2020 Special Session
The closing of the special session without completing all of the major work Minnesotans expected us to accomplish is extremely disappointing. We failed to pass a bonding bill that would have guaranteed jobs and made much needed improvements to our state’s infrastructure. We didn’t reach a compromise on long overdue law enforcement reforms. Also, no CARES bill was agreed upon that would have provided needed funding for cities and counties dealing with the COVID crisis. This session was quite possibly the worst I have seen in 26 years of serving my community.
There is no use pointing fingers. There is more than enough blame to go around. We need to regroup as a legislature and continue to work on compromises that will move our state forward. We as legislators should not wait until the next special session to get back to work. This is the time to work things out now through zoom legislative meetings and in person meetings of the leaders in the House, Senate, and Governor’s Office.
Youth and Adult Sports Guidance
Recently the MN Department of Health announced new guidance recommending that youth sports games and scrimmages will resume June 24th or later for outdoor sports, and July 1st or later for indoor sports.
MDH guidance seeks to balance the goals of minimizing disease transmission and allowing everyone to engage in sports activities that have important physical, emotional and social benefits.
The new state guidance was announced to give organizations, teams, and players time to prepare for returning to action this week. The guidance is described in detail on the MDH website at https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/coronavirus/sportsguide.pdfand at https://staysafe.mn.gov.
Small Business Relief Grants
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has announced that the Minnesota Small Business Relief Grants Program – which was approved by the Minnesota Legislature last week and signed by Governor Tim Walz last Tuesday – will begin accepting applications today, June 23rd. DEED will be accepting applications through July 2nd. A randomized, computer-generated lottery process will be used to select eligible businesses that will receive awards.
This program will provide $10,000 grants to small businesses that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses with 50 or fewer full-time employees are eligible. Half of the funding will go to businesses in Greater Minnesota and half to businesses in the seven-county Twin Cities metro area, as required by law.
Additional requirements include:
• $18 million for businesses with six or fewer full-time employees
• $10 million for minority business enterprises
• $2.5 million for veteran-owned businesses
• $2.5 million for women-owned businesses
• $2.5 million for operators of indoor retail and food markets with an ethnic cultural emphasis
To be eligible, businesses must have a permanent physical location in Minnesota and be majority owned by a permanent resident of Minnesota. Businesses must be able to demonstrate hardship as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. Additional eligibility requirements and application information can be found online here.
If you have any questions or wish to unsubscribe from this Newsletter please feel free to contact my office at 651-296-2556 or by email at sen.jerry.newton@senate.mn.
Thank you,
Jerry Newton
State Senator
District 37