Last week, Senator Karin Housley (R-St. Marys Point) was recognized as a ‘legislator of distinction’ by the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities (CGMC) during the Coalition’s conference in Bemidji. Senator Housley was recognized for her positive impact on economic development and advancing the Coalition’s policy goals during the preceding legislative session.

“It’s an honor to be recognized for my work on behalf of the people of my district and the state of Minnesota,” said Senator Housley. “I’m proud of what we did this session to make child care more affordable for families across the state. We loosened the overregulation that was forcing in-home child care providers to leave the industry and worked to level the playing field. These are positive steps forward and will serve as a precursor for the work to come.” 

Senator Housley was recognized for her advocacy in the area of affordable, accessible child care. As chairwoman of the Senate Family Care and Aging Committee, Senator Housley was a strong advocate for the CGMC’s proposal to provide funding to the Minnesota Initiative Foundations (MIFs) so that they can expand their efforts to provide business assistance and training to child care providers to help increase child care options in Greater Minnesota. Her efforts helped secured $750,000 in state funding to be divided between the six MIFs for this purpose.

“As chair of the Senate Family Care and Aging Committee, Senator Housley showed a deep commitment to ensuring that families all across the state have access to child care and that communities have the resources necessary to provide high-quality care. The child care crisis is a huge concern – particularly in Greater Minnesota,” said Ron Johnson, a member of the Bemidji City Council and the CGMC president. “Senator Housley really took ownership of this issue and showed great initiative by fighting for practical solutions to this growing problem.”

Senator Karin Housley, of St. Marys Point, represents the Forest Lake area and the St. Croix River Valley in the Minnesota Senate. Senator Housley serves as chairwoman of the Family Care and Aging Committee and is an assistant majority leader.

Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities (CGMC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy organization representing 97 cities outside of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. CGMC educates legislators about issues important to Greater Minnesota.