Legislative Update - Investing In Our Environment

Dear Granite City Neighbors, 

Happy Friday! I hope you and your families have been adjusting to the daylight saving time change as well as possible. 

As a dad, I find daylight saving time extremely disruptive and hard on the sleep routines of children. We have passed a law to put us into permanent daylight saving time, but unfortunately we still need Congressional approval before we can officially “lock the clock”.

Fortunately, the Minnesota House of Representatives is not bogged down by the same gridlock faced by our federal government, and many of my bills are humming along through the committee process. Here is your update from the 5th week of session:

Protecting our Environment and Natural Resources

Minnesotans take pride in our legacy of environmental stewardship. That’s why I voted to pass legislation funding 101 projects across our state that protect our wildlife, water, air, and soil. 

Thanks to the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, even though the vast majority of us won’t win big playing the lottery, the proceeds from it ensure our environment and natural resources are protected for generations to come. Now that’s a winner!

The 2024 Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund Bill includes funding for environmental education projects, climate change and natural resources research, clean water resources, invasive species response, conservation land acquisition, and habitat protection and restoration projects. A full list of projects can be found here.

The Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources is now gathering input about the future of Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund spending and taking feedback about what environmental issues are most important to you. Make your voice heard about how to improve Minnesota's environment & natural resources.

Take the survey here

“From the Capitol” Radio Interview

Be sure to tune in to WJON every Wednesday at 10:40am, when I join Kelly Cordes to discuss the latest legislative news. For this week's episode, we covered my efforts to make downtown St. Cloud attractive to private investors, the new benefits available to Minnesotans this tax season, and legislative efforts around daylight saving time. You can catch our conversation below:

Tune in every week to hear us live on WJON, Wednesdays at 10:40am.

Investing in Downtown St. Cloud

Proud to team up with Mayor Dave Kleis to present my bill to create property tax incentives for private developers to invest in downtown St. Cloud.

This legislation authorizes special rules for the city of St. Cloud to create redevelopment tax increment financing (TIF) districts within the city. There are several areas throughout Downtown St. Cloud that are worthy opportunity sites for redevelopment.

Many of these opportunity sites have been the subject of prior planning projects in the St. Cloud Comprehensive Plan, the East End Vision Plan, and others. The different sites have been designated as either catalyst redevelopment sites, redevelopment opportunity sites, or adjacent redevelopment sites outside of the Downtown area.

You can read more about my bill here. 

EMT Training/Paramedic Scholarships Available

I’m working with my colleagues to address the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) statewide shortage. One of our initiatives funds a one-time appropriation of $3 million for up to 600 scholarships of $5,000 starting in the fall of 2024 to be awarded by June 30, 2026.

If you or anyone you know might be interested in this opportunity to serve the public and give back to the community, we need you! You can find eligibility information here. One of the eligible programs includes Saint Cloud Technical and Community College.

Visits with Constituents

Now is the best time to make a trip to the State Capitol to advocate for the issues you care about - and I’ve had several great meetings this week alone!

Thursday was AFSCME Council 65 Day on the Hill! I’m proud to partner with AFSCME members to advocate for fairness in the workplace, excellence in public services, and prosperity for all working families.

That’s a wrap for this week! As always, I hope you’ll reach out with any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas you have regarding my work in the Minnesota House. Feel free to email me at rep.dan.wolgamott@house.mn.gov or give my office a call at 651-296-6612.

You can also stay up to date by following my official Facebook page, subscribing to these regular email updates if you haven’t already, and checking my legislative webpage for the latest information from my office. 

Thanks to everyone who read the newsletter this far! I have a lot of fun writing these and I hope you find them interesting and informative.

Have a wonderful weekend! Go Huskies!

Sincerely, 

Rep. Dan Wolgamott

Speaker Pro Tempore

District 14B