Tag: Minnesota

Unified DFL Agenda as we begin the 2019 MN Legislative Session

As we begin the 2019 MN Legislative Session, the House DFL Majority and the robust Senate DFL Caucus are unified in their agenda to fight for policies and programs that will improve the lives and incomes of all Minnesotans, from International Falls to Albert Lea. Ensuring that Minnesota will stay committed to the path set forth by Governor Dayton’s just-concluded tenure, both DFL Legislative Caucuses are committed to expanding access to affordable health care, improving education opportunities, stable funding for transportation, and increasing economic prosperity for Minnesotans of all races and all places. 

To expand access to affordable health care, both DFL Legislative Caucuses believe a great way to accomplish this is offering Minnesotans a choice to buy-in to the successful MinnesotaCare program. Passed in 1992 with bipartisan support, MinnesotaCare currently offers high-quality, lower-cost health coverage to over 100,000 Minnesotans that meet current eligibility requirements. Allowing all Minnesotans to buy-in would not only make quality, affordable health coverage an accessible reality to the thousands of Minnesotans who still don’t have realistic access to it, but it would also require no ongoing costs for Minnesota taxpayers since MinnesotaCare is funded by the premiums of those who buy coverage. In addition, both caucuses are committed to further reforms that benefit consumers instead of insurance companies, protect pre-existing conditions, and ensure that women’s health care decisions stay between them and their doctor, without politicians or employers intervening as a 3rd party.  Continue reading “Unified DFL Agenda as we begin the 2019 MN Legislative Session”

The Dayton difference: Governor’s 8-year tenure has reshaped state

Governor Mark Dayton is “the most consequential governor in recent history,” said DFL politico Wy Spano. Credit: Glen Stubbe, Star Tribune

Gov. Mark Dayton is leaving office in January after eight years with a far-reaching legacy that will endure for decades.

A glassy new Vikings stadium rises on the east edge of downtown Minneapolis, ringed by new office towers and condos. Rochester is on the verge of a dramatic, multibillion-dollar state-backed transformation. Minnesota’s rainy-day fund is at record levels and the unemployment rate is at an 18-year low. Education spending is up more than $2 billion.

Through a mix of good economic fortunes, shrewd political skill and the missteps of his opponents, Dayton’s tenure has reshaped Minnesota in innumerable ways. He locked in higher spending that will be difficult to roll back, with the help of new taxes on high earners. A vast expansion of the Medical Assistance program reduced the number of uninsured. He’s appointed more than half of the state’s judges, a pool that is more racially diverse and female than ever before.

View the complete December 23 article by J. Patrick Collican on The Star Tribune website here.

With political clout on the line, Minnesota prepares for 2020 census

Credit: Getty Images

The result will determine whether the state will lose one of its eight U.S. House seats, which would dilute its clout on Capitol Hill and role in presidential elections.

Along with political matters, census data is used to calculate federal spending on infrastructure, school lunches and many other programs. The state could miss out on $15,000 in federal funds over a decade for each uncounted resident.

In an urgent effort to protect the state’s political leverage, Minnesotans are already racing to find and count every resident in the 2020 census.

The result will determine whether the state will lose one of its eight U.S. House seats, which would dilute its clout on Capitol Hill and Minnesota’s role in presidential elections.

View the complete December 16 article by Judy Keen on The Star Tribune website here.

Federal leaders need to renew fund

On Sept. 30, a vital source of funding for Minnesota’s public lands expired. The Land and Water Conservation Fund has provided over $245 million to Minnesota’s parks and public lands, taking the burden off of Minnesota’s taxpayers. The LWCF takes revenue from offshore oil drilling and invests it in the shared spaces that help make Minnesota special.

A piece of the fund was set aside to complete a Boundary Waters land swap — that swap would provided better protection for the still-patchwork Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness while providing direct property tax relief for Minnesotans. Now that may never happen.

There is still time to revive the LWCF, though. We’re lucky to have supporters like Sen. Tina Smith helping push for LWCF, but we need Rep. Erik Paulsen’s support as well. Ask federal politicians if they know what the fund is — and whether or not they want to revive it.

Molly Muth, Minneapolis
Lakeshore Weekly News, November 23, 2018

Suburban mayors support Walz, Flanagan

To the editor:

As mayors, we work every day with our residents to solve problems, and we do so in a nonpartisan way. We recognize that our communities do best when everyone works together to find solutions to our everyday challenges.

Minnesota also does best when all of us work together to make our state the finest it can be. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, that guiding principal has become lost. Issues like transportation funding, job creation, education, health care and housing have become partisan and regionalized. As a result, we all lose because of it and our state does not reach its full potential.

A divided Minnesota serves no one. For that reason and others, as mayors of Minnesota’s suburban communities, we are announcing our support for Tim Walz for Governor and Peggy Flanagan for Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota. Tim Walz has a long history of working with Republicans, independents and others for the common good.   Those who have worked with Tim describe him with words like unifier, consensus builder and leader. Continue reading “Suburban mayors support Walz, Flanagan”

Will Violent Criminals Be Released If Minnesota Becomes A Sanctuary State?

Minneapolis (WCCO) — Three weeks before the election, Minnesota Republicans are warning that dangerous criminals will come to the state if Democrats win the election.

It is part of a TV ad campaign from an outside group called Freedom Club, linking Democrats to illegal immigration and sanctuary cites.

In one ad, a woman in her kitchen shows frustration and trepidation about the Democrats running for governor and attorney general.

View the complete article by Pat Kessler on the WCCO website here.