Fostering Bipartisanship with Civility CaucusOne of my passions in the Minnesota Legislature is developing positive relationships across the aisle and encouraging others to do the same. This is a wonderful article describing the work that I and my DFL and GOP co-leads of the Civility Caucus to build bridges and work together across differences.  Policy Bills Pass the House!We’ve entered the phase of the legislative session where we’re introducing major policy bill packages, building on the work of our historic 2023 session. On Monday, we passed the Elections Policy bill, which focuses on improved voter access and election transparency. It targets policy areas where the state can improve voter turnout and ensure that if voting is restricted, voters have a means of redress. We also passed the Public Safety Policy Bill. As Vice Chair of the House Public Safety Committee, I am proud of how this bill continues our comprehensive approach to public safety and crime prevention with support for victims, criminal legal reform, and policy modernization. Last week, we passed a Higher Education Policy bill that includes the clean energy sector in our Workforce Development Scholarship Program and expands support in higher education for students who have a disability. We also passed an Early Education Policy bill focused on strengthening our pre-kindergarten and school readiness programs. We also passed a Transportation Policy package that improves road safety, adopts safer speed limit recommendations, shortens Driver Vehicle Services wait times, and includes child passenger safety and consumer protections. Just last night, we passed the Labor Policy bill, which will improve working conditions, strengthen protections, and address pay inequality. We also passed the Education Policy bill, which includes a few pieces of legislation I authored, including my bill to require school cell phone policies. Also included in the Education Policy package is my bill to strengthen accountability and oversight for charter schools. This bill was written in consultation and collaboration with stakeholders to address numerous issues charter schools have asked for clarity on. This legislation will address issues that have arisen through mistakes or gaps in our accountability structures that have led problems for school communities. With this legislation, we'll be able to proactively address possible issues that may come up in the future and make administrator’s jobs easier. I was grateful for the partnership of both the charter schools and the Minnesota Department of Education on this legislation. Affordable Child Care for AllRecently, I sat down with Great Start MN to talk about how affordable, accessible child care is a priority for me. It has been ever since I first began to advocate around early childhood education as part of the YWCA Public Policy Advocacy Committee as a new mom! Last session, we made major strides to help lower the cost of child care for low-income Minnesotans, but there are still thousands of middle class families who are struggling. That’s why I signed onto the Great Start Affordability Act as a co-author, so that no Minnesota family has to pay more than 7% of their income for child care. WATCH THE VIDEO! Rice Creek Watershed DistrictI'm so glad to be partnering with the Rice Creek Watershed District on legislation to prevent flooding along I-35W in what are primarily environmental justice areas of concern. My bill seeks funding for an important flood mitigation project (Jones Lake) in New Brighton. You can learn more about the project here. Thank you to the great folks at the Rice Creek Watershed District for your expertise and advocacy!  |