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*May 13, 2024*






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Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I hope all of the amazing Moms and Grandmas had a Happy Mother’s Day yesterday!  I am beyond blessed to have three beautiful adult daughters and an amazing Mom! I also have two wonderful Mothers-in-Law! I hope you all enjoy the day and were honored and celebrated by your family and friends!



I also hope everyone enjoyed the Fishing Opener and the Timberwolves Games this weekend!  I’m hoping the T-wolves can pull out another win tomorrow!

 

It was also a big weekend for the state, as we celebrated Statehood Day on Saturday, May 11th.  This is the day Minnesota formerly became a state in 1858.  We used to mark this day at the Capitol by lighting the electrolier (chandelier) in the Rotunda, but in 2024, for the first time in state history, the electrolier has been lit every day we are in session.

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The electrolier is beautiful and I’m still not used to seeing it lit!  See more below on the controversy over the new state flag.

The 2024 Session is now in its final week – we have to be done passing bills by midnight on Sunday, 5/19, and will adjourn on Monday, 5/20 – one week from today.

It is impossible to share the details of all of the omnibus bills we have been debating, but I’d like to highlight a few specific provisions that highlight the key debates.  It will be an incredibly busy week! 

 

 

I’ll give a final wrap-up sometime on the 20th or 21st once we know how the final details have been negotiated.  Stay tuned!







Executive Summary

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ERA

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Statehood Day - New State Flag






Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

*There are many substantive policy problems with this bill, but the first issue is that the Democrat Majority waited until the end session to start moving brand new language*. They purposely missed all of the regular Committee deadlines, thereby avoiding policy hearings on a bill that will make significant changes to our State Constitution. 

My colleagues and I on the Rules Committee – which is a procedural, not substantive committee - tried to refer it to the Judiciary and State Government Committees, where it should have had hearings.  Unfortunately, our efforts were defeated on party-line votes.

*Waiting until this late in session was just a way to avoid public transparency and input.  *Procedural moves like this breed well-deserved mistrust from the public and harm the institution of the House.

*A constitutional amendment deserves more scrutiny and public involvement than regular statutes, not less.  *I am very disappointed with this.

*Substantive Issues with the ERA:*  While this amendment is presented as a measure to guarantee women's equality, *this bill differs significantly from the original 1970s version of the ERA amendment. *

The 2024 House version of the bill is even worse than last year’s version.  It would enshrine in the State’s Constitution abortion at any gestational age up to birth and gender identity/expression, *"both of which are already protected in the state Human Rights law. "*In addition, this constitutional amendment fails to guarantee religious freedom for those whose religious teachings do not support these views.

Specifically, the bill prohibits the “state” from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, and sex, which is defined to include pregnancy, gender identity or expression, or sexual orientation.

There are numerous problems with this proposed constitutional amendment:

 


* *It doesn’t include “age” or “religion” in the list of protected classes.*

The proposed constitutional amendment, which will require higher levels of judicial scrutiny, fails to give any protection for discrimination by the state based on “religion” or “age.”

This is in direct conflict with other areas of the State Constitution (Sect. 16) and the MN Human Rights Act.

 


* *It will infringe on the religious liberty of anyone who receives state funding. *As the author admitted during the Rules Committee discussion, anyone who receives state money, such as faith-based schools, hospitals, or non-profits, would be deemed a “state actor.”  *As such, anyone who receives state money, not just state or local government, would be bound by these constitutional requirements.*

The state Human Rights Act has long had religious exemptions for “sexual orientation” and last week we passed a similar religious exemption for “gender identity.”  *This constitutional amendment also fails to include these religious exemptions for issues relating to pregnancy or gender identity or expression. *

 

 


* *It will actually harm women and girls by effectively eliminating women’s-only public accommodations*, such as women’s only domestic violence shelters and women and girls’-only bathrooms and locker rooms. It will also limit girls’ opportunities for winning championships or other competitions, getting scholarships, etc.  It could also jeopardize grants for women-owned businesses.

 


* *It would give “strict scrutiny” to issues of gender and sex, which conflicts with federal decisions that apply “intermediate scrutiny” to these cases.* Current federal constitutional jurisprudence gives “strict scrutiny” to First Amendment issues, including religious freedom.  It gives a lower threshold, called “intermediate scrutiny” for sex and gender-related issues, as federal courts recognize that there are physical differences between the sexes.  This will set up a direct conflict between rights under our state and the federal constitutions.

 

*Finally, the ballot language set for 2026 offers a generalized, misleading description for voters.* The proposed ballot question reads:

""Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to guarantee that all persons shall have equal rights under state laws, without discrimination based on race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability, or sex, including pregnancy, gender, and sexual orientation?""

This simplification sounds positive – of course, people want to guarantee all people equal rights and prohibit discrimination.  Unfortunately, it omits direct mention of "abortion," opting instead for a broader reference to "pregnancy."  It also doesn’t mention that discrimination based on religion and age are missing, how it will hurt women and girls, or that it applies to any organization that receives state funds.  *This vague wording is likely to deceive voters about the full scope and impact of the amendment.*

I expect we will have a robust discussion on this bill on the House floor today and tonight.  Although the Democrat Majority will have the votes to pass it out of the House, it is unclear if it will pass the Senate.  *If it does pass both bodies and is signed by the Governor, it will not be on the ballot for voter approval until 2026.*






Statehood Day - New State Flag

Statehood Day was controversial this year because our old flag was replaced with the new flag , that a 13-member Commission approved. 

This new design was not approved by the full Legislature or by a vote of the citizens of Minnesotan.

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A new State Seal also came into effect.

While I understand that some citizens wanted to update the flag, the process the Democrat Majority instituted for changing it was unnecessarily rushed.  The feedback I’ve gotten from constituents is that most Minnesotans feel they didn’t have any say in our state’s most important symbols. 

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*Republicans have been trying all session to allow Minnesotans to have a vote to approve or disapprove the new flag and seal design, but our efforts have been blocked by the Majority.*

One of my colleagues, who served on the 13-member “redesign commission,” addressed these issues on the House floor last week, when we brought an “urgency” to pass a bill that would allow voters to approve or disapprove the new flag and seal.  You can watch Rep. Bjorn Olson’s speech here. [ [link removed] ]






We will have one more very busy week at the Capitol.  We still have to pass ALL of the Conference Committee reports and possibly consider a Bonding bill.  I’m sure it will come down to the wire at midnight Sunday night.  I look forward to giving you a full update next week!

I hope you all have a great week and enjoy this beautiful weather!






Photos

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Finally had time to take my intern, Ellie, on the House Floor today! She also got to meet the man most responsible for safeguarding the House as an institution, our legendary Chief Clerk, Patrick Murphy! Thanks for all of your excellent work this semester, Ellie!

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Nothing is more exciting on the House Floor that a firehouse puppy! Thanks to Roseville Fire Department for bringing Ashes to the Capitol!






Please Contact Me

Many of you have already been in touch to discuss your thoughts on the issues that matter most to you. Thank you for sharing your ideas! Please continue to contact me to discuss any matters to which I can be of assistance.

The best way to reach me is by email: [email protected]. For occasional updates, you can follow my Facebook Page at @RepKristinRobbins. You can also leave a voicemail on my office number, 651-296-7806, which is checked every weekday while we are in session.

Of course, if you are coming to the Capitol, I’d love to meet you! Please reach out if you would like to set-up an in-person meeting. 

Have a great weekend!

 

Kristin











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239 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, MN 55155
ph: 651.296.7806







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