Tag: Leader Winkler

Statement from House DFL Leadership on Republican Senate agenda

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — House Speaker Melissa Hortman and Majority Leader Ryan Winkler released the following statements on Senate Republicans’ 2020 agenda.

“Senate Republicans are failing on the issues Minnesotans care most about — affordable prescription drugs including insulin, gun violence prevention, paid family leave, addressing climate change, world-class public schools, and more,” said Speaker Hortman. “House DFLers will continue our efforts to build a Minnesota that works better for all of us.”

“Minnesota Senate Republicans should come to the table to work with Democrats for progress on the things Minnesotans value,” said Majority Leader Winkler. “Instead, they are proposing tax giveaways for the wealthy while draining funding from our public schools, neglecting our roads and bridges, and failing to truly address high prescription drug costs. House DFLers are focused on helping Minnesotans address the challenges they face: out of control health care costs, high tuition, insecure retirements, child care expenses, and more.”

 

Majority Leader statement on need for responsible vaping regulation

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, Majority Leader Ryan Winkler released the following statement responding to the risks associated with unregulated vaping products.

“The risks of unregulated vaping products on the market have emerged as a serious issue, and it demonstrates what happens when products are introduced into the marketplace without consumer protections. As we look to change Minnesota’s adult-use cannabis laws, we want to be sure to protect the health and safety of consumers with a responsible public health approach. Our response to vaping should be similarly deliberate.” 

House DFL Statement on Insulin Legislation

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — Today, Governor Tim Walz called on Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka to take action on insulin affordability and begin negotiations with the House. In an October 1st letter to Gov. Walz, House Speaker Melissa Hortman announced that she asked Representatives Howard, Liebling, Halverson, and Mann to serve on an Emergency Access to Insulin Work Group to meet with the Senate and resolve the differences between the House and Senate bills.

Speaker Hortman and Majority Leader Ryan Winkler released the following statements:

“Minnesotans need and deserve access to emergency insulin — which the Senate bill doesn’t provide,” said Speaker Hortman. “The House DFL remains ready to work with Senate Republicans and the Walz Administration to find a solution that serves the needs of Minnesotans and holds the pharmaceutical industry accountable. Lives are at stake and it’s time for Senate Republicans to come to the table and begin working on a compromise with us. Governor Walz and I have named the individuals who can start working on this right away. We continue to wait for Senator Gazelka to name which Senators will speak for the Senate in a work group so we can commence negotiations on a compromise. Simply reiterating that he has taken a position different from ours doesn’t help anyone get emergency access to insulin.” Continue reading “House DFL Statement on Insulin Legislation”

DFL Leaders Host Community Conversation on Cannabis in Minneapolis

House DFL logoMINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – Today, Majority Leader Ryan Winkler hosted a community conversation on cannabis with Assistant Senate Minority Leader Jeff Hayden, Sens. Bobby Joe Champion, Kari Dziedzic, and Foung Hawj; Reps. Raymond Dehn, Aisha Gomez, Fue Lee, and Diane Loeffler; and Associate Professor at Metro State University Dr. Raj Sethuraju at the Minneapolis Urban League.

The meeting was the second of 15 hosted by Rep. Winkler and legislators around the state to encourage Minnesotans to join the conversation on how to legalize and regulate cannabis for adult use.

“Minnesotans are asking us to change our cannabis laws because they are doing more harm than good,” said Majority Leader Ryan Winkler. “It’s been clear in our conversations that our current system is contributing to racial injustice, damaging public health, and limiting access for veterans.” Continue reading “DFL Leaders Host Community Conversation on Cannabis in Minneapolis”

Majority Leader Winkler Kicks Off Statewide Cannabis Conversations at State Fair

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Majority Leader Ryan Winkler today kicked off a statewide tour of 15 “Community Conversations on Cannabis” at the State Fair. The tour will encourage Minnesotans to join the conversation on how to legalize and regulate cannabis for adult use.

“Our current marijuana laws are doing more harm than good. It’s time to legalize cannabis to address the health and criminal justice inequities created by our current system,” said Majority Leader Ryan Winkler. “That’s why we’re inviting Minnesotans to join the conversation about how we will safely and responsibly create a comprehensive framework for legalization and the most thoughtful adult-use cannabis law in the country.” 

Details on the community conversations and updates on the effort to legalize cannabis in Minnesota are available on a new website. The first three will be in Duluth, Minneapolis, and St. Cloud.

In an op-ed written earlier this month, Rep. Winkler announced that legalizing cannabis for adult use will be a legislative priority during the 2020 session. Since then, the Majority Leader’s Office has been meeting with stakeholders to seek their input on crafting legislation.

Statement from House DFL Leadership on Alec Smith Emergency Insulin Act

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — House Speaker Melissa Hortman and House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler released the following statements on bipartisan negotiations on the Alec Smith Emergency Insulin Act:

“I appreciate the work done by a bipartisan group of legislators to address insulin affordability and emergency access this interim,” said Speaker Hortman. “While it’s encouraging that they appear close to agreement on how a program would function, it seems the funding source remains a sticking point. Insulin costs have nearly tripled in the last two decades and the corporate greed fueling this crisis is unconscionable. That’s why the DFL majority in the Minnesota House passed and sent to conference a complete plan that would both help Minnesotans and hold the pharmaceutical industry accountable. We remain ready to move forward. I’m hopeful in the coming weeks we will be able to get an agreement with Senate Republicans on funding.”

“House DFLers remain committed to addressing the high price of insulin and standing up to the pharmaceutical companies profiting off of Minnesotans,” said Majority Leader Winkler. “This bipartisan progress is positive news, but there is more work to be done to finalize the funding source and ensure Minnesotans have access to the insulin they need to survive.”

Statement from House DFL Leadership on changes in leadership at the Minnesota Department of Human Services

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — Today, Governor Walz announced Tony Lourey’s resignation as commissioner of the Department of Human Services, and appointed Pam Wheelock as acting commissioner.

House Speaker Melissa Hortman and Majority Leader Ryan Winkler released the following statements:

“We are grateful to Tony Lourey for his years of service and dedication to Minnesotans,” said Speaker Hortman. “The work of the Department of Human Services is critical to the people of Minnesota and we are ready to work with Governor Walz and his administration to ensure its success.”

“We have confidence in the Walz administration and look forward to working together with Interim Commissioner Wheelock to make sure the Department of Human Services serves the needs of Minnesotans,” said Majority Leader Ryan Winkler.

House Committee Holds Public Meeting to Discuss Improvements to Budget Process

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — On Wednesday, the Minnesota House Subcommittee on Legislative Process Reform held the first of several public meetings to review the legislative budget process and seek improvements. Nonpartisan staff gave an overview of legislative process reform, the budget cycle, and the omnibus bill process.

“Minnesotans expect and deserve a modern, efficient, and transparent legislative process,” said Speaker Melissa Hortman. “House DFLers have led the way in implementing reforms and are committed to improving public engagement in the legislative process.”

“The House DFL has consistently looked for ways to make our state budget process more open and transparent, which is why we established this committee,” said Majority Leader Ryan Winkler. “Minnesotans regularly lead the nation in civic engagement – it’s clear that they want and deserve the opportunity to provide meaningful input as new laws are considered.”

“Having recently completed our 17th special session in the last 21 years, we can see that work needs to be done to improve the legislative process,” said Rep. Gene Pelowski (DFL-Winona), Chair of the House Subcommittee on Legislative Process Reform. “I look forward to our efforts to meaningfully address reforms that would allow the legislature to meet its Constitutional responsibility of completing the legislative session on time with a balanced budget.”

In future meetings, committee members and stakeholders will continue to discuss challenges and possible opportunities to making the process of creating a state budget more open and efficient.

House DFL Majority Announces New Budget for Higher Education

Two-year tuition freeze is cornerstone of Democrats’ new budget

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – The House Higher Education Finance and Policy Committee today announced a new budget that puts students first by making college more affordable, reducing debt, and improving health and safety on campus. According to the U.S. Department of Education, there are 775,000 Minnesotans with student debt totaling $27.1 billion.

A fact sheet with more information about the budget is available for download here (this version includes corrected information about average benefit increases for full-time students enrolled in the state grant program).

Minnesotans from all backgrounds deserve a fair shot at earning a quality post-secondary education,” said Chair Bernardy. “The House DFL Higher Education budget eases the financial burden on working families and students, expands eligibility for grants, and will fill gaps in Minnesota’s workforce shortage.”

The budget freezes tuition for Minnesota students at all of the state’s two- and four-year public colleges and universities, and increases financial support for working families by investing an additional $35.4 million in the state grant program. As a result, full-time students who benefit from the state grant program will receive on average more than $400 per year more in financial assistance, and 1,900 more Minnesotans will become eligible for the first time. Continue reading “House DFL Majority Announces New Budget for Higher Education”