Legislative UpdateDear neighbors, It has been another busy week here in Saint Paul and this week we heard multiple bills on the house floor. On Thursday we heard House File 24 and 25 on the floor. House File 24 or “born alive bill” states that if a child is born alive during an abortion all life saving measures must be taken to save that child. We also heard House File 25 which allocates money to pregnancy centers and maternity homes, giving women real options and choices when facing an unexpected pregnancy. Both HF 24 and 25 failed to pass with all 67 House Republicans voting in favor of these bills. On Monday, we heard House File 3 and HF 23 which both are bills addressing the waste fraud and abuse in the state. HF 23 expands whistleblower protections to cover all state employees, not just classified state workers, and includes reports of ‘fraud’ and ‘misuse’ as protected disclosures. Also, it expands who whistleblowers can report to, now including law enforcement and other government bodies. These changes provide whistleblowers with multiple safe avenues to report concerns. This bill passed 133-0. We also heard House File 3 on the floor. HF 3 creates an innovative tool designed to evaluate the risk of fraud in proposed legislation. Using reports from the OLA (Office of the Legislative Auditor), these assessments would give lawmakers insight into possible fraud vulnerabilities before implementing new programs or policies. HF 3 failed to pass with a 67-66 vote. With a $6 billion deficit, the other party blocked a bill that would help stop the waste, fraud, and abuse in Minnesota. |