Dear neighbors, Last week, the legislature was on Easter/Passover break. I used this opportunity to catch up with constituents, attend community events, and prepare for the final stretch of session. If you celebrate one of these holidays, I hope you and your loved ones enjoyed this special time together. During the next month and a half, floor debates will run long—and everyone in elected office will have a chance to clearly show where they sit on issues. I know where I stand. Especially throughout this last dark year, our community has been calling on their legislators to act. I’m committed to doing everything we can to keep Minnesotans safe, especially kids. Before break, the House DFL brought forward floor votes on legislation to keep ICE out of schools, ban assault weapons, and ban high-capacity magazines. This is an issue that should not be partisan. All of our children deserve to go to school without the fear of federal agents terrorizing their classmates, teachers, and staff, and without the fear of yet another deadly school shooting like Annunciation, which brought mourning families into committee after committee to call for action. All we needed was one Republican to vote for these bills to protect kids. Unfortunately, these bills were blocked. Republicans in the House have instead used this precious time to rant and rave, vilifying our transgender community to distract from their own state and national failings. You can watch some of my comments calling them out here. A.I. Bills Still Being DiscussedMinnesota finds itself in a unique position with rapidly expanding usage of A.I. technology in the workforce. Recently, it’s been reported that 17% of the state’s workforce, or roughly 500,000 workers, were at high risk of having their jobs altered or replaced by artificial intelligence (A.I.). Minnesota workers have the highest A.I. exposure rate in the Midwest and the 10th-highest in the nation. This legislative session, I’ve introduced three bills aimed at mitigating A.I.’s potential worst impacts on workers, with the hope that we can then pivot to becoming leaders in the responsible and ethical development of A.I. The tie is making it harder to get these bills past the finish line, but I’m continuing to meet with stakeholders and advocates on these matters. I’ll keep you updated. Update on Fraud BillsThe House DFL unveiled our anti-fraud agenda earlier this session. It’s not about shaking fists, or scapegoating communities. We have put in the hard work to fix the problem. Please click the following link to see how DFLers are fighting and Preventing Fraud in 2026. I have worked alongside my House DFL colleagues to craft a network of interconnected policies that will prevent fraud before it happens, increase oversight of vulnerable programs, recover stolen funds, and help ensure service continuity for those in need. These policies can be found in my previous legislative update. They build upon the work that we did in 2025 to fight and prevent fraud against public programs. Please click on the links below to view handouts highlighting the work DFLers have passed over the last couple of years to address fraud, improve systems, and increase transparency: Beyond these specific policies, I have advocated for responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars through the committee process, urging increases to accountability mechanisms for legislatively funded grants and pushing back against unaccountable, direct grants to private entities. While we are still in the process of negotiating bills and budgets, you have my word that I will advocate for the best use of public dollars that I can. I imagine many of the discrete anti-fraud bills will be discussed until our final deadline next week. I will continue to fight for a comprehensive, bipartisan anti-fraud package that we can pass this session. As DFL House Caucus Leader Zack Stephenson said, "A dollar of fraud is a dollar too much." I couldn't agree more. You’re Invited to a Town Hall!As a reminder, please join me tomorrow, April 11th, from 9:30-11:00 am for a virtual town hall with Senator John Marty. You can RSVP at the link below and we will send you the meeting link. https://forms.gle/USQuAr4HSxjU5J5W6  Agate License Plate ProposalThere are a lot of important bills that can pass this year, and some fun ones as well! I’m co-authoring legislation to create a new state park license plate design dedicated to the North Shore and the Lake Superior agate. Whether it’s the rocky shoreline of Lake Superior or the agates people have collected for generations, these are the kinds of things that connect us to our state. It’s a small change, but a meaningful one, and it provides some funding for our beautiful North Shore. The bill also keeps the process open and local, with a design contest for Minnesota residents and setting a clear timeline for selecting a final design. Minnesota has a story to tell, and this project is a way to tell it! Child Tax Credit ReminderIf you’re still working on your 2025 taxes and have children, please don’t forget about the Child Tax Credit! It is NOT automatic. So far this year, more than 154,000 tax returns have claimed the Child Tax Credit, benefiting over 318,000 children across Minnesota. Families are receiving an average credit of $2,669. The credit is estimated to reduce child poverty by up to a third in Minnesota, making it one of the most impactful programs that DFLers have protected amid federal cuts. Learn more about eligibility here. Attorneys General Town HallOver the last year, Attorneys General across the country have been working together to protect democracy and uphold the rule of law. Minnesota Attorney General Ellison has invited his colleagues to join him for a town hall forum to provide an update about the nearly 60 lawsuits the AG's have filed. This will be a space where you can share your questions about their work and share your experiences of federal overreach. The following security measures will be in place: - Free tickets for this event are required. You will receive a ticket when you register for the event here.
- The address for the forum will be provided to those who pre-register 48 hours in advance.
- Ticket sales end April 22 at 10 a.m.
- We ask participants to leave large bags at home or in their car, with exceptions for medical reasons.
You can learn more and register for this event here. In solidarity, Rep. David Gottfried |