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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
The 2021 Special Session will wrap on Wednesday, with the legislature passing the final budget bills, avoiding a state government shutdown. We also put into law an end to the governor's emergency powers, but have work to do in the future to reform Chapter 12 to make sure a “peacetime emergency” doesn’t equate to fifteen months of executive control ever again.
While not every bill was one I could support, it is good that all of the major tax increases and controversial policy were eliminated from the final agreements. As discussed last week, the education and transportation bills are good examples of bills funding our shared priorities with existing revenue — not raising taxes.
I hope you have fun Independence Day plans with your friends and family this weekend and I look forward to seeing you around town this summer! Have a great long weekend!
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Local News
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CONGRATULATIONS to the Lake City boys track relay team for winning the 4X400 relay at the state track and field championships last week.
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Construction on Hwy 52 begins next week. A comprehensive summary of that is below.
🎆🎆INDEPENDENCE DAY WEEKEND EVENTS🎆🎆
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Wabasha
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Cannon Falls
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Red Wing
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Treasure Island
- July 3, Island Block Party and Fireworks
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Public Safety Bill
The Public Safety bill that passed on Tuesday includes little of the controversial anti-law enforcement measures previously passed out of the House. Some good provisions in the bill include the recommended changes to Minnesota’s criminal sexual conduct statutes, which will ensure justice is served for victims of sexual assault; and the Officer Arik Matson bill to increase the penalty for first degree assault for criminal justice officials, in response to an alarming spike in attacks on law enforcement officers.
However, I did not support the final bill as it did not include a number of key priorities for public safety. It did not delay the implementation of new “use of force” requirements so that officers could be trained. This issue is creating a situation for border communities in that our neighboring states will not respond to mutual aid agreements until this problematic law is clarified, as they believe it puts their officers at risk.
At a time when violent crime is rising in Minneapolis with a spike of 21% over last year and more than doubling the amount of murders, the bill only allocated $1M for violent crimes enforcement units – out of a $2.6B public safety budget.
After talking to members in the law enforcement community, I have concerns that the language on “no-knock” warrants is reactionary and may do more harm than good to public safety.
We passed broad reforms last year in the Police Accountability Bill and many of these policy changes are in the process of being implemented. I hope that we can continue to work in a bi-partisan fashion to support our peace officers and fund our public safety needs while monitoring the reforms enacted to ensure accountability.
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PPP & UI Tax Relief
The Tax Bill that will be considered and passed on Wednesday, includes tax relief for forgiven Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans as well as conformity to the federal code in exempting Unemployment Insurance up to $10,200 per person.
I have been pushing for both the PPP & UI tax relief all session long. While it is great that these provisions were included in the final bill, this should have been taken care of months ago. They were held hostage for political leverage and that is wrong.
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Hwy 52 Construction Beginning July 5
MnDOT provided updates from a public meeting last Thursday on the upcoming construction beginning July 5. Below is a summary from the meeting from MnDOT and a link here for more information.
This project will reconstruct the southbound Hwy 52 lanes beginning 2.2 miles south of Hwy 19 in Cannon Falls and proceeding south to 1.2 miles north of Goodhue County Road 7 with access control improvements.
The bridges at the junctions of Hwy 60 (west) and Hwy 60 (east) near Zumbrota will be replaced. As well as the replacement of the Hwy 52 southbound bridge and rehabilitating the Hwy 52 northbound bridge over the Zumbro River.
A new interchange will be constructed to replace the existing at-grade intersection at Hwy 52 and Hwy 57 / Goodhue County Road 8 (Hader Interchange).
Additional safety and access management measures will be implemented on the corridor including new frontage roads, reduced conflict intersections (RCIs), construction of a new Goodhue County Road 14 connection on the north end of the project near Cannon Falls and closure of some highway access or median turns.
Hwy 52 Project schedule
2021
- Construct various Hwy 52 median crossover lanes to direct traffic off or onto the northbound or southbound lanes during future construction work.
- Construct Hwy 60 West overpass bridge replacement at Zumbrota. Detours are planned.
- Replace northbound Hwy 52 bridge at Hwy 60 East interchange south of Zumbrota. You can check two of the detours.
2022
- Reconstruct of Hwy 52 southbound from (4,000 feet north) Goodhue County Road 9 to Goodhue County Road 50
- Interchange construction at Hwy 57 / County Road 8 at Hwy 52
- Replace southbound Hwy 52 bridge at Hwy 60 east interchange
- Construct County Road 14 connection, frontage roads, and cul de sacs
2023
- Replace southbound Hwy 52 bridge over Zumbro River
- Rehabilitate northbound Hwy 52 bridge over Zumbro River
- Reconstruct Hwy 52 southbound from County Road 23 in Cannon Falls to (4,000 feet) north of County Road 9
- Reconstruct Hwy 52 southbound from County Road 50 to 1.3 miles north of County Road 7
- Construct frontage roads and cul de sacs
- Construct noise wall along nortbound Hwy 52 south of Hwy 58 interchange at Zumbrota
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STAYING IN TOUCH
As always, if you have questions or concerns regarding any issue, please contact me. You can reach me at rep.barb.haley@house.mn or 651-296-8635.
Sincerely,
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/RepBarbHaley
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239 State Office Bldg.
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-296-8635
rep.barb.haley@house.mn |
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