Hello from the State Capitol,
On January 14, most lawmakers returned to St. Paul to begin the 2025 legislative session. Despite the turmoil being seen in the opening days, I am committed to doing the job you elected me to do, and my focus will be on getting things done for our state and our communities.
My Republican colleagues and I have come up with some basic goals, or pillars, to accomplish this session. For anything to be approved in the House this year, it will have to be bipartisan. My hope is the following goals can be overwhelmingly supported by both Republicans and Democrats.
Stop the Fraud
Minnesotans are sick and tired of being taken advantage of by fraudsters. In the past five years during Governor Walz’s tenure, taxpayers have lost more than $1 billion to criminals who are scamming the system.
This simply has to stop.
To get the ball rolling, House Republicans have already unveiled a new committee which has one task: to find and eliminate government waste, fraud, and abuse within state government, and it comes with subpoena powers. It’s long overdue.
Make Minnesota Affordable
Thanks in part to Democrats’ out-of-control spending last session and their historic tax increases last session (more than $10 billion) Minnesotans have been struggling to deal with massive inflation and higher costs on everything from eggs to gasoline to energy.
Our goal is to make things more affordable for Minnesotans. To do that, we will seek to repeal Democrat laws that hurt family budgets, such as their automatic gas tax increase, delivery taxes, and other policies that have driven up the costs of goods and services.
Make Minnesota Safe
You can’t turn on the news without seeing a report on a violent crime these days. House Republicans will work with law enforcement to make sure they have the resources they need to keep our communities safe and hold violent criminals responsible for their actions.
Raise Standards, Reduce Mandates
Last session, legislative Democrats boasted about the “historic” funding schools received last session. The problem was, the dozens of mandates those schools are now forced to follow has led to districts having less money than they did before the “historic” increase was implemented.
This session, House Republicans will work to reduce these burdensome mandates and work with local school boards to make sure they have the flexible funding they need to address their unique needs. We will also fight to get politics out of the classroom and work with local school districts to emphasize teaching the basics like reading, writing, and math.
As session moves ahead, I encourage you to contact me with any legislative questions or concerns. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-5373 and contacted via e-mail at rep.marj.fogelman@house.mn.gov. I look forward to hearing from you!
Have a good weekend,
Marj