Hello Friends, We’re in the final days of the 2023 Legislative Session, with the bulk of our work spent debating our final budget bills on the House Floor. Constitutionally, we’re required to finish our work on Monday, May 22, and we’re setting a good pace to pass our budget on time. So far, we’ve already passed our Veterans, Higher Education, Early Education, K-12 Education, Housing, Legacy, Jobs, Judiciary and Public Safety, Environment and Energy, Commerce, and Agriculture budgets. As Vice Chair of the Transportation Committee in the House, much of my focus has been on working with my colleagues in the House and Senate to put together our final Transportation budget, which we’re excited to share soon, but I’ve also successfully fought for investments in other budgets - including $3 million for Koda Energy in our Climate and Energy Budget, and over $7 million for stabilizing the riverbank of the Minnesota River in our proposed capital investment bill. Outside of our budgets, there are also important stand-alone bills. This week, we passed Paid Family and Medical Leave, which is now on its way to Governor Walz for his anticipated signature, and last night the House passed the final version of our bill to legalize adult-use cannabis, which now goes to the Senate. With only a few remaining days, I’ll have a lot to share with you soon about our final state budget, what it does for Minnesotans, and the direct impact it’ll have on Shakopee. It’s shaping up to be a once-in-a-generation investment in our state, and while it’ll be the crowning achievement of our work this year, I don’t want it to overshadow the great bills that have already been signed into law since we got started in January. Here’s a quick review of the non-budget bills we’ve passed this year so far: |