Weekly Review Video
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A weekly message from your Senator
Dear Constituents and Friends,
The legislature is at the halfway point of the 2019 session, with the first committee deadline closing out the week. The first deadline requires policy bills to have had their first hearing in the committee of origin unless the companion bill in the House has been heard. Finance, tax, and capital investment bills do not have to meet this deadline.
Committees were busy working into the end of the week to ensure that bills meet the deadline in order to continue through the legislative process this session. In the upcoming weeks, the House and Senate will work to come to a consensus on a number of issues through the conference committee process, so that Governor Walz can sign legislation into law.
The stress for farmers and their families is significant given years of successive losses due to low commodity prices and trade tariffs. Most recently, weather has also contributed to the stress felt in rural Minnesota as barns have collapsed under the weight of snow, which has resulted in a loss of livestock and machinery. This week we passed the bipartisan SF 2255 unanimously on the floor to provide proper relief efforts to these farmers due to weather this winter.
It was a busy week of Capitol visits with groups of constituents traveling to advocate on behalf of different organizations such as Moms Demand Action, Disability Day on the Hill, and Homelessness Day on the Hill. Thank you to everyone who stopped by my office and made it to our Town Hall to discuss the issues you care about. My door is always open!
Sincerely,
Melisa
A Clip from Thursday’s Town Hall
High Hopes for a Conversation on Cannabis Nipped in the Bud
The Senate Judiciary Committee heard the bill I sponsored this week that would create a system to legalize, sell, and regulate the use of recreational cannabis. The bill contains a system for growth, taxation, regulation of sales, and expungement of records for those with a nonviolent criminal history related to small amounts of cannabis.
Unfortunately, the conversation burned out when Senate Republicans rejected every attempt to pass the legislation or continue the conversation. Senate Republicans refused to move the bill forward to the next committee or lay it over for further discussion in the Judiciary Committee. They also voted against setting up a task force to study legalization. It is unlikely that recreational cannabis will come up again this session. (SF 619)
Watch the full committee hearing
Abolishment of Daylight Savings Time Considered
Legislation heard this week that I co-authored would put an end to daylight savings time and create perpetual standard time in Minnesota. This bill would eliminate the need to “spring forward” and “fall back” each year.
Proponents of the legislation believe that the bi-annual time adjustments cause many issues including lower school test performance, a spike in auto accidents, and negative behavioral/health problems. However, the institution of year-round standard time would result in earlier sunsets in the winter, which would pose a significant hazard for children getting home from school. Additionally, many Minnesotans enjoy more sunlight in the summer evenings, and this would be reduced if the state no longer adjusts to daylight savings time. (SF 1416)
Light rail operators held accountable
A bill was heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee this week to subject light rail (LRT) operators to the reckless and careless driving provisions currently in statute, meaning an LRT driver would be guilty of a misdemeanor for reckless or careless driving. If an LRT drivers’ reckless or careless operation of a train causes great bodily harm or death, the driver would be guilty of a gross misdemeanor.
The bill is in response to an LRT incident that occurred July 2017 at the intersection of University Avenue and Eustis Street in Saint Paul involving a vehicle and an LRT train. The operator of the light rail train failed to come to a stop at the intersection and hit a vehicle that had the right-of-way crossing University Avenue, resulting in the driver of the vehicle dying from his injuries.
The bill will apply reckless and careless driving statutes to LRT operators in the event of future vehicular collisions. It will close a loophole in state law and help to improve safety on our roads and railways. It was passed and will be heard next on the Senate Floor. (SF 1339)
Temporary prohibition of ditch mowing permits
The Senate Transportation Committee heard legislation this week that would extend the temporary prohibition on MnDOT issuing permits for ditch mowing by one year until April 30, 2020. This bill would allow current mowing and bailing practices to continue but would also provide stakeholders more time to create a new permitting system.
Advocates of the bill often find the permit’s requirement to mow and bale in the highway right-of-way during the month of August to be the most problematic. At that point in the year, the quality of the hay is decreased significantly, impacting both livestock and farmers. The Minnesota Farmers Union and the Minnesota Farm Bureau also support the bill as they need more time before issuing recommendations. However, this extension of the temporary prohibition will likely be opposed by some environmental organizations and pollinator advocates who believe that these permits are necessary to provide a roadside habitat for small wildlife.
This would be the second extension of the temporary prohibition on MnDOT’s ability to set up or enforce a permitting process. (SF 1889)
Tweet of the Week
Around the District
Hit the weekend with a POUND Rockout workout master class led by Icon Erica Lewandowski and the POUND POSSE MN pros. This class will be LOUD. All ages and abilities are welcome! Tickets sales go directly to benefiting the Ronald McDonald House in Minneapolis.
Come support the Edina Golf Association with hosted beer, DJ, dancing, light bites, sweet treats, people who love golf and FUN!
This Week in History
On March 14th in 1924, The last guest checks out of Stillwater’s historic Sawyer House, which had operated as a hotel for sixty-seven years. The Lowell Inn was later built on the same site.