Legislative Update - November 25, 2020

Dear Neighbors, 

Thank you for your continued confidence in me to be your voice in the Minnesota House of Representatives. The whole state, including our community, will have tough decisions to face as we respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting impact on Minnesota, but I’m confident we can meet these challenges together and emerge stronger.

For many of us, tomorrow’s Thanksgiving holiday will look a lot different due to the current surge in COVID cases, but we’re doing what we must in order to keep our family, friends, and neighbors healthy. I hope you and yours are able to find a moment to connect tomorrow, as well as reflect on what we’re thankful for - and what we’re sacrificing for during these challenging times. 

Promising news of vaccines have given us much to hope for, but the work still remains to adequately respond to this virus. Recently, new resources and measures have been enacted, which you can read about below. 

Balancing COVID Restrictions with Economic Relief

The recent surge in COVID-19 cases throughout the state has called for a new round of measures to help curb the spread of this virus. Similar to what we had experienced earlier this year, bars, restaurants, and gyms are now closed, and many events are paused - but with these measures there must also be economic relief to assist our community. My colleagues and I in the House DFL are working with Governor Walz to put forward a proposal of economic relief for Minnesota’s businesses and workers, which you can read more about here. 

We’re moving to advance these measures, and hope to be in session to work on them as soon as next week. 

COVIDaware MN

This week, Governor Walz shared a new tool to help keep Minnesotans informed as cases increase across the state. COVIDaware MN is a free mobile app that can alert people if someone they’ve been in close contact with – even someone they don’t know – contracts the virus. The app is free, voluntary, and anonymous. You can download it and learn more here.

Stay Connected

It’s highly likely that we’ll have one more special session in December, but after that we’ll be back to our regular legislative schedule with our newly elected members in January. You can stay up to date on our work by subscribing to these legislative updates here (and be sure to share with others who may be interested), and “liking” my official Facebook page.

Please feel free to continue to reach out to me with any questions or comments you have on our work. You can contact me at rep.mike.freiberg@house.mn and at (651) 296-4176. (E-mail is preferred). I look forward to hearing from you. 

Stay strong, and wash your hands!

Mike Freiberg

State Representative