 Dear Neighbors, Since my last newsletter, the 2026 legislative session began on February 17th. We met in a very different Minnesota from the last time we gathered at the Capitol. There’s so much going on, so get ready for a lengthy update. We’ve been through a lot as a state in the last 12 months. In June, our state was shaken by the assassination of Mark and Melissa Hortman and their dog Gilbert and the attack on John, Yvette, and Hope Hoffman. In August, two innocent children lost their lives, with dozens injured, in the horrific shooting at Annunciation School. Students, parents, teachers, and community members must now carry the trauma following yet another incident of gun violence. And since December, ICE agents have been terrorizing communities around Minnesota, violating constitutional rights, and killing Renee Good and Alex Pretti. It’s important to note there are still a large number of federal agents in Minnesota, and we are seeing them almost daily in St. Louis Park. It’s been inspiring to see Minnesotans, and especially for me folks in St. Louis Park, stand up collectively for our neighbors and our constitutional rights, and to show the world why our state is so special. Thank you to everyone in our community who has done a patrol, donated to a food shelf, staked out a bus stop, helped someone pay their rent, helped an immigrant run business, or any other way people have pitched in to help. With everything that’s happened, being back in the Legislature now is a bit surreal. On our first day in session, there was a really powerful and emotional tribute to Speaker Hortman. I was dreading it, but also it was a really necessary part of the grieving process. If you’re interested in seeing the full tribute, you can find it here. As we exited the chamber we each laid a rose on Melissa’s desk. You can see that below.  Nobody should have to face this fear in their day-to-day lives, whether at home, school, places of worship, or anywhere in our neighborhoods. The next day, it was time to get to work, which is what Melissa would have wanted. And there is much to do. ICEOne of our top priorities is to try and pass legislation that can protect us from ICE. What’s happened in Minnesota is unacceptable - the direct harm, fear, and disregard for humanity we’ve faced at the hands of the federal government cannot be ignored. Regardless of what you think about immigration policy, I hope you can agree that ICE went way too far. This link will take you to our ICE OUT of Minnesota agenda for this session. Gun Safety and Violence PreventionTwo empty school desks currently sit in a corridor of the State Capitol. They represent the desks of Fletcher Merkel and Harper Moyski, whose lives were taken last August at Annunciation Catholic Church. It is one of the most powerful exhibits I’ve ever experienced. Since this tragedy, we’ve continued to hear directly from survivors of gun violence and loved ones of those who’ve been lost, calling for action to prevent more heartbreaking losses in the future. While we’ve taken important action like expanding criminal background checks and enacting red flag laws, there’s clearly more to do.  The generation of Minnesotans currently coming of age doesn’t deserve to accept the deadly consequences of gun violence as normal. To make that goal a reality, we have to get weapons meant for war off our streets. I’ve met with our local students, and we’re united in seeking bold action to make sure future generations don’t have to fear the worst in their educational journey. We’ve introduced (or will shortly be introducing) legislation to: - Ban military-style assault weapons, high capacity magazines, and binary triggers.
- Regulate ghost guns
- Establish an Office of Gun Violence Prevention
- Require the safe storage of firearms
- Require the reporting of lost or stolen firearms
These are not controversial policies outside the Capitol, so I hope we can get some bipartisan support for them. We all deserve safe communities, where we can go about our days without fear. FraudThe fraud that has happened in Minnesota is absolutely unacceptable. Not only is it stealing, it takes services away from a kid with autism, a senior needing health care, or perhaps a veteran in need of housing assistance to get through a rough time. Who does that? While there are many measures we put in place over the past few years, there is more work to do. Our approach centers on four key strategies: - Holding Fraudsters Accountable
- Strengthening Oversight
- Updating our IT Systems
- Legislating Differently - for me this means really thinking about what functions should be outsourced to private entities and what should not be. The fraud that has happened has exclusively been caused by private companies, not government employees.
Here’s more information on these items. I do want to talk about one of the main things being debated, establishing an Office of Inspector General. This is something that has passed the Senate, but has yet to pass the House. There seems to be momentum building to establish it, but I am skeptical of it. My colleague, Rep. Matt Norris, has done a ton of work refining the Senate bill and, I believe, improving it. That said, it is establishing another pretty expensive agency ($10M on an ongoing basis), and I wonder if investing that kind of money in upgrading systems would be more worthwhile. We’ll see how this progresses. AffordabilityJust this week, House DFLers have rolled out our Affordability Agenda. With record wealth inequality, a disappearing middle class, and a system that’s built for the rich and well-connected rather than everyone else, we’re setting forward a vision of the future where Minnesotans have power and control over their own lives and can thrive. Affordable Solar EnergyThe cost of electricity is rising, and Minnesotans want options to lower and control this expense. Solar energy keeps getting cheaper and cheaper, but many Minnesotans aren’t able to benefit from it, because they rent, or their roof won’t work, or because they can’t get financing. I’m working on changing that with legislation to enable a “Plug-In Solar” market in Minnesota. It will create a low-cost and simple way for more Minnesotans to benefit from the cost savings of producing their own electricity with Plug-In Solar. It would allow individuals, including renters, to purchase, install, and generate power by plugging a solar panel directly into an outlet at home. You can hear remarks from our press conference on the issue here.  Other Legislation I’ve IntroducedI’ll write more in my next update, but I’ve also introduced bills on Virtual Power Plants to make the grid more efficient, super speeders to save lives on our roads, climate education in partnership with students, and statewide housing reform (in partnership with other legislators) to start addressing the mismatch between housing supply and demand that is driving up housing prices. Can’t Forget about Climate ChangeDuring one of our Energy Committee hearings, we were getting a presentation on the state’s updated Climate Action Framework. In the discussion, it was shared that Minnesota is not on track to achieve our goals. One of my Republican colleagues suggested we should not worry about addressing climate change here because Minnesota's impact on global climate change would be negligible. This was my response.  Meeting with ConstituentsI’ve had so many meetings already with constituents! And remember, I make ice cream every Sunday night and have it in a freezer in the Centennial Office Building, so I can share it with visitors (flavors so far this session have included Chocolate Chip, Blueberry Mint Sorbet, and Salted Caramel). One of my favorite parts of serving in this body is meeting with you all and turning your stories into legislation. Here’s a bunch of photos.   |