“Saturday’s storms were very challenging, especially in the West-Metro. We had 135,000 customers who lost power and we have been working since to get them all restored. As of now, we have about 1675 customers still waiting for restoration. We expect to have everyone back today. We called on our mutual aid agreements to restore power as quickly as possible. Yesterday, for example, we had over 1250 FTEs in the field working on repairs. As things return back to normal, I will reach out to our team and ask specifically about St. Louis Park, but I know from talking to them that much of the damage was vegetation-related. Here’s a couple photos from Xcel of examples of what they saw in the field:   While it seems to me that Xcel was aggressive in responding to the storm, in the era of increased impacts from storms made more severe by climate change, we almost certainly will have to look at and adapt our infrastructure differently. I intend to have conversations with Xcel about this and will think about how we bring more attention to it in a future legislative session. New Laws Now in Effect On July 1, some of the new policies and investments we passed at the State Capitol this year took effect, including $43 million to improve student literacy. We can make all the investments in education we want, but none of them will be impactful if our children are falling behind on reading.? Other highlights of the new laws include making sure our driver’s license exams utilize plain language, criminalizing the use of “deep fakes” to influence an election, and investing nearly $80 million in lottery proceeds towards more than 100 projects to protect Minnesota's natural resources. You can read about these new laws and more in this nonpartisan summary of what was enacted on July 1 or in this Fox9 News article: New Minnesota laws starting July 1 that could affect you. Share your Input on Prescription Drug Pricing DFLers are interested in hearing from Minnesotans about how prescription drug prices impact their health care, what affordability concerns exist, and which drugs might benefit from pricing transparency. If you are interested in providing your insights, you can complete the Public Input on Prescription Drug Price Transparency in Minnesota form to share your experiences and help guide the Minnesota Department of Health’s ongoing drug price transparency work. In the Community Recently I had the honor of meeting with the Youth for Change Coalition in St. Louis Park, facilitated by Children First St. Louis Park. It’s so inspiring to hear how they’re digging into youth mental health issues, specifically in the LGBTQIA community.  Our Work is Receiving CoverageRecently the Star Tribune covered what may be the most consequential bill I've authored this biennium. To tackle transportation greenhouse gas emissions in Minnesota, we have to electrify vehicles and make it easier for people to live their lives and drive a bit less. Who wouldn’t want to spend a bit less time in traffic? This legislation provides a change in the way we think about transportation investments and creates a framework that increases the options for multi-modal investments. This means thinking differently - but the rewards are significant. You can read more here. CovidPlease stay vigilant everyone. I came down with Covid on July 4th. While it was reasonably mild, it did keep me isolated in part of my house for a week and a half while I waited to test negative again. It definitely seems to be going around, so having a stash of tests at home seems like a good precaution. Political ViolencePolitical violence is unacceptable in all its forms and should have no place in our country. I'm relieved that former President Trump is okay, and my heart goes out to the family of the brave bystander who lost his life protecting his family from harm. |