Legislative Update - All Roads Lead Back To Home

Dear Neighbors, 

This was a big week of laying the foundation for the solutions to Minnesota’s housing crisis. 

Every Minnesotan deserves the dream of a safe and affordable place they can call home, yet this dream is unattainable for hundreds of thousands of Minnesota families all across the state. Without a bold, comprehensive plan to address our housing crisis, the collateral consequences will continue to be felt through achievement gaps in our schools, poorer health outcomes, and families that are struggling to thrive. 

It’s time to stop admiring the problem and start making bold investments that actually match the scope of the crisis Minnesotans are facing. This week, I joined other housing and legislative leaders to unveil “All Roads Lead Back to Home,” a roadmap to solve Minnesota’s housing crisis. 

It’s a bold plan for a big problem, investing $3 billion over the next decade to end youth homelessness, cut racial disparities in homeownership in half, and build and preserve 150,000 homes to address our severe shortage.

My Senate Housing counterpart, Sen. Lindsey Port, and I wrote more about our need to have a housing plan as big as our crisis in the Star Tribune, which you can read here. 

The Pathway Home Act

While our overall housing proposal would take ten years, there are meaningful actions we can take right now, like our vote last night in the Minnesota House to pass the “Pathway Home Act.” 

This legislation invests in and establishes resources and support systems to keep our youth housed in Minnesota, including a $150 million investment in emergency shelter facilities, preserving or adding over 3,000 shelter beds.

Unrelated to Housing, but other important actions we took last night include our vote to ratify labor agreements for state employees and put new guardrails into state law to prevent unconscionable price gouging during times of emergency such as a pandemic or natural disaster.

We also took our final, largely procedural votes on the “Driver’s Licenses for All” and “Restore the Vote” bills, finally sending them to Gov. Walz for his anticipated signature. 

Capping the Cost of Insulin

This week, pharmaceutical manufacturer Eli Lilly announced its decision to cap out-of-pocket insulin costs at $35 monthly per recipient. This is an incredible victory for Americans with diabetes, and it wouldn’t be possible without the courageous leadership of Nicole Smith-Holt and fierce insulin advocates across the country. 

Now is not the time to let up. This news should only fuel our push to cap insulin prices in all 50 states so that we lock these prices in for Americans who need insulin to survive. The past several years have shown us that we cannot trust insulin manufacturers to do the right thing. Lasting change will only come through persistent public pressure and legislative action.

As a reminder, if you or someone you know is in urgent need of insulin, please check out Minnesota’s Insulin Safety Net Program. Established by our Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act of 2020, this program is one of many steps that will someday lead us to a world where insulin is permanently accessible and affordable to those who need it. 

In partnership,

Michael Howard