Norton: End of Session E-Newsletter

06/06/2007

Dear Neighbors,

For the first time in eight years, the Legislature has finished its work on time, passing all of the major finance bills by midnight on the last night of session. We in the House worked tirelessly throughout the session for compromise with our colleagues in the Senate and Governor Pawlenty, and ultimately put together a plan that would focus on the basics and move our state forward.

We made significant progress on issues that are important for Minnesotans this session. By focusing on the basics, we were able to begin the work of building a stronger foundation for the future of our state. We have paved the way for better schools, more access to affordable health care, and the prospect for future progress in the years to come.

I am very pleased with the overall results of this legislative session. It is encouraging to see what can be accomplished with a lot of hard work in the spirit of compromise.

It has been an honor representing the Rochester community at the Capitol this session. Thank you to all of those who contacted me throughout the session by mail, phone, email, visiting me at the Capitol, or at a constituent meeting in Rochester. Your help in this process was essential in helping effectively represent our community.

I encourage you to continue contacting me with any questions, comments, or concerns you may have on any issue. I will continue holding constituent meetings throughout the interim that I hope you will attend as well. Please contact me if you would like to meet individually as I'm more that happy to do so. I look forward to hearing from you, but most of all I look forward to seeing you at home in Rochester.

Sincerely,

Kim Norton
State Representative
507-990-0276 (Cell)


CONSTITUENT MEETINGS
Second Saturday of every month
8:30 a.m. * 9:30 a.m.
Dunn Brothers Coffee
120 Elton Hills Drive NW, Rochester

SESSION ACHIEVEMENTS

E-12 EDUCATION:
- More than an 8% increase in school funding - $800 million.
- Alleviating the burden of the special education cross subsidy to increase general funding for schools.
- Increased funding for early childhood education.
- A commitment to phasing in voluntary All-Day Kindergarten programs statewide.
- Increased funding for Gifted and Talented students.

HEALTH CARE:
- 37,000 Minnesota children given access to health care.
- Increased funding for nursing homes.
- More affordable health care for the 93% of Minnesotans who currently have health insurance.
- Funding for mental health care programs.
- Nursing home rebasing begun plus 2% increases for employees.

CRIME/PUBLIC SAFETY:
- Restored funding to crime victim programs.
- Adequate funding for drug courts and reentry efforts.
- More judges in the courts to reduce the backlog in the system.
- Scalping of tickets is now legalized.
- Provides additional protections for victims of domestic abuse.

HIGHER EDUCATION/JOBS:
- Holding tuition increases to a ten year low.
- Lower prices for textbooks.
- Major increases in job programs for youth.
- Improved workplace safety and healthcare for workers.

ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL REFORM:
- The boldest renewable energy standard in the nation requiring a quarter of Minnesota's energy to come from renewable sources by 2020.
- An 80 percent reduction of carbon emissions in our state by 2050.
- Investments in local economies to develop and produce alternative energy resources.

FREEDOM TO BREATHE ACT SIGNED IN TO LAW
Minnesota workers and patrons will be healthier very soon (date of implementation?) when the Freedom to Breathe Act becomes effective and smoking will be prohibited in most indoor locations.

BIOSCIENCE GETS A BOOST THIS SESSION
I was particularly pleased that a provision I authored this session was included in the Higher Education bill. This provision will provide $25 million funding in this biennium, plus $8M ongoing in the base, for the Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics in Rochester (Mayo Clinic & U of M).

This funding will provide additional resources to a program that has already yielded positive results in the field of science and for the wellbeing of our state. It will keep Minnesota on the leading edge of bioscience research, discovery, and innovation. Reinvesting in this important program is good for science, good for our state, and good for Rochester.

PARENT AND FAMILY INVOLVEMENT BILL INCLUDED IN MINUTES
HF990 was included in the E-12 Education Omnibus bill approved by the legislature in the closing hours of the last day of session. While the bill is permissive, rather that mandatory, it moves the state in the right direction toward making parents partners in the education of their children by asking districts to have a parent/family involvement policy on the books within the next year in an effort to boost student achievement and share the responsibility more fully for educating Minnesota's children. Best practices and proven standards are expected, as well as involving a diverse that represents the local districts population in defining and evaluating the policy which is to be approved by local school boards.

What else was I up to this session?

* Three of my bills concerning public health/consumer protection were signed in to law by the governor (Radon, Essential Community Providers, Maternal/Child Task Force Extension and other provisions).
* An amendment that will allow Rochester to pilot a job skills training project (LIFESKILLS) for $50,000 was included in the final Jobs bill. RFP's will be sought in the future from local non-profit organizations interested in job training and increasing employment.
* While the Parental Fees/TEFRA financial relief bill I authored did not make it out of conference committee, the language that made the parental contributions pre-tax which should relieve a little pressure for some families.
* An amendment to study the grants, loans, loan forgiveness and other higher education funding sources was accepted and is in the final Higher Education bill. It is my hope to review the findings and determine whether funding could be used more wisely and targeting to identified future areas of need in the state.
* A few important bills fell to politics and budget constraints in the final days of the session (Teachers of Color, Parental Fees Funding, Critical Access Dental Staffing.
* New licensing for Physical Therapy Assistants was in the Licensing Omnibus Bill signed by the Governor. I gladly carried this bill for them, but lost favor somewhat by not supporting a bill that gave PT's open-ended patient access without physician diagnosis or oversight (currently required after 30 days of treatment.) This was a difficult decision driven by my concern for patient safety, while noting that PT's have a wonderful track record under current law.

Other highlights of the session:

*constituent visits, the Rochester Day at the Capitol, transportation/E-85/environment and other rallies.
*meeting Governor Napolitano of Arizona * a strong, moderate women to be admired.
*attending a bill signing!
*visits from area schools and talking to students.
*serving as vice-chair of the BioScience and Emerging Technology Committee.
*serving on the very bi-partisan Freedom to Breathe Act conference committee (this was a joy.)
*rooming with Rep. Liebling and enjoying her guitar/singing.
*mentoring a student this session (Lauren Koster/Century)
*working with a number of interns and pages from Rochester and across the state.
*learning from our very talented staff and working with the best legislative assistant in St. Paul (maybe I'm biased.)
*making friends in the House, in the Halls, and in the offices at the Capitol!
*working with lobbyists, advocates, and department staff * they aren't evil, despite what you might hear!
*learning the ropes * while I'm proud of my work, I'll be even better in the future with this experience under my belt!

Disappointments of the session:

*vetoes! The lack of a bonding bill, transportation funding, and a tax bill (especially the property tax relief & LGA)
*having every bill I carried not become law (okay, it's unrealistic, but still a disappointment.)
*partisanship and personalities getting in the way of good lawmaking.
*being away from home so long and missing family.


Kim Norton
House of Representatives-29B