Dear Neighbors,
We are entering the final month of the 2024 legislative session with much of our work in committee completed for the year. Moving forward, I expect long days spent on the House Floor debating and voting on large supplemental budget bills as well as a handful of smaller standalone bills.
Please be sure to stay tuned for more information about some of these bills and how they will impact our communities. I continue to work hard on several issues including a bonding bill to provide funding for a variety of infrastructure projects across the Northland. Senator Grant Hauschild and I have been working together on making sure that our area is well represented if a bonding bill is passed this year.
As always, I am grateful to be able to represent you, your family, and all our communities in St. Paul. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns. My contact information can be found at the bottom of this newsletter.
Helium Legislation Moves Forward
Legislation I have co-sponsored that establishes a regulatory framework for gas and oil production in the state received an important hearing in the House Environment and Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday afternoon.
House File 5350 is in direct response to the recent, historic discovery of helium deposits at the Topaz Project site near Babbitt. According to Pulsar Helium, the discovery revealed some of the highest concentrated levels of helium anywhere in the world.
Wednesday’s hearing was a critical next step in making sure that a regulatory framework is in place so that continued exploration and eventually extraction can take place here in Minnesota. While this year’s legislative session is winding down, I am working with DFL leadership in the House and Senate to make sure this bill has the necessary waivers so that it can continue on its path and ideally be approved and signed into law by Governor Walz before the end of May.
The entire region will benefit from this helium discovery with new job opportunities for residents, additional tax revenue for our local communities, and a robust domestic supply of a critical element needed for the production of several modern technologies. The future is bright for the Northland and I look forward to continuing to work with local and state officials to make sure this gets done.
Veterans Day on the Hill
Last week, hundreds of veterans from across Minnesota traveled to St. Paul to rally in support of veterans-related issues here at the legislature. It was great to meet with many local folks that made the trip down.
As a U.S. Army veteran myself, I will always stand up for our veterans and make sure that they are well taken care of by the State of Minnesota.
Sen. Hauschild, Sen. Farnsworth, Rep. Igo, and myself are pictured here with a group of local veterans who traveled to St. Paul last week.
2024 Ranger Party Recap
Last Wednesday, the Iron Range Delegation hosted the annual Ranger Party here in St. Paul. This is a yearly event where folks from all over our region head down to St. Paul for a get together and to raise awareness of the issues facing the Iron Range and our priorities for the year ahead.
This year, we collected a free will donation for the Sen. David Tomassoni ALS Foundation.
St. Louis County Commissioner Paul McDonald and Doug Carnival sang “Mack the Knife” in honor of Sen. Tomassoni who would often sing this song at events in year’s past.
It was great to see legislators and elected officials from across the political spectrum chat with one another and continue to build the important relationships we need to do our jobs effectively. Thank you to everyone that took the time to attend and for making this year’s event such a success. Together we can build a strong and prosperous Iron Range.
From the entire Iron Range delegation, thank you for your support.
A special thank you to the Tomassoni family for their support of this year’s event and to my colleagues on the range delegation including Rep. Ben Davis, Rep. Spencer Igo, Rep. Dave Lislegard, Sen. Rob Farnsworth, Sen. Justin Eichorn, and Sen. Grant Hauschild.
Staying in Touch
Today, Friday, is Arbor Day. I joined with some of my colleagues and House staff in preparing tree saplings to hand out to House members to be planted back in their districts. The distribution of young trees is a House tradition going back more than 20 years to celebrate Arbor Day.
I'm pictured here with House members and staff preparing tree saplings for the annual Arbor Day celebration.
I recently attended the Friends of NRA-Itasca County annual dinner with Sens. Green and Farnsworth and my House of Representatives colleagues Reps. Bliss, Davis, and Igo.
If you plan to be in St. Paul anytime soon or would like to set up a time to meet back home, please do not hesitate to reach out to my office. It would be great to chat with you about the issues that are important to you and your family.
You can call me at 651-296-2190 or email at rep.roger.skraba@house.mn.gov.
Have a great day!
Roger