Friends and neighbors,?

Believe it or not, spring is on its way! Despite the snow, I?m optimistic warmer temperatures are just around the corner. ?

Here at the legislature, we?re hard at work. Here?s an update on what we?ve been working on.

As always, you can catch the latest edition of BRAND NEWS below. ?

On Tuesday, the Biden Administration announced the Environmental Protection Agency will require utilities to remove PFAS from drinking water. It is estimated as many as 200 million Americans are currently exposed to PFAS chemicals through drinking water.?The EPA regulation would include testing and filtering of six PFAS chemicals. ?

I?m incredibly thankful we will be seeing federal action on getting PFAS out of drinking water. Now, we need to take it a step further. It?s corporate greed that got us into this mess, and we need to turn off the faucet on PFAS in more than just water. These cancer-causing chemicals are found in products and packaging we use every single day, and they're actively harming our health, our families, and our future. ?

Thank you to President Biden for putting in these protections across the country so we can trust our drinking water. Here in Minnesota, we?re going to finish the job and keep PFAS out of our everyday lives.?

Tomorrow, I?will join The Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy and Clean Water Action Minnesota for a legislative town hall at the Saint Peter Community Center. The town hall will focus on PFAS chemicals and legislation to protect our water and environment, reduce future taxpayer cleanup costs, and protect our communities from these toxic "forever chemicals."?

This event is non-partisan and all are welcome. More information and registration can be found here. I hope to see you there!?

This week, The Protect and Advance Democracy Act received its first committee hearing. This bill would expand ranked choice voting to more local governments and create a taskforce to determine how it could be implemented in statewide and federal elections.??

Ranked choice voting has been regarded by experts as one of the top reforms to strengthen our democracy and has worked well for Saint Paul?s municipal elections. It empowers voters to rank candidates in order of preference and ensures candidates earn majority support to win. This will be a fantastic step for Minnesota.???

As always, I want to hear from you. Get in touch by calling 651-296-8634 to reach me, or email [email protected]. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram for the latest.??

Stay warm out there.??

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In solidarity,??

Representative Jeff Brand?

Minnesota House of Representatives?