Volume 6, Issue 6
February 12, 2012
Weekly Review Video
A weekly message from your Senator
Dear Constituents and Friends,
Before we get to the usual review of the week I wanted to take a moment to talk about the COVID-19 vaccine.
Governor Walz’s office sent out a vaccination update this week, pharmacies are now getting allocations of the COVID-19 vaccine. There will be 8,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine sent to Walgreens pharmacies around the state. There are 40 locations with the vaccine and they will be giving the doses to individuals ages 65+. To learn more about the COVID-19 vaccination at Walgreens and scheduling you can visit their website.
Walmart and Thrifty White will be administering more than 16,000 doses at locations across the state to adults ages 65 and older as well. To find the locations you can go to the following website: https://mn.gov/covid19/vaccine/find-vaccine/locations/index.jsp and type in your zip code and then it will give you all locations administering the vaccine close to you.
Local health providers have also been receiving doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. M Health Fairview, HealthPartners, North Memorial Health, Hennepin Healthcare, Allina Health have all been receiving doses and have their own process on getting the vaccine.
Educators, school staff, and childcare workers continue to get vaccinated as well through the pilot program. Minnesota is one of 15 states that have begun vaccinating teachers. For more information on vaccinating teachers you can visit the community vaccination program FAQ page.
On Monday, we held a press conference to address the past election results. H.R. 1 passed in the House with a bipartisan majority of 111 – 8, with only 8 republicans voting against the resolution. After the insurrection at the Capitol, I drafted S.R. 9. I was given a hearing for S.R. 9 in the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, but was told that I would need to accept changes in committee to S.R. 9 that would weaken the language. The changes would strike my language related to acknowledging this election was legitimate and replaced it with watered-down language on elections generally. I chose to removed my bill from the committee. When the House passed the bi-partisan H.R. 1, I drafted a matching resolution for the Senate – S.R. 21. In our press conference, we called on Senate Republicans to take on S.R. 21 and pass it in the Senate, just like the House did on January 25, 2021.
On Tuesday, we hosted the first Senate District 49 Town Hall of 2021. We had over 120 people attend the town hall, we appreciated all of the questions and support during this town hall. We will continue to have town hall meetings throughout the year and we hope that you all will continue to attend. I would like to thank Sheila Bjorklund, our moderator, as well as the League of Women Voters of Edina, and LWV of Bloomington for their help with the town hall.
Committee Hearings are starting to look a little different at the Senate. On Tuesday, we had our first hybrid hearing of the year in the Human Services Reform Committee. Some members met in the committee room while others joined the hearing virtually. In the Human Services Reform Committee, in-person and virtual testifiers joined the meeting. Certain committees will be participating in the hybrid model while others continue to meet virtually. As this is the first week of hybrid hearings, we have seen some committees move into this model without any hiccups while others had some technological issues.
Next week I have my first bill hearing of the year with SF 296 in the Human Services Reform Finance and Policy Committee. I am the Lead Author on the bi-partisan bill that relates to parenting with a disability.
Upcoming Legislative Deadlines:
- By the “first deadline,” a bill must have passed through all of the required policy committees in either the House or the Senate no later than March 12, at 11:59 pm.
- By the “second deadline,” its companion must have passed through all of the policy committees in the other body no later than March 18, at 11:59 pm.
- By the “third deadline,” an omnibus appropriations bill and its companion must have passed through the required finance divisions in both bodies no later than April 9, at 11:59 pm.
Sincerely,
Melisa