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Hello from St. Paul,
It was a week of notable floor session debates, as several bills that I would define as common sense were discussed by the full House, and all of them failed by one vote because no Democrat would cross party lines to lend their support.
ADDRESSING FRAUD
With more than $610 million – that we know about – having been stolen from Minnesota’s taxpayers due to fraud, House Republicans have been moving several bills forward that try to address the problem.
The first would establish “fraud notes,” providing legislators with an evaluation of potential fraud risks before enacting any new program or policy. It would also add additional accountability to agencies to ensure they are following through with recommendations made by the nonpartisan Legislative Auditor to address matters of waste, fraud, and abuse in their agencies. Sadly, no Democrat supported it, and it failed to pass by one vote.
A separate proposal adding protection for whistleblower state employees who come forward to expose government fraud and mismanagement did pass unanimously, providing safeguards for those who want to protect taxpayer dollars.
PRO-LIFE INITIATIVES
Two pro-life initiatives also failed to pass the House by one vote. The first would appropriate $4 million in funding to women’s pregnancy centers and maternity homes. It would have given mothers the opportunity to choose what was best for them and their families.
The second, the “Born Alive Rollback,” would extend legal protections to infants who are born alive after an abortion procedure. This bill would require that doctors protect the lives of infants under these adverse circumstances in the same way that they protect infants born under normal conditions.
Remember, 68 votes are needed to pass a bill on the House floor, and there are only 67 House Republicans.
TRANSPORTATION COST PARTICIPATION
I appreciated the opportunity to present a bill in the Transportation Committee recently that addresses the cost participation policy at the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
The idea behind HF192 stems from discussions I've had with various local government officials from small towns like Roseau, Warroad, and Fosston, as well as larger cities such as Richfield and Minneapolis. When a MNDOT road is built through a community, there is a cost-sharing or cost participation policy in place. Unfortunately, this policy can impose excessive costs on local entities, which significantly impacts their budgets and, in turn, puts pressure on local taxpayers, often leading to tax increases in those communities.
I’ll keep you updated on its progress in the weeks ahead.
LOCAL VISITORS
As always, I really enjoy the chance to catch up with folks who make the long journey down to St. Paul to advocate for the issues that affect their families and livelihoods. A big thank you to Leif Aakre and Justin Dagen for the visit recently as Minnesota Farm Credit Services held their annual Day at the Capitol.
We touched on subjects ranging from efforts to provide financing and working capital to rural America, issues surrounding farmers and environmental stewardship, agricultural permitting and buffer strips and finally funding for animal disease response and infrastructure necessary to make that happen.
I also enjoyed visiting with Elaina Ballard, a student attending Gustavus Adolphus from Thief River Falls.
She was at the Capitol advocating for private colleges and the state grant program.
I also appreciated the opportunity to get an update on Thief River Falls school district issues from Superintendent Chris Mills, and school board members Ryan Walseth and Jared Kainz.
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