 Dear Neighbors, Members got back to work after a Passover break this week. House business began on Wednesday, when committees convened and members gathered for a floor session to continue passing policy bills off the floor. These included: - SF 4579 (Hollins)/HF 4558 – Single and Sub-Metered Utility Service
- HF 4661 (Wolgamott)/SF 4745 – Workers Comp Advisory Council Recommendations
- HF 3800 (Norris)/SF 4053 – Minnesota Cooperative Housing Act
- HF 3204 (Moller)/SF 2759 – Child-Centered Family Law Reform
- HF 2895 (Scott)/SF 2745 – Spousal Maintenance Reform
- HF 3304 (Wiens)/SF 3328 – Reporting Requirement for Veterans Restorative Justice Act
House and Senate conference committees also ramped up their work and the House Ways and Means Committee, which I sit on, began to hear the different committees' budget bills. Our House K-12 Education Finance supplemental budget bill was heard at its final committee stop on Thursday. Ways and Means will continue their work next week as they merge bills together to better align them with their Senate counterparts and we move onto floor passage of budget bills. You can find the live streaming schedule of these conference committees and watch online here. Next week,our work will mostly shift to the House Floor to continue passing legislation, including our K-12 Education Finance supplemental budget bill. Then onto the next phase of session, conference committee where the difference between the House and Senate bills are worked on. There are 16 more days left of the legislative session and they will be full of very long hours. The last day that we can pass bills off of the House floor is midnight on Sunday, May 19. Schools For Equity in Education Today Rep. Mary Frances Clardy and I spoke to the education organization Schools for Equity in Education. They are administrators and school board members from 52 school districts throughout the state who come together to advocate on education issues. Among those issues is that every child should receive a high-quality education no matter their zip code. We discussed the House Education Finance bill that will be on the floor next week, fielded questions, and heard many thank yous.  Arbor Day CelebrationToday, April 26th is Arbor Day, and DFLers are taking action to protect our environment and honor trees' vital role in our ecosystem. This year we are investing millions in tree planting grants for communities around our state.  Keep in TouchPlease continue to contact me anytime at rep.cheryl.youakim@house.mn.gov or 651-296-9889 with questions, input, or ideas. Email is the quickest way to get in touch! Thank you for the honor of representing our Hopkins, St. Louis Park, and Edina neighbors at the State Capitol. Have a great weekend!  Cheryl Youakim
State Representative |