Dear Neighbors,
I'm excited to announce that House DFL and Republican leadership reached an agreement to co-govern over the next two years. This follows weeks of contentious negotiations where our primary sticking point was the Republican’s unwillingness to seat fairly elected Rep. Brad Tabke. Thankfully they conceded this point and we could come to a reasonable agreement. I’m proud that the DFL caucus fought for our democratic values and won!
The agreement says that Republicans will govern as a majority until we return to a 67-67 tie, which we expect following the March 11th special election in Roseville. At that point, all committees will have equal representation from both parties with co-chairs leading. In fact, the agreement is largely what we proposed four weeks ago, but it took a while for Republicans to exhaust their various power grabbing tactics.
I want to acknowledge the community leaders, advocates, and constituents who met with me to share their priorities while I denied quorum. Your input directly shapes my legislative agenda, and I will continue to advance our shared values here at the House. Thank you all for your support, I can’t wait to continue to represent you at the Capitol!
Working Outside the Capitol
During the negotiation period I was hard at work advancing our shared values in district. Here is some of what I worked on recently:
- It was wonderful touring 916 Career and Tech Center. They have an incredible career and tech program that allows our students to explore and gain expertise in a number of technical careers.
- Looking forward to fixing Myrtle Street hill. Here is the first bill I had drafted after consulting with Mayor Kozlowski and the Stillwater City Council. The DFL led House passed this bill last year, but the Senate failed to support it due to theatrical GOP chaos near midnight on the last day of the session. I'm hoping this year we can see it through to the end!
- Had a great and thorough meeting to learn more about Stillwater Public Schools’ legislative priorities for this session. It was great to be with administrative staff, School Board members, and local legislative colleagues!
- I had an opportunity to tour Stillwater’s new Alternative Learning Center facility and to connect with Stillwater’s Transitions Program facility. They are staffed by dedicated and skilled educators doing great work and service to students and families!
Resisting Federal Overreach
I have heard from many of you about your concerns with the radical actions being taken by the Trump administration. I want to assure you that I will use all of my power to resist every illegal, hateful, racist, xenophobic, and discriminatory action coming from the federal government. I will fight to protect the rights of our LGBTQ, Black and Brown, and immigrant communities. Our diversity is our strength and I won’t back down from that. This is one reason why it was so critical for the House DFL to maintain a fair power-sharing agreement. We are now in a much stronger position to push back against these destructive attacks.
Stay in Touch
Please feel free to reach out to me by email at rep.josiah.hill@house.mn.gov or by phone at 651-296-4124. If you have a friend, neighbor, or relative who wants to receive updates about the Legislature, let them know they can subscribe to my email list here, and follow my Facebook here. It’s an honor to represent our community. Please stay in touch!
Sincerely,
Josiah Hill, District 33B
5th Floor, Centennial Office Building
658 Cedar St. Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155