| Greetings District 10! Here are a few items happening in St. Paul… Bonus Pay Plan for Frontline Workers Republican members of the Frontline Workers Bonus Pay Working Group proposed their plan this week to provide meaningful bonuses to those who took the most risk to keep people safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Frontline workers across the state put themselves at risk to keep the rest of us safe and healthy during the pandemic—they deserve our gratitude and support. The Legislature was tasked with allocating a limited amount of funding, and our plan prioritizes the healthcare workers that put their lives on the line and had the greatest exposure to COVID positive patients. It’s time for the Governor to call us back into special session so we can disperse these important funds.” The proposal includes $1200 in bonus pay for nurses, first responders, corrections officers, long-term care workers, and hospice providers. To be eligible, the workers couldn’t work from home, needed to have received less than one month of unemployment, and worked a minimum of 1200 hours between March and December of 2020, about 30 hours a week. There is no income cap on the proposal, and an application process will be used to provide bonus pay as soon as the application is approved. Comprised of three Senators and six Representatives, the working group’s duty was to make a recommendation for the disbursement of $250 million federal dollars in direct financial support to frontline workers, including the crucial long-term care workers that served our state’s most vulnerable citizens during peak COVID stages. The working group met eight times and heard from dozens of testifiers across many professions affected by COVID. The working group discussed at length the merits of each profession and what amount of bonus pay would impact the recipients. Update—Enbridge Line 3 The Enbridge Line 3 Replacement project is finally nearing completion and is slated to be operational by October 1. However, the pipeline will not be operating at full capacity until November 2021. “Line 3 is one of our state’s most important projects, and I’m glad to see its successful completion. The science has continually supported the merits of this pipeline replacement, and our communities and businesses have already seen numerous benefits from the project. Thank you to all the Enbridge workers that stepped up to complete this project.” A few constituents have reached out to my office with questions regarding Enbridge’s plans to remove the old pipeline once the new one is completed. From the Enbridge website: “Enbridge accepts responsibility for its pipelines and equipment, whether they are active or not. Enbridge will continue to monitor and maintain the right-of-way.” If constituents have any further questions, they can reach out to Enbridge at enbridgemn@enbridge.com. Minnesota Solid Waste Administrators Association The Minnesota Solid Waste Administrators Association (SWAA) held their Annual Conference this year in Brainerd. As part of the event, they toured the Green Forest Recycling Facility and the Crow Wing Landfill in Brainerd. The SWAA focused on 2021 legislative issues addressing solid waste, market development for recoverable waste, and incentivizing the development of waste-to-energy facilities. It was a privilege to be on their panel and discuss legislation championed—specifically: – SCORE (Select Committee On Recycling and the Environment) Grants—in 2021, the legislature allocated an increase of $1.4 million for SCORE Grants with a total spending for SCORE Grants of $36.9 million for the biennium – Modernized the E waste laws – Required the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to adopt rules requiring solid waste facilities reports be submitted to MPCA for earlier review – Solid waste tax revenue modification—making solid waste tax 100% available for state & county waste management activities. It was a great event, and it was nice to hear updates on their goals. For more information on the SWAA, including legislative priorities, membership opportunities, and upcoming events, click here. Aitkin-Carlton County Farm Bureau I was honored to attend the Aitkin-Carlton County Farm Bureau Annual Membership Meeting last weekend and renewed my membership. The organization passed RESOLUTION 2021—stating…The Farm Bureau supports the repeal of the California Cars Rule, placing emission regulations back where Minnesota Senators and members of Congress can be our advocates. The Minnesota Farm Bureau is an advocate for agriculture—its members are farmers and those interested in agriculture and the future of farmers, their families, and the food they grow and raise in Minnesota. They are at the heart of communities across Minnesota—today, it has 78 county farm bureaus and over 30,000 member families that advocate for broadband, food supply, healthcare, tax policy, transportation, infrastructure & more. Legislative Permanent School Fund Commission The Legislative Permanent School Fund Commission met this week, and as a sitting member—I feel strongly, the Commission’s work is an added benefit to our children with the additional dollars school trust lands generate. School trust lands are an important and broad category of land ownership. They are publicly owned & managed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and were established in the state constitution to be held in trust for a single & specific purpose—to generate revenue for all 332 public school districts in Minnesota as well as 169 charter schools in operation throughout the state. The idea was simple—generate income from land to supplement public school funding. If you’re looking to hear more from the Capitol, please like me on Facebook. Have a great start to your weekend! As always please feel free to contact my office with any questions you might have. My office can be reached by phone at (651) 296-4913 or at sen.carrie.ruud@senate.mn. Talk to you soon! Carrie Ruud |
