On Tuesday, Senator Jerry Relph (R-St. Cloud) joined the Senate Republican majority in outlining top priorities as the 2019 legislative session officially convened. The priorities, which includes childcare, health care, mental health, government accountability, and taxes, indicate areas of bipartisan agreement that will be considered early in the session.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do in making sure families can thrive in Minnesota,” said Senator Relph. “That means getting to work right away on issues important to Minnesotans, including childcare, health care costs, mental health access, elder care reform, tax conformity, and more. As we put together the state budget, bipartisanship should be at the front of our minds.”

Early priorities include:

• Supporting mental health. There will be a stronger legislative response to the growing problem of mental health treatment, especially in our schools and rural communities.
• Making childcare more accessible and affordable. Minnesota parents are struggling to find, and afford, childcare. New legislation will address the regulatory overreach causing these problems and encourage new child care providers to start up.
• Lowering health care costs. Legislation will be considered that offers patients more freedom in choosing their doctor, the flexibility to shop around for the best value, and makes health care billing more transparent.
• A more effective, accountable government. Government must be held accountable and stop waste, particularly in the areas of childcare fraud and statewide I.T. failures.
• Making our tax code simpler and fairer. In addition to simplifying tax filing by conforming to federal tax laws, the legislature will consider proposals to simplify the tax code and reduce taxes for Minnesota families.

Senator Relph will serve as vice chair of the Senate Family Care and Aging Committee and will serve on the Capital Investment, Human Services Reform Finance and Policy, Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy, and Local Government committees.

“It’s an honor to serve the greater St. Cloud community,” Senator Relph continued. “With a new governor and new leadership in the house of representatives, I’m hopeful for a session filled with important ideas, rich debate, and substantive results. Working together, across the aisle, we can get things done.”

Senator Jerry Relph, of St. Cloud, represents District 14, which includes St. Cloud, Waite Park, St. Augusta, Haven Township, Minden Township, and St. Joseph Township.