive health care is basic health care for the majority of Minnesotans. The House DFL is working to protect and expand access to reproductive health care in Minnesota. We believe that women’s health care decisions should be between women and their doctors — not between women and politicians or their employers.
Legislature passes expanded disaster recovery loan program for farmers
The House and Senate unanimously passed legislation to expand a disaster recovery loan program for Minnesota farmers. The bill allows the Rural Finance Authority to declare a market emergency, which would free up funding for a disaster recovery loan program to go to farmers suffering weather-related losses not covered by insurance.
Heavy snow has damaged dozens of agricultural buildings across the state, injuring or killing animals, and damaging equipment. This comes as our farmers have had to deal with years of low commodity prices and high costs.
The success of Minnesota farmers is essential to the economic success of our entire state. When farmers do well, we all do well.
You can learn more here.
Priority legislation moving through committees
This Friday marked the first committee deadline in the Legislature, so legislators have been hard at work in committee advancing important pieces of legislation.
Major bills moving through committee this week included:
- Hands-free cell phone use while driving
- Funding for broadband in rural Minnesota
- 100 percent renewable energy by 2050
- Paid Family & Medical Leave
- Addressing and preventing elder abuse
- Tackling the high cost of insulin
- Banning conversion therapy
- Moratorium on non-profit to for-profit HMO conversions
- Affordable health care through ONECare
- The Protect Access to Contraception Act and Family Planning Grants
- Driver’s Licenses for All
Over the next few weeks, we will unveil our House budget and bills for education, health care, infrastructure, and more.
Cost of new wind and solar energy continues to fall in Minnesota
A recent report found the cost of deploying wind and solar energy declined 16 percent and 23 percent respectively over the past year, and renewable generation is up 37 percent over the last five years. We reached our renewable energy goal — 25 percent of energy from renewable sources by 2025 — seven years early. Now is the time to be bold and continue growing our clean energy economy.
You can read more here.
New episode of the Minnesota Values Podcast on the Great Start for All Minnesota Children Act
The Minnesota Values Podcast is a show that takes you behind the scenes at the State Capitol for a conversation about how legislators are putting Minnesotans’ values into action.
This week, co-hosts Rep. Jamie Long and Rep. Liz Olson interviewed Rep. Carlie Kotyza-Witthuhn of Eden Prairie. Rep. Koytza-Witthun is the chief sponsor of House File 1 — the Great Star For All Minnesota Children Act — the very first of our top 10 bills. It makes new investments in early learning, child care, prenatal care, and home visiting. Click here to listen to the new episode.
You can subscribe and listen to the Minnesota Values Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or at soundcloud.com/mnValuesPod.
As always, please contact me anytime with your input. I appreciate hearing from you! You can reach me at 651-296-4280 or at rep.melissa.hortman@house.mn. You can also keep up with what’s happening at the Capitol by liking my legislative Facebook page. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Melissa Hortman