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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
As we all look forward to enjoying some warmer temperatures this weekend, here’s an update on the stories making headlines as well as legislation considered at the Capitol this week.
I’ve heard from many people about their frustration and confusion with Minnesota’s presidential primary. The biggest concern surrounds the privacy of voters’ party choice – who can see it and what they can do with it. Right now, each of Minnesota’s major political parties receives a list of every voter’s party selection.
What differentiates a presidential primary from general elections is that these primaries are held by political parties, not by the Secretary of State. Because the purpose is to select the party’s candidates to be on the ballot – and not select who will actually hold public office – presidential primaries are the business of the party. Parties do not have the resources to fund and run primaries, so they work through the Secretary of State’s office to manage the process. So, to the public, these primaries look like any general election. However, please know you will never be asked for party affiliation in a general election.
I am co-authoring legislation to require the parties to destroy all the data they receive, but that bill is unlikely to receive much consideration. The DFL and GOP state parties have indicated they will not be able to seat delegates at their national conventions if they do not receive the data. Therefore, I’m also supporting legislation to restrict what data parties receive and how they can use it.
Ultimately, I believe the advantage of presidential primaries (versus the straw poll caucuses we used to have) is encouraging greater voter turnout. I understand parties asking for personal information to build their databases, but I believe voter privacy should be the greater priority.
If you want to hear more from me on this, you can listen to an interview in which I discuss the topic here.
The spread of coronavirus has many Minnesotans worried and has dominated the news recently. The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is monitoring the situation and making preparations to help contain the virus. It has also put together a wealth of resources to help you prepare and protect yourself and your family. You can find them by clicking here.
On Thursday, the House approved a government-run paid family leave program. Family leave benefits help make families stronger as parents can stay home with sick kids or people can tend to ailing family members. Working to ensure more Minnesotans have access to paid family leave is something I hope more businesses will embrace. However, the bill approved Thursday doesn’t represent a realistic path to achieving that and I needed to cast a no vote.
The proposal – a one-size fits all program requiring all employers to enroll - would establish a state insurance bureaucracy. This would be funded by new employer and employee payroll taxes that would result in hundreds of millions of dollars of wages lost for hard-working Minnesotans. In short, this bill would take upwards of $2 billion directly out of the paychecks of anyone earning a wage in Minnesota and threaten the financial survival of our main street businesses.
The lessons we have learned from the MNsure and MNLARS failures have made clear the state should not be looking for new ways to create more government bureaucracy, especially when it will take money from Minnesotans’ paycheck.
In the Tax Committee last week with Grand Rapids City Administrator Tom Pagel presenting a bill for exemption of sales taxes for construction of a new fire hall.
Wood Fiber Council representing employees working in Minnesota's forest products industry.
Suzanne Taplin and daughter Katelyn of Bovey here for the MN Assoc. of Christian Home Educators Day.
Bill Martinetto and Darin Jensen from Rapids Brewing
Gail Anderson of Grand Rapids on behalf of the Humane Society.
Here for History Matters! Day were David Kelliher for the MN Historical Society, Jeff Johns of the Forest History Center and Lilah Crowe and Jeremy Anderson of the Itasca Historical Society
Lt. Col. Bill Hienz presents my membership certificate inducting me into the Civil Air Patrol as a legislative member.
As always, please feel free to contact me on any legislative matter. I value your opinion and you can best reach me at 651-296-4936 or rep.sandy.layman@house.mn.
Talk to you soon,
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