Tag: House District 49A

Rep. Heath Edelson (HD49A) Update: May 20, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

Late Sunday night, the Minnesota Legislature adjourned. It has been truly an honor and gives me great joy to represent our Edina neighborhoods at the State Capitol. I look forward to continuing efforts that keep moving our community forward.

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I’m proud of the swift, bipartisan work we delivered to increase resources to Minnesota’s health care workforce and public health infrastructure in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We ensured health care and public safety workers would receive workers’ comp should they get sick with COVID-19. Additionally, the Legislature also approved an emergency response package of legislation providing flexibility and resources in a variety of areas during the crisis, including approval of wills and marriage licenses, expanded telemedicine, remote local government meetings, and alternative health care facilities. Continue reading “Rep. Heath Edelson (HD49A) Update: May 20, 2020”

Governor Walz Signs Tobacco 21 Legislation into Law

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, Governor Walz signed into law legislation that raises the age for Minnesotans to purchase tobacco, tobacco products, electronic delivery devices, and other nicotine products, to 21.

“Adopting statewide Tobacco 21 is urgently needed to provide clarity, accountability, and to make it easier for our state and local partners to help in standing up to Big Tobacco for our youth,” said Rep. Heather Edelson (DFL-Edina), the House chief author of the bill.

In December of 2019, Tobacco 21 became federal law, which meant the minimum age required to legally purchase tobacco products increased from 18 to 21 for the entire country. At the time, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) directed retailers to immediately implement the change. Some retailers, however, have expressed confusion and insisted they will not comply until they see the change made at the state level.

The initiative has a strong bipartisan coalition of support among health care professionals, ClearWay Minnesota, youth organizations, and several Minnesota cities who have already enacted Tobacco 21 locally.

Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: May 14, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

Yesterday, Governor Walz announced the next steps for Minnesota’s response to COVID-19. The Stay at Home order will expire Monday, May 18 but with some limitations such as maintaining social distancing and limiting capacity at small businesses and social gatherings. Over the next several weeks, the Walz administration will work with restaurants, bars, and salons to allow them to re-open in a way that is safe beginning June 1, 2020. This process will begin with businesses creating a plan that ensures employees and patrons can work and shop safely. I have been working closely with small businesses and retailers in our community to help with this development.

To help in the process, Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), and the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) have developed a template plan and guidance that businesses can use as a starting point. Businesses aren’t required to use this template, but a business’ plan does need to follow CDC and MDH guidelines and OSHA standards. Businesses also aren’t required to submit their plans to the state for approval, but they should be prepared to provide a copy of their plan if requested. Copies of the plan must be distributed to workers. Continue reading “Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: May 14, 2020”

Minnesota House Approves Tobacco 21 Legislation

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, the Minnesota House approved legislation that raises the age for Minnesotans to purchase tobacco, tobacco products, electronic delivery devices, and other nicotine products, to 21.

“Research shows that raising the tobacco age to 21 will prevent youth addiction and save lives,” said Rep. Heather Edelson (DFL-Edina), chief author of the legislation. “Tobacco companies have been targeting youth to addict the next generation. In the 2019 Student Survey, 26 % of 11th graders reported vaping. 76 % of all youth reported not knowing how addictive vaping was before they started. Passing Tobacco 21 is an important statement in the fight against rising youth tobacco use. I am proud of the strong bipartisan support Tobacco 21 received today.” Continue reading “Minnesota House Approves Tobacco 21 Legislation”

Rep. Heather Edelson Update: May 6, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

This week is National Teacher Appreciation Week, and I would like to take a moment to recognize all the incredible work our educators have done to adjust to the demand of this crisis and support the needs of our students. Our teachers play a critical role for setting our students up for lifelong success. To every teacher in our community, thank you for all you do! And to the parents who are taking on the role of working with your child on distant learning – we appreciate you too!

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Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: May 1, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

I want to clarify my email from yesterday – I’m pleased to share that starting Monday, May 4th – pet groomers will be allowed to provide curbside service!

I want to thank the Commissioner of DEED Steve Grove and Keith Miller, Edina resident and Bubbly Paws owner, for working diligently on this issue to find a way to resume operations! If you have an animal, please note that every groomer may implement a different approach, so give them a call to find out more about their plans.

Kare 11 covered the story last night, you can check it out here.

Wishing you a safe and happy weekend.

Sincerely,

Heather Edelson
State Representative

Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: April 30, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

Governor Walz announced today the opening of more businesses for curbside retail and also extended the Stay at Home Order until May 18th. I found the graphic below to be helpful as we begin the transition to re-open our communities.

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We are living through a challenging period. I want to thank you for your patience as Minnesotans create a new normal of living and working with this virus. Please email me with your comments, concerns or suggestions as we move forward. I appreciate hearing from you. Continue reading “Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: April 30, 2020”

Rep. Heather Edelson Update: April 24, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

This week, Governor Walz, Mayo Clinic, the University of Minnesota, and Hennepin Healthcare announced a breakthrough for rapid, widespread testing of COVID-19 in Minnesota. The statewide testing strategy was launched to test all symptomatic people, isolate confirmed cases, and expand public health surveillance tools.

By building capacity to test as many as 20,000 Minnesotans per day, this increased testing and tracing will help improve control of this pandemic and support the safe re-opening of society. For more information on this coordinated effort, click here.

This is a positive development, but we’re not out of the woods yet. Minnesotans are staying home, staying safe, and buying health officials more time to keep people safe and healthy. We need to stick with what we know is working while continue improving our ability to test, trace, and isolate cases in order to keep people safe while starting to reopen parts of our economy. Continue reading “Rep. Heather Edelson Update: April 24, 2020”

Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: April 17, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

Today, the Governor issued an executive order to reopen outdoor activities tomorrow like access to parks, boating, and golf. Minnesotans are known for our love of the outdoor recreation, so this was welcome news.

The changes will allow Minnesotans to continue to enjoy the outdoors close to home, while following social distancing guidelines.

Under this executive action, facilities that may reopen or remain open include: Continue reading “Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: April 17, 2020”

Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: April 15, 2020

Dear Neighbors,

I have spoken with many Edina residents over the last few days and we all share the common goal to reopen our community, but to do so safely. I’m pleased to share that Mayo says it has capacity do deliver testing needed to reopen Minnesota’s economy. This is great news, but it also means for now, we must continue to operate in different ways than we are used to. More details to come.

UI Update

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development announced today a 13-week extension of Unemployment Insurance. In addition, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which will provide unemployment benefits to self-employed individuals, independent contractors, gig workers and others will be operational by end of April. If your UI benefits have been exhausted, you are encouraged to re-apply at DEED’s website.

Yesterday, the House and Senate reconvened session to approve a couple core pieces of legislation; a fourth COVID-19 emergency package and the Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act. I’d like to start this newsletter with the latter of the two. Continue reading “Rep. Heather Edelson (HD49A) Update: April 15, 2020”