  Last week featured the annual Duluth and St. Louis County at the Capitol Days bringing busloads of folks from our region to the Capitol to advocate for our priorities. After two years, it was great to hold this event in person once again and give my colleagues the opportunity to learn about our community. Schools, businesses, and civic organizations all made the trip down to highlight the importance of a successful Duluth and Twin Ports region to the success of our whole state. It’s crystal-clear people from across the state have a unique appreciation for Duluth. Many communities and trade groups hold “days on the hill,” but I honestly believe ours is one of the most organized and effective. Thanks to everyone who participated! Earned Sick and Safe TimeAll Minnesota workers deserve to take care of themselves or a family member when they’re sick, and it’s unacceptable so many of them must forgo pay to do so. Earlier this week, the House Ways and Means Committee approved my bill to guarantee Earned Sick and Safe Time for all Minnesota workers. The legislation would ensure, at a minimum, one hour of paid Earned Sick and Safe Time for every 30 hours worked, up to at least 48 hours per year, for workers to stay home if they’re sick or injured, to go to the doctor, if a job site is closed, or following a domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking. Even during a pandemic, over a third of workers in our state couldn’t take a single hour of paid time off when they got sick. In an economy tilted in favor of corporations and the very wealthiest, House DFLers are committed to putting workers first. Earned Sick and Safe Time is a critical piece of the puzzle to deliver economic security for all Minnesotans. Drought ReliefLast week, I was proud to support a significant drought relief package to help our farmers and ranchers recover from the drought that began last spring. The funding is targeted toward the smallest operations, including specialty crop producers who are unable to access federal crop insurance. Many of them are immigrants and those just starting out in agriculture, and have products for sale at our farmers markets. In addition to delivering financial assistance to farmers and ranchers now, we need to have a holistic approach to the reasons for the drought in the first place. There’s no question climate change is a major contributor to extreme weather swings, including persistent drought. The bill included investments to help communities remove and replace impacted trees and prepare for future water challenges, replace seedlings on DNR-managed lands killed by the drought, and to help private forestland owners and tribal and county governments replace seedlings on their lands. I was honored to recently attend the St. Louis River Summit where I shared an update on our efforts at the Capitol to protect our environment and ensure our climate is resilient. Climate change is a threat to all our natural resources, including watersheds. The $1 billion Climate Action Plan from the House DFL funds priorities including clean energy solutions, like solar, wind and weatherization, clean transportation like transit and biking, new investments in prairies, forests, and sustainable ag, and adapting our public infrastructure to be more resilient to the effects of climate change. As always, I invite you to reach out to me with your input, ideas, or if I can ever be of assistance. It’s an honor to represent you. Sincerely, Liz Olson
State Representative |