Dear Fourth District Constituent,

 

It is great to be back in Minnesota this week. On Memorial Day, I visited several events around the East Metro remembering our service members who made the ultimate sacrifice to defend our nation. From commemorations in White Bear Lake and North Saint Paul to the Jewish Veterans Tribute at Chesed Shel Emes Cemetery in Saint Paul, it was an honor to join veterans and families to pay tribute to service members who defended our nation and our sacred values of freedom, justice, and democracy for all. 

 

 

 

This week, I was honored to welcome Major General Shawn Manke, Adjutant General of the Minnesota National Guard, to my district office in St. Paul. Our conversation focused on the Guard’s ongoing efforts to maintain readiness across Minnesota and the nation, including the essential role that federal technicians and dual-status military personnel play in supporting operations at home and abroad.

The Minnesota National Guard provides unwavering service to our communities across Minnesota. Their commitment to both state and federal missions remains vital to public safety, disaster response, and national defense. The meeting reaffirmed our shared commitment to fostering strong partnerships between state and federal leaders to ensure the Guard remains fully resourced and mission-ready. I will continue to advocate for policies that strengthen the Guard’s operational capabilities and support the dedicated service members and civilians who proudly wear the uniform.

 

I’m grateful to the residents of Scandia Shores in Shoreview for welcoming me into their home on Wednesday for a town hall discussion, where I answered questions about the federal budget, Elon Musk's attacks on federal agencies, and the threat that President Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' poses to Medicaid. Minnesotans want Congress to protect Medicaid, Medicare, and nutrition assistance. I will always fight for you to protect the services that Minnesotans rely on!

 

 

On Wednesday, I spoke about the innovative future of Minnesota Agriculture at the Forever Green Forum at the Lauderdale Equine Center at the University of Minnesota. The Forever Green Initiative is a research program within the University of Minnesota's College of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Sciences (CFANS). The goal of Forever Green crops is to help farmers build soil health profitably.  The key principles of soil health and regenerative agriculture are advanced by protecting the soil with plant cover, keeping living roots in the ground, reducing tillage, and diversifying crop rotations. Thank you to the hardworking farmers of Minnesota and researchers at the University who make this such a great program. 

 

 

 

Lake Elmo Hosts Demonstration Project to Destroy PFAS Contamination
Today, I visited Lake Elmo to celebrate the beginning of a Department of Defense research demonstration into technology that destroys PFAS contamination.  This project was funded with $15 million from fiscal year 2023 that I secured when I was chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.  This promising technology was developed by General Atomics and is being tested in partnership with BayWest, the U.S. Army  Engineer Research and Development Center, and the EPA.   This project will provide valuable data about how this technology could be scaled up to allow communities and defense installations to remediate PFAS contamination in a safe way.

 

 

 

Tomorrow, I will host a town hall at 11:00am in Stillwater. Registration is near capacity, so if you have not RSVP'd already, I encourage you to join on the live stream from my YouTube. I will be joined by a panel of experts, who know first hand how Donald Trump's disastrous tax scam will harm Minnesotans and kick people off of their health insurance. 

 

 

Constituent Services Office Hours
In addition to serving constituents Monday through Friday, 9am-5pm, at my Saint Paul office, my staff holds neighborhood office hours at a variety of locations across the Fourth District. Members of my staff will be available to meet with constituents seeking casework assistance on Tuesday, June 3rd at 10am-12pm at the Hayden Heights Library, Small Meeting Room - 1965 Hoyt Ave E, St Paul, MN 55119.

 

Be Ready for Summer Travel
If your summer plans include international travel, be sure to check your passport expiration date for validity. Some countries require your passport to be valid for six months beyond your intended departure date. Passport processing times are 4-6 weeks for routine processing and 2-3 weeks if you pay the $60 expedite fee, excluding shipping time. Learn more here.

Whether you are flying internationally or domestically this summer, be sure to bring what you need to the airport. If you are 18 or older, you now need REAL ID-compliant identification to pass through the TSA checkpoint. Examples include a state driver’s license/ID with a star, an Enhanced Driver’s License, or a passport book or card.  Learn more here.

 

As always, please stay in touch: Voice your policy opinion, ask for help with a federal agency, or find all of my recent statements at mccollum.house.gov.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Betty McCollum
Member of Congress