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Dear friends and neighbors on the Iron Range,
It has been about two weeks now since we wrapped up our final business in the one-day special session, and a lot has happened in that time. As I’m sure you’ve heard, tragedy struck in the early morning hours of June 14th in the form of a targeted attack on state legislators. Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were killed and Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were seriously injured, but are thankfully recovering. Services for the Hortmans are scheduled for this weekend, and both Melissa and Mark will lay in state today. The public is welcome to come and pay their respects in the Capitol Rotunda from 12-5pm. The following graphic contains the information if you are interested.
The Hoffmans remain in our thoughts and prayers. Violence has no place in politics.
Mining Tours
At the end of last week, my family and I joined many community members on a public bus tour of the Mesabi Metallics facility. They organized a great event, including a tour, presentation, and Q&A time. If you are curious about the future of mining in our region, I encourage you to book a tour and see what MM has in store – it is nothing short of impressive! Mesabi Metallics seems poised to become the next large producer of iron ore pellets on the Range, and that is great for our region.
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I also visited the Talon Metals drill core lab in Tamarack last week, which was more impressive than my 2023 tour. Talon has some great plans in the works, including a process to bring precious metals straight from their proposed underground mine to the building where they will ship the product from. Taking this tour alongside other legislators was a wonderful opportunity to learn more about Talon and their projects with those who may be tasked with making mining related decisions down the line. Many thanks to Jess Johnson and her team for having us! |
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Finally, I visited the United Taconite facility with my wife and son Thorin. We were also joined by Senator Keri Heintzman, who serves alongside me on the IRRRB. This was a great tour to see the pellet making process at UTac and learn more about their future needs too. Thank you to Sandy Karnowski and the management team for hosting us! |
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Minnesota Farm Bureau
I recently had the chance to greet over 30 Minnesota Farm Bureau members at the Minnesota Discovery Center. I gave a presentation about our region, and they came with great questions about iron ore mining and production. Kristen Vake of the Iron Mining Association gave a companion presentation that was well done, and much appreciated. Mining and farming are critical to our state, whether you live and work on the Iron Range or not. Thank you, visitors, for coming up north!
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Legislative Update with Senator Farnsworth
Senator Farnsworth and I had the chance to give a legislative update at the Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation Mineland Rec building. We joined about 45 local leaders at the Iron Range Economic Alliance gathering to discuss this year's legislative challenges. The event was well organized and thoughtful, thank you to Dan Cooper, Betsy Olivanti for the invite, and Paul Peltier for the photo!
Hibbing Legislative Update Breakfast
This week, I was joined by Senator Farnsworth and Representative Igo at the Hibbing Chamber of Commerce Annual Legislative Update breakfast. It was great to provide an update to attendees, and see many familiar faces. I look forward to next year!
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Please Contact Me
Please continue to reach out if I can be of any assistance to you. The best method is to use my email – I am rarely near the office phone, but that number is 651.296.0170 and you can try me there too.
Have a great weekend!
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