Dear Friends,
There has been a lot of committee work happening at the Capitol, as well as many meetings with local constituents and issue advocates. I have highlighted some legislation below from the past week at the Capitol that may be of interest to you.
RESTORING LOCAL CHARITIES AND SERVICE GROUPS’ ABILITY TO SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITIES
Local charities and service groups – Lions clubs, American Legions, VFWs, etc. - donate thousands of dollars every year to local community needs. Much of this funding is raised from electronic pull tabs.
Last biennium, legislation was passed by the majority at the time and signed into law by the governor which severely limited the ability of these organizations to raise funds through electronic pull tabs. This misdirected legislation took what should have been a minor fix and created an out-of-balance law that has had a huge negative affect on these charitable groups. This has limited their ability to help food shelves, EMS groups, and youth sports and scouting organizations pay for items and programs they normally could not afford.
This is why I’m supporting a return of electronic pull tabs to their original form. This bill, carried by Rep. Bjorn Olson, was heard in the Veterans and Military Committee this week. Our service organizations play such an important role in our communities, and this bill will prevent them from facing devastating financial losses now and in the future.
EDUCATION PROPOSALS MOVING FORWARD
EMPOWERING SCHOOLS:
HF 6, my proposal that would bring more focus on fixing the literacy crisis in our state, increase flexibility and innovation in local schools, and allow schools some common sense flexibility in implementing the dozens of new mandates that were thrust upon them last year, was approved by the House Education Finance Committee. Next stop: a House floor vote.
With statewide reading, math, and science scores at historic lows, and local schools buckling under the weight of the 65 mandates approved under Democrat leadership last year, it’s clear we need to make changes. My proposal would enable our schools to prioritize literacy, increase local control and innovation, and empower parents.
NO STATEWIDE HEALTH STANDARDS:
HF 65 is a bill I am carrying that was approved in the Education Policy Committee this week. This bill would restore local control in health education and repeal the new mandate that schools follow a set of state standards in health.
While the state writes academic standards in areas like language arts, math, science, and social studies, standards relating to health education have always been developed and adopted locally. One of the reasons this area is left to local control is because a significant component of health education involves the sensitive area of sex education.
When the state starts dictating what and when to teach for sex education – subjects like anal, oral, and vaginal sex, masturbation, etc., it causes high tensions locally and often pits parents against teachers, administrators, and local school boards. This causes a lot of unnecessary issues for local schools and families and disrupts the important trust between schools and parents that is necessary for good education. Local development brings these decisions closer to home with less likelihood of divisiveness. It allows schools to fit the needs of their local families.
The lack of statewide standards does not mean that schools can just do whatever they want with health education or ignore it altogether. Current law requires schools to cover subjects such as CPR and AED training, vaping, cannabis and substance use, and sexually transmitted infections and diseases prevention. Current law also addresses mental health, violence prevention, and more. These requirements would not change.
Advocates of statewide health standards will say that, without statewide mandates in health, students will be denied access to critical information regarding health and wellness. I think that is an insult to our schools and underestimates our educators.
Sex education in particular – which is wrapped up in local community preferences, family religious beliefs, and more - is a decision that should be made close to home. These decisions should be left up to locally elected school boards and parents. That’s what my bill does.
OTHER BILLS OF NOTE
NON-PROFITS: This week, the House elections committee approved legislation that bans nonprofits that receive state dollars from spending money for political purposes. This is just common sense. Your state tax dollars should not be handed to a nonprofit in order to be funneled back to a partisan political operation that is trying to win elections.
TAX DOLLARS FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS: The House health committee approved a bill that prohibits illegal immigrants from receiving MinnesotaCare and the North Star scholarship program. Minnesota is facing a projected budget deficit in two years, and many are upset that people who shouldn’t be here in the first place are being handed free health care and free college, courtesy of Minnesota’s taxpayers. Nursing homes are closing, veterans need more focus on suicide prevention, roads and bridges lack funding, among other critical needs. We should not be spending tax dollars on citizens of other countries who are here illegally.
ANTI-FRAUD: Anti-fraud proposals continue to make their way through committees. State government finance approved two of them this week, the first would create an independent Inspector General, the second would strengthen agency and nonprofit accountability.
PUBLIC SAFETY: As I shared in last week’s update, legislation that would improve public safety by strengthening penalties for criminals and providing more accountability for the courts and prosecutors continues to make progress. The bill was approved by the judiciary finance committee this week.
SHELLROCK RIVER WATERSHED BOARD VISIT
It was so nice to visit with some of the Shellrock River Watershed Board who came to the Capitol this week. They are working hard to finish up the dredging of Fountain Lake and we had some good discussions about that issue.
Have a good weekend,
Peggy