In one of the only nation’s divided Legislatures, I worked across the aisle to get results for our region and the state of Minnesota. While there is more work to be done, we accomplished some great things that will build a better future for northern Minnesota and our state. Important legislation passed during the 2019-2020 Legislative Biennium include:
 
2019 Legislative Session

• Protected health care for 1.2 million Minnesotans and improved drug pricing transparency and accountability.
• Invested in students, including pre-K for our early learners, a 2% increase each of the next two years on the school funding formula, funding for special education, and school safety grants.
• Chief author of legislation to make significant investments in the state’s Border-to-Border Broadband Grant Program. Final budget included $40 million worth of investments over the next two years to expand high-speed broadband internet service in Greater Minnesota.
• Passed the toughest wage theft law in the nation.
• Expanded the Working Family Credit.
• New investments in Local Government Aid (LGA) and County Program Aid (CPA) to help hold down property taxes.
• Worked to end the opioid crisis by establishing new fees on manufacturers and distributors generating $20 million in new funding for prevention, training and public safety costs.
• Passed sweeping reforms with new oversight to protect our seniors in assisted living facilities from neglect and abuse.
• As chair of the Veterans and Military Affairs Finance Committee, we fully funded the Department of Military Affairs (National Guard) and Department of Veterans Affairs and ensured that our senior veterans nursing homes were fully funded.
• $600,000 for further construction for the Voyageur ATV trail system.
• $2.4 million for continued work on the Prospector Loop Trail system and Taconite State Trail between and Purvis Forest Management Road
• $350,000 to the city of Babbitt to expand the Birch Lake Recreation Area by adding a new campground for recreational vehicles and tent campers.
• $350,000 for a mountain bike trail connecting trail clusters and trailheads between Britton Peak in Tofte and Lutsen Mountains.
• $400,000 for work on a trail from Crane Lake to Vermilion Falls to accommodate all-terrain vehicle and snowmobile users.
• $191,000 to restore and repair the most damaged parts of the Superior Hiking Trail.
• $200,000 to the city of Ranier to enhance and increase public access to Rainy Lake by constructing an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant recreational parking lot, an ADA-compliant public restroom, and an aquatic invasive species boat wash station.
• Passed a law to remove weight limits for trucks hauling paper, finished forest products, and iron ore tailings.
• $300,000 per year to the Cook County Higher Education Board to provide programming and academic support to remote regions in northeast Minnesota.

 
2020 Legislative Session
Much of the work done in the 2020 Legislative Session focused on responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. I was proud to work across the aisle to provide results in responding to this public health crisis. Responded by:

• Providing immediate and critical funding for Minnesota’s healthcare system and public health infrastructure to respond to the pandemic.
• Providing emergency assistance for housing, food security, small business loans, child care, and veterans.
• Ensuring our frontline workers such as nurses, firefighters, paramedics, police officers, child care providers, corrections officers and healthcare professionals will be able to access workers’ compensation benefits if they contract COVID-19.

 
Additionally, we also passed the following important bipartisan legislation:

• Passed the Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act by providing emergency access and making insulin more affordable.
• Passed the Prescription Drug Price Transparency Act which requires drug manufacturers to report more information on drug pricing to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and requires MDH to post information on the website increasing transparency.
• Passed a bipartisan measure to protect the safety and security of our elections.

I was proud to work across the aisle to pass a Jobs & Local Projects and Critical Economic Development Bill during the latest Special Session.  This bill, signed into law by Governor Walz, makes critical investments in infrastructure across our state and region. Additionally, the bill includes critical funding to keep the correctional facilities at Togo and Willow River open, a wage increase for PCAs, and various tax provisions assisting businesses and farmers. Highlights for our region include:

• $5.8 million for construction of a campground and related infrastructure at Lake Vermillion-Soudan Underground Mine State Park
  
• $5 million for the Soudan mine shaft rehabilitation.
  
• $1.5 million for Ely Regional Trailhead Development.
  
• $1.8 million for improvements to the International Falls-Koochiching County Airport.
  
• $1.1 million for the Silver Bay Trailhead Center
  
• $3 million for the County State-Aid Highway 24 overpass south of Ranier.
  
• $7.5 million to keep the correctional facilities at Togo and Willow River operating.
  
• Funding for asset preservation at the Silver Bay Veterans Home.
  
• $950,000 for the Voyageur Country ATV Trail

 
There is still work to be done. I will continue to fight for our northern Minnesota in St. Paul.