Friends and Neighbors,

This year is unusual, regarding legislative sessions and legislation. Minnesota has never had such an extensive declaration of emergency powers and accompanied special sessions every 30 days, as the governor is required to call if he chooses to renew his emergency powers.  During this time, constituent services are high and I am able to help many individual situations get resolved or provide information. Some prefer legislation to make Minnesotans lives easier in the midst of what has been a stressful year for many.  One of those is the Digital Notary bill.

Digital Notary Bill 

One of my bills this year would allow remote notarization of real estate documents during the continuation of Governor Walz’s declared state of emergency. As long as the order continues, and perhaps after, many people and businesses will strive to follow distancing instructions. Real estate has unfortunately been left behind in the scramble to adjust to remote work, as notarizing documents while following social distancing is particularly difficult.

Current statute requires real estate transactions to be attended by an in-person notary, making the industry’s adjustment to Covid-era directives difficult. My proposal is a temporary modification that allows two-way video and audio which would be documented and archived to “count” as a personal appearance before a notary. This is especially important to nursing homes and assisted living facilities. I have been working with the industry for several months and I hope to see it passed in the expected special session next week.

Voting in 2020

Election law and voting is my primary focus at the Capitol, as Chair of the State Government Finance and Policy and Elections Committee. I would be remiss not to remind once again that in-person voting remains the most secure way to cast your ballot in the upcoming election.

Mail-In Voting is very different from Absentee Voting. Mail-In ballots are pre-emptively mailed out to a list, usually the Voter Registration List, which can have faulty information regarding residence. This system has serious issues even in states that have used it for over 20 years, such as Oregon. Oregon reported that 32% of mailed out ballots never reached the voter and approximately 870,000 ballots were listed as unknown in 2018. Those were actual ballots, not applications for an absentee ballot.

Absentee Ballots are requested by a voter and mailed only to the voter’s requested address, or the whole process can be done in one visit to a county (and some city’s) office. Up to three absentee ballots envelopes can be delivered in person to these offices, as well.

The Secretary of State’s Office has been provided with funding to increase Covid prevention measures at the polls and there were no reports of Covid spread at the primary this year, despite record turnout.

Remember that both physical safety and the safety of ballots are high at the polls. Whichever method you choose, vote!

If you have any questions, please contact me at sen.mary.kiffmeyer@senate.mn or 651-296-5655.

Mary Kiffmeyer

District 30

Senator Mary Kiffmeyer represents the cities of Albertville, Big Lake City and Township, Dayton, Elk River, Hanover, Otsego, and St. Michael.