Friends and neighbors,
During the 2022 legislative session, I fought to improve the lives of Minnesotans and help our state be on the right track. And the session saw several bipartisan accomplishments that address key issues facing Minnesota.
The Minnesota Legislature passed important legislation to repay and refill Minnesota’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, which hit zero during the pandemic due to the high number on unemployment claims. If the loan to the federal government would not have been repaid, our small businesses would have faced devastating tax increases that would also have put workers at risk and without resources for their needs if laid off. This legislation will also provide bonuses to frontline workers who worked during the COVID pandemic.
We also successfully passed a three-year extension of the successful Minnesota Premium Security Plan, known as ‘reinsurance.’ This program helps keep health care costs low, improves access, and stabilizes the insurance market especially for those with pre-existing conditions. With families already facing historic inflation rates, it’s critical they are not also hit with exorbitantly high health care premiums.
Additionally, we made strong investments in veteran services across the state, including after-service resources, expand housing options, and fund enlistment and re-enlistment bonuses. Highlights include funding for three veterans’ homes and bonuses for veterans in the War on Terror. It was a privilege to have supported this legislation to provide key assistance to Minnesotan service members and their families.
My colleagues and I in the Legislature also passed bills to modernize liquor and increased the growler limit. Under this legislation, the state ‘growler cap’ will be raised from 20,000 to 150,000 barrels and small brewers (like our local Lupulin) will be able to sell up to 128 ounces of beer per customer per day that could be packaged in any approved container. The bill also allows distilled spirits manufacturers to sell cocktails and operate a cocktail room. These provisions will allow Minnesota breweries and distilleries to sell more of their product directly to consumers.
The final day of the session saw the bipartisan passage of a substantial agriculture, broadband, and drought relief bill. The legislation works to expand broadband funding, provide relief to farmers still struggling from the effects of last year’s historic drought, and addresses urgent concerns in our agriculture sector, including the ongoing Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza crisis. It also directs over $210 million, the bulk of which comes from federal funds, to improve Minnesota broadband access across the state. This is in addition to the $70 million in federal funds that the legislature directed last session. This new funding will put our state even closer to providing reliable access to all.
On the last day of session, we also passed a historic investment to support mental health needs. The $92.7 million package makes strategic investments in expanding mental health care access for Minnesotans of all ages. The legislation includes provisions that will help close the mental health gaps in our criminal justice system, provide resources for mental health services in schools, remove the moratorium on mental health beds in hospitals for five years, and offer incentives to encourage and ease barriers to entering the mental health profession.
Working together is critical to getting important work done, and I am proud to have supported these bipartisan efforts, which I know will provide great support to Minnesotan families and businesses.
Contact me
As always, if you have questions or concerns on our state budget or any legislative topic, feel free to contact me any time. You can call me at 651-296-5655 or send me an email at sen.mary.kiffmeyer@senate.mn. It is a privilege to serve as your state senator.
Sincerely,
Mary