A message from your Senator
Constituents and friends,
We continue to work towards passing Minnesota’s two-year budget before the July 1 state shutdown deadline, a task that is both very achievable and non-negotiable. Thus far, we have passed the omnibus Agriculture, Higher Education, Legacy, Jobs, Commerce & Energy, and Transportation budget bills, but several others remain unpassed, including E-12 Education, Housing, Taxes, and Capital Investment. Those will occupy our time and attention across the weekend and early next week.
The passage of the Jobs bill was particularly controversial. Senator Karla Bigham proposed a refinery safety amendment during floor debate on the bill last Friday, the Safe and Skilled Worker Act, that would require Minnesota’s petroleum refineries to employ only skilled, properly-trained workers – truly a no-brainer from the standpoint of both worker and community safety, given the extensive and geographically-widespread damage that can result from refinery accidents. We passed the Act and added it to the Jobs bill on Friday by a large, bipartisan majority vote, 50-17.
However, by Monday, my Republican colleagues had changed their minds, and they used their power as our chamber’s majority party to pull the Jobs bill back to the Finance Committee and remove that Act. I was incredibly disappointed by this example of pure partisanship used to the detriment of our state, but we haven’t given up on Senator Bigham’s provision, and intend to work towards its inclusion in a different budget bill. I spoke on the Senate floor on Monday about my support for the Act, rooted in my career experience, which you can view below.
Community News & Events
Plymouth will be the site of the first expansion of Silk Road Medical, a medical equipment development and manufacturing company, outside their home state of California – creating 67 jobs for highly-skilled Minnesotans who will join the fight against artery disease. It’s very exciting and pride-inducing to see our community attract this caliber of talent!
The popular Minnetonka Summer Fest will be held tomorrow, June 26, from 4-10:30 pm at Civic Center Park. You can check out the schedule of events here.
The Minnetonka and Plymouth farmers markets will both take place next week. The Minnetonka market is open from 3-7 pm every Tuesday at Civic Center Park, and the Plymouth market is open from 2:30-6:30 pm every Wednesday at Parkers Lake Playfield.
The Minnetonka City Council will meet on Monday, June 28 at 6:30 pm. The agenda and other information can be found here.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with input, questions, or concerns!