On Monday, April 22, Senator Nicole Mitchell, who represents Woodbury, was arrested for first-degree burglary in Detroit Lakes. This news came with just four weeks left in the legislative session. To read more on the background of the story, click here.

Senator Mitchell has stated that she has no plans on resigning from her position as a Senator. On Wednesday, April 24, Senate Republicans filed an ethics complaint on Senator Mitchell for her arrest and subsequent charge with first-degree burglary. Senate Republicans additionally made a motion to expedite the ethics complaint process to ensure that fair, speedy and public hearings happen. This motion failed on a party line vote.

Uber and Lyft have threatened to reduce or eliminate service in Minnesota due to a Minneapolis City Council ordinance. With just weeks before the end of session, Democrats have still not found a workable solution to prevent this from happening. That is why I offered a proposal in the Commerce Committee to prohibit local units of government from passing these unworkable policies. Instead of showing that the committee is serious about avoiding disaster, Senate Democrats chose to side with the Democratic-Socialists on the Minneapolis City Council. To listen to my comments during the committee hearing, click here. 

The Local Road Improvement Program (LRIP) is administered by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) and awards grants to improve our roads and infrastructure in Minnesota. For more information about the LRIP, click here. This year, there were four different projects in Senate District 9 that recently were awarded grants from the LRIP:

Otter Tail County had two projects that received funding. Fergus Falls received almost $800 thousand for a Friberg Avenue and Fir Avenue roundabout. In addition, Aurdal Township received over $1.4 million for improving Aurdal River Road and Sophus Anderson Road. To read more about these projects, click here.

Grant County received over $1.4 million, as well. This money will go towards fixing County State Aid Highway 5 and its connection to Truck Highway 55. To read more about this project, click here.

Lastly, the City of Wheaton received $1.5 million for a 5th Avenue North and 12th Street North Project. To read my statement on this project, click here.

The Senate recently passed five bipartisan bills that I introduced to ease regulatory burdens. If signed into law, these bills will grow the state economy and expand career opportunities; remove regulatory burdens that block Minnesotans’ access to high-quality care; and eliminate unnecessary barriers that harm business operations. To read more on each of these bills, click here.

Congratulations to Kassidy of Kennedy Secondary School on being selected for this year’s My District, My Minnesota art competition! This is a wonderful representation of the agricultural tradition of District 9, and it is an honor to display your artwork at the Minnesota Senate Building.

With Gratitude,

Senator Jordan Rasmusson

District 9