Legislative Update - The Law Enforcement Scholarship Act

Dear Granite City Neighbors,

Now is the time for a bill to ban blizzards in April!

As you curl up and wait for the snow to melt, here’s my latest update from the Capitol:

All Tied Up

We’re hitting our stride as an officially tied Minnesota House! Roseville’s DFL Rep. David Gottfried joined us in the Minnesota House in March, returning the body to an even 67-67 split.

It’s time for us to work together, put aside partisan attacks like baseless recalls, and pass bipartisan solutions that deliver results for Minnesotans! Speaking of which, I’ve got a couple examples of those exact types of bills below:

The Law Enforcement Scholarship Act

For my entire legislative career, I’ve been working with local and state law enforcement to find creative solutions for recruiting and retaining more police officers in St. Cloud and throughout Minnesota. This session, when I was named Co-Chair of the Higher Education Committee, I started looking for solutions through the lens of higher learning - and we came up with the Law Enforcement Scholarship Act.

Based on a successful Nebraska law, my bill would establish a scholarship program for law enforcement officers and their dependents. The program would offer scholarships that cover a semester’s tuition when studying criminal justice, law enforcement, or a related field.

To give this bill the best chance possible, I worked with the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association to build a bipartisan coalition in the House and Senate to advocate for this bill. Last week, with colleagues from both parties, we unveiled our bill and held our first committee hearing. 

This bill is a top priority for me. Minnesota is facing a law enforcement workforce shortage that threatens the safety and security of our communities. Now is the time to pass the Law Enforcement Scholarship Act to attract new officers to come to our state, retain current officers, and educate the next generation of law enforcement.  
 

Bills Building a Better St. Cloud

Joining the Law Enforcement Scholarship Act as top priorities for me are the bills to help build a better St. Cloud, like the St. Cloud Medical School and updates to Highway 10.

I’m teaming up with Rep. Bernie Perryman, CentraCare, and the University of Minnesota to fund residency programs at the St. Cloud Medical School. While 20% of the U.S. population lives in rural communities, only 11% of physicians practice in them. As a result, people living outside the Twin Cities face longer wait times for medical care, have to travel farther to access care, and experience poorer health outcomes than their urban counterparts.

The St. Cloud Medical School will help us tackle the greater Minnesota healthcare workforce shortage. Expected to open in 2025, the program plans to enroll 20-24 students in year one and approximately 80-96 students in the future as the program develops.

I also presented my bipartisan bill to make Highway 10 more safe and accessible to the House Transportation Committee.

There were 315 crashes along the corridor from St. Cloud to Clear Lake from 2017-2021, many resulting in severe injuries or fatality. The daily average of vehicles using the corridor in 2022 was 23,000 - and traffic on this corridor is expected to grow 2.3% per year.

The Highway 10 corridor is a key artery for long trips across the region and state; it connects Clear Lake and St. Cloud, serves local residents and commuters, is a heavily used freight corridor, and experiences large traffic peaks due to recreational travel. Now is the time to work together and pass this bipartisan bill to improve safety and access to Highway 10.
 

Stay Connected

You are my boss - I work for you!

Stay in the loop by following along on my official Facebook page, and you can reach me at Rep.Dan.Wolgamott@house.mn.gov or 651-296-6612.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Go Timberwolves!

Sincerely,


Rep. Dan Wolgamott
District 14B