Dear Neighbor,
Minnesota’s 2024 legislative session began Monday and I am pleased to be back at the Capitol working for District 2B residents.
This year, we once again face a significant number of challenges impacting the everyday lives of District 2B residents. I will continue working to eliminate wasteful government spending so we can provide Minnesotans with the permanent tax relief they deserve instead of tax increases they cannot afford.
The main thing is we need more balance in St. Paul because it’s become quite clear one-party rule is not working for Minnesota after Democrats raised taxes by $10 billion despite a $17.5 billion surplus and pushed a number of extreme policies into law last year.
Floor action
On the first day of this session, House Republicans made motions to address a couple of important issues. One motion was to reject the committee report on the majority’s assisted-suicide bill (HF1930). In the end, the majority voted to adopt the committee report and move it along to the next committee stop.
House Republicans also on Day 1 made a motion to suspend the rules to bring forward a bill (HF3489) to resolve the school resource officer issue in our schools. You may recall changes made to state law last year limit what SROs are allowed to do to de-escalate aggressive or violent situations, taking away tools they can use to keep students and teachers safe. In response, law enforcement agencies pulled SROs from numerous schools across Minnesota.
Unfortunately, the majority blocked this motion and others to take prompt action and continues delaying legislation that is needed to fix this serious public safety issue despite promises of the bill being fast-tracked to the floor.
Bill introductions
The early part of the session is a heavy bill-introduction period as proposals enter the legislative process. I personally have bills to help offset excessive property taxes in school districts that have a high percentage of untaxable properties and fully eliminate the state tax on Social Security. On the Second Amendment, I have bills to establish a lifetime concealed carry permit and to eliminate the need to retreat through Castle Doctrine protection.
On the radar
I’d like to call your attention to a couple of measures House Democrats propose this session and some other items of interest:
Guns: One Democrat bill (HF3570) prohibits the sale or transfer of almost all semiautomatic weapons. This may be sold to the public as an attempt to ban “AR-style rifles” but, in reality, it impacts many more firearms. For example, I have a .17-calibre varmint rifle that would be illegal under this proposed law for two reasons: it has a detachable magazine and a thumbhole stock. Another bill (HF3628) is even more restrictive, banning the possession – not just the transfer – of certain rifles, and even lists them by name. Also, magazines of more than 10 rounds would be outlawed.
Gas: The Walz Administration is continuing its efforts to bring California’s automobile mandates to Minnesota. This includes a Clean Fuels Standard that would drive up the cost of gas for Minnesotans by 50 cents per gallon or more. This is on top of the automatic annual gas tax increase that Democrats passed last year (part of their $10 billion in tax hikes that have made life more expensive for every Minnesota family).
State flag: Minnesota soon will adopt a state flag without direct input from the people of this state unless the Legislature acts. Republicans believe Minnesotans deserve to have the final say through a vote on acceptance before a new flag flies over them now and for generations to come. Unfortunately, Democrats silenced the voice of the people at the point the process their input mattered most and have given no indication they have any interest in allowing the public to have a say in the final decision.
Until next time, please stay in touch because your input helps me continue doing my best to represent the people of our area. I will be back soon with more from the Capitol.
Sincerely,
Matt