Dear Neighbors,
On March 4th, the Minnesota House unanimously passed legislation that would invest in statewide mental health counseling for our farm families. It’s a bill I was proud to co-author and vote for. As we enter a point in session where negotiations and debates can sometimes get particularly contentious, it’s morally irreprehensible that the Senate could use this as a bargaining chip when it passed out of the House 123-0.
This bill, House File 232, is especially important because it would fund assistance for our farming community right now. Much of the legislation we pass off the House floor won’t come into effect until the next fiscal year, but seeing the mental health of our farmers as an immediate priority, the House acted swiftly with clean bill language.
The strong bipartisan support and urgent need for these funds is what moved me to write about this legislation today. It’s been a month since the House approved this bill, with not a nay vote, and yet the Minnesota Senate has done nothing. Having been focused on our work in the House, I honestly can’t tell you the reason why this legislation hasn’t moved in the Senate. The Senate certainly has their own version of this bill, it’s Senate File 553, and it’s currently sponsored by four DFL senators, including Sen. Frentz.
Our farmers need action now. Times are tough, as many of us are aware, but with suicide rates among farmers increasing, we really are dealing with a life or death issue. I hope you’ll join me in calling on the Republican Senate leadership to pass this urgently-needed legislation cleanly, as I’ve helped do in the House.
Your partner in Saint Paul,
Jeff Brand
State Representative, District 19A
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