Minnesota House Passes Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act
Last night, the Minnesota House approved the Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act. This is a renewed version of Alec’s bill, updated through the events of the interim, advocate input, and bipartisan negotiations. I was proud to cast my vote in favor of this overdue legislation that will help ensure Minnesotans with diabetes stay healthy and can thrive in their communities with their loved ones. The Minnesota Senate has yet to hold a public committee hearing on their version of the bill- I’m hopeful they will move quickly on this important measure to help save more lives.
Securing Privacy for Voters
Minnesota is well known for our nation-leading voter turnout, and I want to keep it that way! That’s why I support new legislation to improve voter privacy in this year’s presidential primary in response to concerns I am hearing about who can access your data. Last night, the House passed legislation that would give voters the ability to opt-out of sharing their party preference in the presidential primary, while also restricting the sharing of that data only to a national party representative, and only for the purpose of verifying participation in the primary. Primary Day is March 3 and I hope you’ll get out and cast your vote, regardless of your party affiliation.
Keeping our Farmers Safe
Our farmers deserve to be safe while they are working. As a member of the Agriculture Finance and Policy Committee, I’m grateful for the opportunity to engage with farmers, advocates, and my colleagues from rural Minnesota to learn more about the challenges our farming community faces. One of these is safety. Our committee recently discussed and approved legislation that would provide cost-sharing for farmers looking to upgrade safety features of their grain bins and for education efforts to promote best practices in farm safety. According to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, at least eight Minnesotans died in grain bin related accidents last year. Farmers always have our backs and we need to have theirs too. You can read more in this MPR story here.
Michele Gran, whose 18-year-old son, Landon, was killed in an August 2019 farm accident, provides emotional testimony Feb. 20 to the House Agriculture and Food Finance and Policy Division. A bill sponsored by Rep. Jeff Brand, right, seeks to establish a farm safety grant program. Photo by Paul Battaglia
Constituent Visits
It was great meeting with constituents from New Horizon Academy this week! They shared their goals for training teachers and delivering quality programs for our youngest learners. I’m grateful for their work and our conversation.
I also had the opportunity to meet with occupational therapists from Plymouth and learn about their great work for Minnesotans.
Kim Nguyen also stopped by to advocate for equity for our disability community in Minnesota. Great conversation!
Keep in Touch
Please keep the emails, letters, and phone calls coming! I value your input and questions. My phone number at the Capitol is 651-296-5511 and my email address is rep.ginny.klevorn@house.mn.
If you have friends, neighbors, or coworkers interested in following the state legislature, feel free to invite them to join my email update list.
It’s an honor to represent our Plymouth neighborhoods at the Capitol!
Sincerely,
Ginny Klevorn
State Representative
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