Dear Friend,
Last week saw a group of Senate negotiators move forward on a bipartisan gun package. While it was encouraging to see school safety resources and mental health prioritized, we will be keeping a close eye on this legislation to ensure that our Constitutional rights are defended.
Read on to hear about more priorities for the week…
Young Women’s Leadership Program
As schools across Minnesota let out for summer vacation, some young people might be interested in getting a jump on post-graduation career planning. Our Young Women’s Leadership Program helps high-school aged girls from across the Sixth District find out what’s possible.
Interested students can apply for this program through TODAY, June 14. The Young Women’s Leadership Program will consist of three Summer 2022 sessions featuring women leaders in law enforcement, trades, and healthcare.
Finding a solution to rising crime
June marks a welcome start to the summer season. However, in communities across the country, rising temperatures mean rising crime. According to a report by the Department of Justice, crimes like burglary increase around 10% during the summer months.
A summer crime spike is particularly concerning this year. Since the 2020 ‘Defund the Police’ movement began, homicide rates across the country have increased by 48%. According to the National Fraternal Order of Police, shootings of police officers have increased by 38% compared to this time in 2020, and in the last year, twelve cities (including Saint Paul) broke new homicide records.
Congressman Emmer meets with local law enforcement at the Saint Cloud Police Department
2 in 3 Americans agree: strengthening our law enforcement is the only way to get out of this mess. This Congress, we introduced the Community OutPost Outreach and Engagement Act to build trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve. We also supported increased investment in police departments across America this appropriations season.
A Visit to Second Harvest Heartland
Over the last year, we have become all too familiar with high prices hitting our wallets. For many of us, double-digit price increases on essentials like gas and groceries have caused us to dip into our savings – or even to do without.
Thanks to a mix of high input costs for farmers and ongoing supply chain disruptions, we are now even facing the possibility of widespread food shortages. As the recent shortages of baby formula have shown, empty supermarket shelves hurt the neediest among us the most.
Congressman Emmer visits Second Harvest Heartland
Across America, food banks have stepped up to provide for those in need of extra support. Earlier this month, I had the chance to visit Second Harvest Heartland. This food bank helps over half a million Minnesotans every year and served 1.5 million meals last year alone.
We are grateful to the team at Second Harvest Heartland for their work to bring food security to Minnesotans. However, we will not be able to ensure access to affordable, nutritious food without addressing the causes of rising food costs.
Increasing domestic energy production will lower gas prices and make it cheaper to deliver our food from the farm to the grocery store shelf. We will continue our work to make food affordable and accessible for all Minnesotans.
Until next week, if you are in need of assistance or would like to share your thoughts with me, please write me an e-mail here.
To keep up with what we’re doing in Washington, follow me on Twitter and Facebook for more updates!
Sincerely,
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