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Legislative Update
Friends and Neighbors,
By my calculations, we’ve already passed over $1.5 billion dollars in spending as the expenditures and burdensome regulations continue to floor the house floor. Last night we debated the Earned Sick and Safe Time bill which requires all businesses in Minnesota to provide 48 hours of paid sick time per year. While it is important that Minnesota workers have access to time off in the event they need it this bill adds more mandates and massive fines that will crush many small businesses that are already struggling. The free market has already done the work of providing these kinds of benefits to employees and acts as a great incentive to bring in strong talent. I don’t believe we should be interfering in the employer/employee relationship in this way to force a one size fits all mandate on our business community.
More onerous mandates as HF 1715, a ban the sale of nonelectric lawn equipment in the state heads through committee. This proves how disconnected some lawmakers are from the rest of the state, while a small electric mower may be fine for a city yard out in our district it would add massive amounts of work to maintain a lawn with the current offerings for these tools. People should be allowed to choose which products suit their needs best without the long arm of government coming in to tell them what to do and this is just another instance of that kind of intervention.
We had a number of representatives from the agriculture community visiting the capitol this week. Farmers Union Day was Wednesday as these hard-working Minnesotans took a day to make sure their voice is heard at the state capitol. Agriculture is the backbone of our state, though many often forget, they make up a massive portion of our economy and even more importantly keep us all fed. I am proud to represent so many farmers in our district and always welcome them when they come to visit.
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Contact Me
As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance to you or your family on a matter of state government. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-4346 or by email at rep.brian.johnson@house.mn.gov.
Have a great week.
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/RepBrianJohnson
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243 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, MN 55155
651.296.4346 |
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