MN Senate continues to push to safely reopen Minnesota businesses and schools

Minnesota Senate Republicans today continued their effort to safely get workers back on the job and children back into classrooms, with separate committees giving approval to two of the top priorities for the 2021 session. 

The Jobs and Economic Growth Committee approved a bill allowing businesses to open as long as they submit a safety preparedness plan, while the committee on State Government approved a bill that removes a governor’s authority to close schools bill or alter school schedules via executive order. 

“Most Minnesotans have had enough of Governor Walz abusing his Emergency Powers, now going on 11 months, to bully Minnesotans around,” Senator Torrey Westrom (R-Elbow Lake) remarked. “41 of the 67 bipartisan state senators voted to strip Governor Walz of his Emergency Powers when the senate last voted in December 2020, only to die in the DFL led Minnesota House. Even if one body’s vote isn’t enough to strip the Governor of his emergency powers yet, we are committed to giving local businesses and schools the authority to reopen safely as they see fit for their individual communities-allowing local control.”

ALLOWING BUSINESS TO REOPEN SAFELY

Businesses across the state have made incredible sacrifices to open safely. Senate File 1 says that businesses with safety plans already in place may open up with no restrictions from outside forces. Gov. Walz should not have the power to open and close small businesses at his will; it should only be exercised temporarily when a business is a proven source of spread. “That is the original intent of any Emergency Powers when they were passed by the Legislative branch in the first place,” Senator Westrom noted.  The Senate bill is a tool to peel back the restrictions unilaterally placed on Minnesotans by Governor Walz, and hopefully bring our state back to the booming economy it was before the pandemic struck.

RESTORING OPENING AUTHORITY TO LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS

Senate File 2 says the governor may not use executive order authority to issue any order or to authorize the commissioner of education to alter school schedules, curtail school activities, or order schools closed. Governor Walz’s executive orders closing schools have been among his most questioned and controversial orders of the outbreak.

There is mounting evidence, including research from the CDC, that schools pose minimal risk in spreading the coronavirus. A fall Reuters report that studied 191 countries also found no clear link between school reopenings and coronavirus surges. In addition, Axios looked at several studies and found schools are not Covid hotspots, and the Atlantic Magazine wrote that kids are not superspreaders and that it’s time to reopen schools. The New York Times reported on evidence that schools, especially elementary schools, are not “stoking community transmission.”

There is also growing agreement about the impact of only distance learning is having on students:

  • The American Association of Pediatrics has said, “The AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with the goal of having students physically present in school. The importance of in-person learning is well-documented, and there is already evidence of the negative impacts on children because of school closures in the spring of 2020.” While E-learning is a good tool for some students, it’s not a universal solution for many students. 
    “Constituent feedback ranges from some loving it and others hating it, but it doesn’t replace that human need for social interaction with friends, and that’s about universal from the feedback I receive,” Senator Westrom said.
  • UNICEF has warned of a ‘lost generation’ and found school closures are ineffective. “Even with the promise of a vaccine on the horizon, a new report by UNICEF, the United Nations agency for children, warned that “the future of an entire generation is at risk,” with the threat to children increasing. Studies cited in the report showed “no consistent association between school reopening status and COVID-19 infection rates.

“The evidence keeps mounting, showing us that it’s time we do something for our children before it’s too late. For this reason, the Senate is the only ardent voice speaking up for parents, children, and our schools right now,” Senator Westrom said.