Dear Neighbors,
What happened to our 40 degree weekend? Things are slow-moving on the roads, but not so much in the Minnesota House. There are several pieces of legislation and updates from this week that I’d like to share with you.
First bill passed – and it’s a good one
Minnesota cannot build a more equitable future for all unless we learn lessons from our history and be purposeful in eliminating systemic racism. That is the purpose behind HF 51, the first bill we passed off the House floor this week.
HF 51 seeks to address the racial disparities that have long existed in the housing history of our state. If signed into law, it would allow homeowners to formally denounce restrictive covenants on their home titles. Restrictive covenants were used in the past to prevent minority communities from moving into residential neighborhoods. They are now unconstitutional, but the racist language remains in the abstract of many titles. The bill would allow homeowners to attach a formal document to their home title repudiating this racist language and practice. I’m happy to say that the bill passed the House unanimously. Continue reading “Rep. Michael Howard (HD50A) Update: February 7, 2019”