Dear neighbors,
Many thanks to everyone who came to St. Paul for the annual Bemidji Day at the Capitol. It’s always great to talk with folks from our community and see Bemidji plaid in the halls of the legislature.
The Bemidji Pioneer wrote a great article about the day. You can read it here.
Minnesota Values Budget
Our primary focus for the remaining two months of the session will be creating a state budget for the next two years. In the past, Republican legislators have put forward budgets that forced our schools to cut back, did little for our roads full of potholes, and left Minnesotans with fewer choices for affordable health care. Then, they point to all of these consequences as evidence that government doesn’t work.
I believe that government works when we invest in the people of Minnesota and the things that they’ve told us they value. The budget that my House colleagues and I have put together would make significant investments in our schools; our roads, bridges, and transit; affordable, high-quality health care; and building safe and inclusive communities. Please stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks.
Protecting Minnesotans from Sexual Harassment
All Minnesotans deserve to work in a safe environment, but more than 80 percent of women report that they’ve been sexually harassed in the workplace. The House recently approved legislation to strengthen protections for those experiencing harassment (HF 10). The bill would eliminate the unreasonably high standard that abuse must be “severe or pervasive” to be considered sexual harassment under the law. This would allow more people to seek justice.
Clean Water for Bemidji
As many of you know, chemicals that were used in firefighting foams at the airport have contaminated several of the wells in Bemidji. I’ve introduced a bill to help the City of Bemidji with the funds to build a new water well in a location away from the contamination so it's safe for folks to drink (HF 2326). Nate Matthews, the City Manager of Bemidji, and Brian LeMon of Barr Engineering testified at the first public hearing for the bill.
Your Legislators
I had the opportunity to be a guest on Your Legislators recently. Some of my fellow elected officials and I had a great conversation about the important issues that we’re facing here in Minnesota and what we plan to do about it. You can watch the program here.
Talking with people about the issues that matter to them is an important part of serving as your representative. Please feel free to call or email me with any questions or thoughts.
Sincerely,
John Persell
State Representative