If you would like to contact Rep. Sexton, DO NOT reply to this email. Please reach out directly to rep.tom.sexton@house.mn.gov. Legislative UpdateFriends and neighbors, Greetings from St. Paul, I hope you have recovered from the chilling temperatures of last week and are enjoying the beautiful weather outside. I am happy to share with you what has happened this week at the Capitol, from a Supreme Court ruling to various meetings and events. Thank you for taking the time to hear what I have been up to! Democrat ShutdownThe Supreme Court ruled on Friday afternoon that 68 members are needed to conduct official business at the House of Representatives. This decision does not meet our GOP interpretation of the Constitution. However, the ruling prevents us from governing with only 67 members and from recalling the absent members to the Capitol. Since the Democrats have refused to show up for work for 3 weeks now, they have been blocking us from doing any official work for Minnesota. Have no fear! We are meeting and drafting legislation to help our fellow Minnesotans gain relief from high taxes and the DFL mandates placed on our businesses. We are addressing our fraud issues by drafting legislation requiring increased oversight and scrutiny of state and federally funded programs. It is important to note that each Democrat representative is making the individual choice to stay away and maintain the shutdown. If even ONE Democrat shows up next week, we would have 68 members present and be able to immediately get to work. Moreover, Minnesota taxpayers shelled out nearly $10,000 salary dollars per day to DFL representatives who refuse to show up to work. By holding the House hostage, each DFL member is ignoring the will of every voter in Minnesota, not just those in their districts. You can take action! Go to the Minnesota House of Representatives website, select members, and email each DFL member telling them to report for duty at the Capitol. MN USA Snowmobile Early this week, I had the pleasure of attending several events. One of them was hosted by the MN United Snowmobile Association. One of the challenges that they are facing across the state is a decrease in funding which they depend on to maintain our wonderful trails. Due to the last two winters being relatively brown, snowmobile registrations have fallen by 48%, which is where a large portion of their funding comes from. This is becoming a greater issue with each winter that registrations are down, and I hope to help with creative solutions for our snowmobile industry. MN Municipal Utilities AssociationIt was an honor to hear from the MMUA this week, representing both Waseca and Owatonna, about the challenges that they are facing in our district. I look forward to hearing from SMMPA (Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency) as I gain a better understanding about the utilities industry. Especially as a member of the Energy Committee I am eager to do what I can to help overcome the challenges we are facing on this topic. Visitors from the City of WasecaIt was a treat to see several employees from the City of Waseca here at the Capitol. I was visited by Carl Sonnenberg - City Manager, Stacey Schroeder - City Councilmember, and Alicia Fischer - Finance and HR Director.  In District I was grateful to attend the superintendent's Friday morning coffee last week. It was a great opportunity to connect and talk about how our schools are doing, as well as to connect with other residents in the district. Thank you to all who joined! As you may know I love to be an active participant wherever I can be in our district, and I have great relationships with both the Owatonna and Waseca Chambers of Commerce. It was an honor to receive recognition from the Owatonna chamber as the district's state representative. I am proud to display this certificate on my desk at the Capitol for all to see!  I want to hear youI am always here to listens to concerns or ideas of my constituents. I can be reached via email rep.tom.sexton@house.mn.gov or phone 651-296-5368. |