Dear Neighbors,

I hope everyone is making plans for a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend to celebrate our independence and freedom!

Happy 4th of July! See you at Funfest!
[Clearly, this was sent out before the 4th of July weekend! -webmaster-]

Our community has one of the best Fourth of July celebrations in the state, and I hope to see you at Eagan Funfest! This is a time to celebrate our democracy and the sacrifices of those who fought for the country we have today. I'll be seeing many of you in the parade and other festivities. You can make plans by checking Funfest details here: http://eaganfunfest.org/

Upcoming Hwy 13 Construction will include Overnight, Weekend Single-Lane Closures
It's road construction season! Beginning in July, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) will be resurfacing both directions of Highway 13 in Burnsville from west of County Road 5 to Highway 101 in Savage.

The project is expected to begin the week of July 10, and will result in overnight and weekend single-lane closures in both directions.

Single-lane closures in both directions are expected from 7 p.m. – 7 a.m. on weekdays, July 10 – Aug. 14; AND from 7 p.m. on Friday to 5 a.m. on Monday the following weekends:

• July 14-17
• July 21-24
• Aug. 4-7
• Aug. 11-14

Additional information on this project is available online at www.mndot.gov/metro/projects/hwy13.

The New St. Croix Crossing
On Monday afternoon, I had the opportunity to tour the new bridge over the St. Croix. It is an impressive structure that is designed to last 100 years. It is about a mile long, about a hundred feet wide, and slightly over 100 feet over the water. The bridge connects Oak Park Heights, Minnesota with St. Joseph, Wisconsin.

The bridge should open later this summer. For more information, see the MN DoT website.

The Stillwater Lift Bridge will be converted to bicycle/pedestrian use only.
 


Other legislators and staff joined me to see the new structure


Legislature Suing Governor Dayton
In a previous update I was optimistic that issues between Republican leaders of the Legislature and Governor Dayton would get resolved before they got to court. Regrettably, such was not the case. The case against Governor Dayton, brought on by the Republican House and Senate had its first hearing on Monday. Both the Governor and the Legislature agreed to continue the ongoing funding of the Legislature through October 1st, and the judge agreed to this while the case goes forward. You can read about the case in this Pioneer Press article.

New Laws on July 1
July 1 is the state of the new Fiscal Year and with it we see many new laws coming into effect. You can read a short select list of new laws in each budget area from nonpartisan House Public Information.

Summer Activities for Kids
Don't forget the YMCA is offering free summer access for area teens. Here's a great story from the Star Tribune on that.

I hope you all have a safe holiday weekend with friends and family. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Sandra Masin

State Representative
 

The July 4th Parade in Eagan was quite nice. Weather was very cooperative and the audience was lively and responsive, encouraging marchers. Jim again brought out his fantastic human powered vehicle! Our team was great! Here are a few pictures.

Click the tumbnails for larger size image

Our local newspaper, the Sun ThisWeek, published Rep. Masin's Letter to the Editor on 6/22/2017 [see online]. ​

​​Let’s return to good governance

Published June 22, 2017 at 9:39 am

By ​Rep. Sandra Masin

To the editor:

The 2017 legislative session reached new – though not surprising – lows. Politics has always involved conflict; in a two-party system, how could it not? Usually that conflict is tempered by bipartisan agreement and collaboration. In a perfect world, political conflict manifests itself in compromise and meaningful results, but such was not the case this year when it came to Minnesotans’ personal internet data.

This year, internet privacy was just one example of vital public policy falling under the rampaging boots of partisanship. The brazenly partisan move by Republican legislative leaders to weaken our online privacy is shows how politics comes before principle for some at the Legislature.

A data privacy act passed nearly unanimously by both the House and the Senate, which are both controlled by Republicans. Yet that provision was stripped from its omnibus bill in conference committee. This isn’t politics as usual. This is an example of hundreds of legislators’ votes – each one a representation of thousands of Minnesotans’ voices – being casually discarded for the sake of a larger game.

And what a game it is. Those conference committees, run by Republicans, did not seek nor did they respond to public comment. Those conference committees operated under the finger of Republican leadership – Speaker of the House Kurt Daudt.

Poison pills in almost every budget bill put short-term political points ahead of Minnesota’s long-term health and stability. Daudt has spent two sessions toying with state employees. The 1,300 Department of Revenue jobs he held hostage this year were just the latest in a string of decisions made to threaten our institutions for political gain.

The willingness to threaten state jobs, as well as the programs and services they provide, makes it difficult to have any regard for a leader who displays so little respect for the vital institutions and people of our state. The Republican crusade to strip local control from communities and place it in the hands of the Legislature and big business is more fitting for lobbyists than public servants.

The line between arrogance and ignorance is thin – for some, there is no line at all.

Rep. Sandra Masin
DFL-Eagan
 

Dear Neighbors,

We adjourned the special session just before 3 a.m. this morning, having passed all the finance bills and sending them to the Governor's desk.

There were significant issues with these finance bills, like Republicans choosing not to fund wage increases for home health care workers (an industry in crisis due to low pay and long hours). Republicans, in an unethical and cruel move, also pitted sick time benefits of workers in Minneapolis/St. Paul against union contract ratification, forcing legislators to pick which group of workers they want to support.

The Governor has said he will veto that bill.

While the finance bills contained objectionable provisions, there was broad support for the last bill we took up in the special session.

Our final piece of business was to pass a $1 billion bonding bill. After not passing one last session, there was pressure to get it done so infrastructure projects around the state could continue. While the original bill was far too small to get the necessary support to pass, I was pleased to cast my vote for this version. It includes bonding funds for the Orange Line, Mall of America Transit Station, and Dakota County's top priority, the Lake Byllesby Dam.

This was a difficult session, which stemmed from the Republican majority's unwillingness to collaborate. All the bills are in Gov. Dayton's hands now. He has three days to sign bills presented to him before the end of regular session and 14 days to sign bills we passed in special session.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Sandra Masin
State Representative
 

Dear Neighbors,

I attended a meeting and press conference with Gov. Dayton, Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, and my fellow DFL women lawmakers on Thursday 5/11/2017. We discussed a range of issues, including women's economic security, clean campaigns, and the preemption legislation that would heavily impact women in our state.

One of the cuts made in the Republican budget is the elimination of the Office on the Economic Status of Women (OESW). Rep. Rena Moran spoke about the importance of that office in advising lawmakers and
providing information and statistics on women in Minnesota. This is valuable information that legislators must be able to consider when building policy in our state. You can view the press conference by clicking HERE.

Economies perform better as more women join the workforce and obtain economic security; we need to make that a central goal along with bringing more women into elected positions.

To that end, I encourage everyone - and especially women - to consider running for school board, city council, and other elected positions. Having representation that more closely reflects our population is an important step in bringing more women into the economy.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at the Capitol.

Sincerely,

Sandra Masin

State Representative

Upcoming Events

• ⤷  July 4, 2017 - July 4th Parade  [more]

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