Sen. John Hoffman (SD36) Update: May 15, 2021

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Session is coming to a close and we have yet to have budget targets for our committees. This means that we will be coming together in special session, likely June. We must complete our budgets and come to an agreement in June because if we do not and enter July, we risk a government shutdown of state services in Minnesota.

I am confident we will come to agreement on the many important issues before us and that we will move forward together. This does give us more time to work on these issues and ensure we have completely and thoroughly vetted every budget and each bill before passing it.

Monday I will send more details as I will be better informed about next steps and what it will take to get our work done. While it will take a bit longer, we are nearly there. As always, stay in touch and I’ll do my best to keep you informed.

John

Agriculture (SF 958): met on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday to adopt some agreed upon policy provisions on pesticide applicator licensing and cottage food laws; waiting on target before starting budget work in earnest

Commerce/Energy (SF 972): met briefly on Monday to adopt some noncontroversial provisions; no meetings for the remainder of the week.

Housing (HF 1077): met on Monday and adopted some/similar provisions; no meetings for the rest of the week.

Jobs and Economic Development (SF 1098): met on Monday and adopted some provisions related to: fire sprinklers in public high rise apartments, wedding barns, certified building officials continuing education, and donations to State Services for the Blind. The conference committee did not meet for the remainder of the week.

Judiciary (SF 970): met on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday with the House, making additional offers each time the House had the gavel. Senate Republicans have yet to respond to any of the House offers. The Senate Chair didn’t meet on Wednesday, saying the Senate needed time to consider the provisions in the House offer and that he would prefer to see a global offer. The Senate has the gavel on Friday, and it is uncertain if the conference committee will meet.

State Government (HF 1952): met Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. On Monday, the committee unanimously adopted the same and similar language related to elections policy that was vetted by the Secretary of State, mostly derived from the OSS technical bill. Tuesday, the committee heard testimony on the Veterans Restorative Justice Act (VRJA) language.

On Wednesday, the committee heard testimony from state agencies, unions, and other stakeholders on a proposal in both the senate and house language to implement a reverse auction for a pharmacy benefit manager through SEGIP. No agreement was reached. The House has the gavel on Friday and plans to further discuss military code of justice modifications and go through additional policy provisions from Article 2 that have not yet been addressed.

Taxes (HF 991): met each day to discuss details of the bills. The U.S. Treasury released final guidance on how states are allowed to spend federal funds passed through the American Rescue Plan. On Tuesday, Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter provided comments on this guidance to the conference committee. He is scheduled to provide another update on Friday, hopefully with more concrete numbers once staff have had an opportunity to interpret the information.

Transportation (HF 1684): met only on Monday to adopt various non-controversial House and Senate only provisions that had all been previously agreed upon. The House has the gavel on Friday and plans to hear a MnDOT presentation on project selection, trunk highway spending, and contracting issues.

Legacy (HF 1709): has not met since May 5.

Health and Human Services (HF 2128): met each day to discuss the differences between both bills. There has been good discussion, but little progress made for major funding pieces without global targets. Same and similar policy language has slowly been adopted over the week.

Environment (SF 959): met several times, no agreements reached.

E-12 Education (HF1065): met each day but made very little progress. Non-exclusionary discipline procedures remain a sticking point, with the Senate Republicans refusing to accept the K-3 non-dismissal requirement. Good news: last Friday (May 7), the anti-lunch shaming policy was adopted as well as the seizure teacher training provisions. There is also potential future agreement on Teachers of Color provisions, but no decisions yet on the funding.

Higher Education (SF975): met only twice this week; adopted a $6,500 cap for the child care grants. Discussion on Thursday about federal COVID-19 funding and guidance for institutional use.

Thank You!

It is my greatest honor to represent you the citizens of Brooklyn Park, Champlin and Coon Rapids here at our great state capitol. In addition to representing you, I absolutely enjoy it when you come visit. You must schedule with our office to arrange an appointment before any arrival, and we also do Zoom meetings! So reach out and tell me what matters to you or schedule an appointment so I can continue working on your behalf. You can reach me by email at sen.john.hoffman@senate.mn or by phone at 651-296-4154. I am at 95 University Avenue Suite 2235 in the Minnesota Senate Building.

Sincerely,

Following New CDC Guidance, The Governor Announces End to Statewide Face Covering Requirement

Minnesota will align with CDC guidance and recommend unvaccinated Minnesotans continue to wear face coverings indoors

The Governor announced the end of Minnesota’s statewide mask requirement, aligning Minnesota with new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance on face coverings.

Minnesotans who are not fully vaccinated are strongly recommended to wear face coverings indoors.

Private businesses and local municipalities may still put in place face covering requirements. And Minnesota’s Safe Learning Plan, along with the existing face covering guidance for schools and child care settings, remain in effect.

The Governor said this move is possible because vaccines have proven to be effective. Once you are fully vaccinated you are protected. You can confidently return to the people you love and things that you miss – all without a mask. The message is clear — get vaccinated and let’s put the pandemic behind us once and for all.

The CDC announced Thursday that masks are no longer required for fully-vaccinated individuals, either indoors or outside. Minnesotans should follow CDC guidance and wear masks in medical settings and on public transportation, whether or not they are fully vaccinated.

Vaccine Eligibility

Following the Food and Drug Administration’s authorization of Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for 12-to-15-year-olds, Governor Walz announced that Minnesota is ready to begin vaccinating this age group this week.

There are a number of ways to get a Pfizer vaccine:

Vaccine Connector: You can directly sign up for an appointment at one of the state Community Vaccination Program locations at VaccineConnector.mn.gov. Walk-ins for Minnesotans 12+ will be accepted at state community vaccination sites administering Pfizer vaccines in Bloomington (Mall of America), Saint Paul (Roy Wilkins Auditorium), Lino Lakes and Oakdale.
Vaccine Locator Map: You can use the Vaccine Locator Map to search for providers who are offering COVID-19 vaccine to Minnesotans ages 12 and older.
Vaccine Finder: You can also find COVID-19 vaccine appointments at Vaccines.gov, which allows you to filter by vaccine manufacturer and search for only Pfizer vaccine appointments.

Health Care Provider: You can also contact your child’s primary health care provider, local public health department, or a local

Intern sign off:

To Senator Hoffman’s constituents,

Throughout this legislative session, four interns have worked diligently to support Senator Hoffman and his legislative agenda. The four of us began working for the senator during his reelection campaign, where we spoke to many of you on the phone, asking for your support. We are all college freshmen attending universities in Minnesota, and for some of us, this has been our first legislative internship.

Working for Senator Hoffman, we have all learned the importance of bipartisanship and the value of public service. During these increasingly partisan times, we had the honor of watching Senator Hoffman collaborate with his allies on both sides of the aisle. With the help of Democrats and Republicans alike, Senator Hoffman has put forward the most bills of any State Senator this session. Furthermore, Senator Hoffman’s persistence in helping Minnesotans with disabilities is commendable. While our experiences as interns differ, we have all learned a great deal about the challenges people face when they have a disability.

From our time working together, we hope that, in some way, we have contributed to Minnesota’s democracy. Second, we hope that you will continue to support Senator Hoffman. And finally, we hope we have served you, the constituents, well.

Thank you,

—The interns

local News:

As a class that finished high school without a graduation, we sincerely congratulate the Annoka-Hennepin class of 2021!

Happy Ramadan everybody!

I’m guessing that, like me, you’ve never heard of a music listening contest before. But give this a read and I’m sure you’ll be as impressed as I was! Congratulations Champlin Park!

“WOOO LET’S GO HOCKEY!!! YEAH!!” —Every Minnesota hockey fan