Senate Jobs and Economic Growth Committee Chairman Eric Pratt (R-Prior Lake) today issued the following statement in response to Gov. Tim Walz’s proposal for providing financial assistance to small businesses affected by his latest round of coronavirus restrictions:

“On the day Gov. Walz announced he was once again closing businesses I was emphatic that we needed to help businesses and employees weather this lockdown. Minnesotans elected a divided government expecting we would work together, so I am disappointed that once again Governor Walz chose to work on a plan only with the House DFL instead of reaching across the aisle.

“Senate Republicans are committed to helping small businesses and their employees through this crisis. I had hoped the governor would have worked with us behind the scenes so we could have presented one unified, compromise plan instead of competing proposals, but that will not affect our resolve to work for the best interests of Minnesotans. We are continuing to work with stakeholders every day to figure out what their needs are, and I anticipate our plan will be unveiled in the coming days.”