Dear Neighbors:
I work hard in our community and at the Capitol so that we can ensure a bright future for all Minnesotans. This week I had a broad array of opportunities to work to improve the lives of all our neighbors. You can read more below about what happened, from the release of Governor Dayton's Budget to protecting our right to free speech.
Last week I introduced my first bills to help finish important Duluth projects and to include the Lincoln Park neighborhood in the area that benefits from our tourism tax.
Town Hall –February 18th
Senator Simonson, Representative Schultz and I will be hosting a town hall on Saturday, Feb. 18 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Duluth Children’s Museum – Celebration Room (115 S 29th Ave W, Duluth, MN 55806). We’ll be hosting staff from Minnesota Management and Budget to help break down the budgeting process and learn more about what is in Governor Dayton’s budget. I hope you can join us!
Governor Dayton’s Budget: An Opportunity Agenda
Governor Dayton delivered the State of the State to a joint legislative session of the House and Senate on Monday. The headline grabbing news was that he fainted just before he finished the speech. Thankfully, he’s OK and doing well. During his speech and in the two year state budget he released on Tuesday, he outlined a broad vision for improving the lives of ordinary Minnesotans.
I was pleased to hear his continued support for improving education for our students. His continued focus on investing in pre-K to college students is so important to our future success. The Governor proposed voluntary pre-kindergarten for all of Minnesota’s children, a 2% increase in education funding this year and the next, and a plan to hold down college debt so we keep our graduates among the best in the nation in workforce readiness.
Just before he was going to finish his speech, Governor Dayton was going to call for new reforms to make insurance more affordable. Among those reforms was expanding our successful MinnesotaCare program, which is a public option to increase competition and drive down health insurance costs.
You can read Governor Dayton’s full remarks here and his full budget release with details on many other parts of the state budget here.
Health Insurance Premiums Relief
I've spoke with a number of individuals and families in our community who shared fear and anxiety over their rising premium costs for health insurance purchased on the individual market. One mother shared that high costs would mean her family would be making a choice between health care coverage or providing healthy food for her family. This is a decision no one should have to make.
On Thursday we passed a bill that will help alleviate these crushing premium increases. There are still long term policy changes we must make to ensure people have the best, most affordable healthcare in the country, including pushing strongly for Governor Dayton’s public option proposal. Unfortunately the immediate relief to families was tied to reckless, un-vetted changes to our health care system. It is alarming to me that there are potential perks to for-profit insurance companies and policy that hasn’t undergone public scrutiny in this bill. I’ll be watching the impacts of these changes closely to make sure that we don’t further weaken health insurance for all of us in the future.
Protest Legislation
Republican lawmakers around the country (and in Minnesota) are attempting to make protest illegal. There was a packed committee hearing on Tuesday for a bill that would seek to criminalize peaceful protest by making it legal to sue protesters for costs associated with protests, similar to the women’s march that drew 100,000 people to Saint Paul streets last Saturday. It is a constitutional right to join together in peaceful demonstration and make your voices heard. I oppose measures like this that attempt to restrict our first amendment rights to peacefully assemble.
Executive Orders Banning Refugees
This week I participated in a press conference that included Minnesotans of all different racial and ethnic backgrounds to say that we objected to the racist and hateful executive orders being signed by President Trump that are attacking refugees, Muslims, and immigrants from Mexico and other nations. Minnesota is a place where we welcome all people from all backgrounds and nationalities, because they have enriched our culture and our economy. I want our community to be a place that is welcoming to all people to live in dignity and joy.
I joined attendees at the Capitol press conference yesterday opposing President Trump’s executive orders banning immigrants and ordering the construction of a border wall.
Stay in Touch
You can always contact me if you have questions or concerns at 651-296-4246 or by email at rep.liz.olson@house.mn .
Sincerely,
Liz Olson
State Representative