Staying Staying Busy: Busy:

Following the 2012 election, I was appointed to serve as Chair of the Higher Education/Workforce Development Committee. I have been humbled and honored to serve in this capacity. I believe that ensuring Minnesotas strong tradition of educational excellence is vital to a successful and vibrant future for our state. The 2013 Higher Education/Workforce Development Committee had positive impacts such as a tuition freeze at the University of Minnesota and MnSCU and made key investments in workforce related efforts. During the interim, my office made it a priority to get even more familiar with the issues facing our Post-Secondary System. Specifically, I wanted to hear directly from students across the State about the issues that confront them on a daily basis. Joined by my staff and local legislators, during the month of September we conducted a listening tour across the entire State. I heard suggestions from students and administrators to better learn how to keep moving Minnesotas higher educational system forward. These visits were invaluable, as you do not truly know somewhere until you visit personally. Among the common themes that we heard on our tour was the frustration that students experienced in transferring credits from one institution to another. This doesnt just irritate students, it has a real impact on the debt they take on and can significantly increase the time it takes them to graduate. In addition, we heard that students are extremely enthusiastic about internship and other experiential learning opportunities. As the 2014 Session gets underway, one of my top focuses will be on encouraging businesses and young people to engage in more of these. mutually beneficial partnerships. Stay Tuned.

2014 Legislative Preview Minimum Wage Repeal Business to Business Taxes Teacher Evaluation Implementation Comprehensive Transportation Investment Unsession

Closing the Skills Gap, Reducing Student Debt:

As Chair of the Higher Education/Workforce Development Committee, one of the initiatives that I am most excited about this Session is the possibility of creating a comprehensive, apprentice-like system that matches up businesses with students right out of high school. Imagine a program in which businesses choose a handful of students to sponsor. They would offer these students a stipend to work and train at their company. The students would simultaneously take courses at a Post-Secondary Institution and receive credit for their work. When the program is up, the company would be able to hire these new workers full-time. The students would already have the exact skills the company requires. This would cut down on training and hiring costs for the company. In addition, it would save students time, money, and anxiety about how they are going to enter the workforce. The State could facilitate this relationship and possibly even subsidize the tuition for the students.

Hollydale:
Last Session, we passed a law that prohibits a 115kv power line from running through Plymouth neighborhoods unless there is no distribution alternative. The law clearly stated that this project could not move forward unless there was clear and convincing evidence that there were no other distribution alternatives. In the face of this strong opposition, Xcel has withdrawn their application. I accept and appreciate Xcels petition to withdraw in hopes of finding another solution. However, many residents remain concerned that Xcel is going to come back in a few months with a new proposal that would not adhere to the law that was passed, nor the legislative intent behind the law. Representative Sarah Anderson and I drafted a letter to the Judge to express our strong belief that Xcel should only be allowed to withdraw their current application if they are required to have future proposals adhere to the same law.

Announcing Town Hall Dates

Capital Investment:
As many of you know, this Legislative Session will be dedicated to Capital Investment projects. Bonding allows the State to invest in our current buildings so their life spans are maximized, and funds other important asset investments that benefit Minnesotas regional economies. As Chair of the Higher Education/Workforce Development Committee, I will be pushing for funding to our Public Colleges and Universities. In addition, I am the Chief Author for three other projects described below that I hope will get funded during the upcoming Session.

Please join us for the following town hall events: Saturday, March 8th from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Minnetonka Community Center Wednesday, March 12th from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Plymouth City Hall We look forward to hearing your thoughts on the upcoming 2014 Legislative Session.

University Enterprise Laboratories: A bio-science incubator located in St. Paul, UEL houses start-ups in the field of science and technology. These start-ups cannot afford the costly equipment and wet-lab space that is required for them to operate. UEL offers them the space to work at a fraction of what they would have to pay if they were on their own. This request is for $14.5 million in state bond funding to acquire land, complete pre-design, complete design, and construct, furnish, and equip a Phase 2 new life sciences incubator expansion facility for the purposes of growing new and young life science businesses, to be attached to the existing phase 1 UEL facility in the Saint Paul Port Authoritys Westgate Business Center in St. Paul, Ramsey County.

Plymouth Ice Center: The City of Plymouth is seeking $2.1 million for renovation of the Plymouth Ice Center. This funding will be combined with matching funds from the City of Plymouth to make mandated updates, as well as energy efficiency improvements. With more than 500,000 visitors annually, the Plymouth Ice Center is one of Minnesotas largest and busiest ice arenas, serving hockey and skating enthusiasts across the metro, region and state. Project advocates say the renovation and remodeling of the 17-year-old arena will help meet long-term demands for regional, state and national amateur sports.

St. Davids Center for Child and Family Development: St. Davids Center currently serves 2,200 children and families each year and project representatives say that improved and expanded facilities will allow them to double their capacity to meet community need within four years following completion. This request is for $3,750,000 in state bond funding to pre-design, design, renovate, expand, furnish and equip the facility located in Minnetonka in Hennepin County. St. Davids Center will leverage the state bond funding with $8.5 million in private contributions to double its capacity to help children with developmental needs using its unique multi-disciplinary approach. Governor Mark Dayton included this project in the Bonding proposal he released just last month. This is a strong signal that St. Davids will be included in the final list of projects.

For more information on the projects above, we have set up a website with multimedia and project details. Visit: http://Build.mn