Dear Neighbor, It’s been another highly productive week in the House, with efforts to strengthen our state’s energy grid and crack down on fraud making news. Here’s more: Bill to diversify state’s energy advances Legislation I authored to deliver more affordable, accessible and reliable energy to Minnesotans cleared its first House committee hurdle Tuesday. I drafted House File 9 to diversify Minnesota’s energy grid and help the state meet its growing energy needs at a time it is becoming increasingly costly and unstable. One major provision ends Minnesota’s 1994 moratorium on constructing new nuclear power plants. Any clean energy future must include nuclear, carbon capture technology, and other forms of renewable energy like hydroelectricity. My proposal is a common-sense approach when it comes to long-term energy policy. This is in stark contrast to the extreme, unrealistic package Democrats passed in 2024, forcing industries, businesses and families into an unreliable, more expensive energy network. The Midcontinent Independent Systems Operator has reported capacity shortfalls, indicating Minnesota’s ability to meet expected peak electricity demand is increasingly at high risk. MISO warnings of capacity shortfalls for peak periods will become more commonplace if our state continues to rely more on intermittent, weather-dependent energy sources. The state is shutting down coal plants faster than we are replacing the energy production that’s being lost. This bill should receive bipartisan support as a lifeline from the ‘Blackout Bill’ that increases consumer energy prices, reduces power reliability and ultimately compromises safety. To the contrary, let’s have an honest conversation about an all-of-the-above energy policy here in our state. Let’s not create self-imposed energy shortages, let’s work on solutions through a diverse, reliable grid. Key components of my bill beyond lifting the nuclear moratorium include: - Providing exemptions to requirements for meeting previously established energy standards
- Prohibiting demolishing fossil fuel plants if electric utilities are unable to keep rates below 5% of the national average
- Qualifying hydroelectric power as an eligible energy technology under the renewable energy standard
- Expanding the sales tax exemption on residential heat produced by natural gas and electricity
The bill moved through the House committee on energy and sent to the panel on taxes.  March for Life Thank you to everyone who participated in this week’s March for Life rally at the Capitol. It’s always nice to see so many people brave the cold for this annual event and unite to show support for such a great cause.  Anti-fraud bills Taking initial steps to address a top priority for House Republicans this session, we have introduced a series of bills aimed at curbing fraud, waste, and abuse in state programs. It is clear our state agencies became a bit relaxed during two years of full Democrat control in St. Paul, allowing taxpayer dollars to continue being wasted. Those days are over. Minnesota taxpayers deserve better, so we are working to bring accountability back to state government. Common-sense oversight and stronger accountability measures are among our first steps toward fixing this problem and protecting taxpayers. The first three bills House Republicans drafted in response to this issue this session include: - House File 1: Establishes a centralized Office of the Inspector General to lead the fight against fraud across state programs. The bill consolidates agency-based inspector general offices into a unified entity, requires agencies to halt payments when fraud is suspected, and mandates the creation of a fraud reporting hotline. Additionally, it provides funding to ensure the new OIG has the resources to be effective.
- House File 2: Strengthens fraud prevention by mandating stricter reporting requirements for state agencies and equipping them with additional tools to identify and prevent fraudulent activities. This bill emphasizes transparency and swift action to address fraud concerns.
- House File 3: Establishes “fraud notes,” a groundbreaking tool to assess the susceptibility of proposed legislation to fraud. Similar to fiscal notes, fraud notes would provide lawmakers with an evaluation of potential fraud risks before enacting new programs or policies.
Stay tuned for more from the House soon. For now, have a good weekend and please stay in touch. Sincerely, Chris |