June 24, 2021
Matson Strong and other victories in the state budget
The legislature is in the process of wrapping up the next state budget, and while the headlines will go to things like education funding and tax relief, there are a number of equally important provisions that simply won’t get the same attention. That’s a shame, because this budget contains funding for a number of important programs and provisions that Minnesotans should be excited about.
I worked on a number of these bills this year, and I wanted to share with you some of the ones that became law or will become law in the near future.
First and foremost is Matson Strong. We all know Officer Matson’s story by now. This bill is named in his honor, and will strengthen state criminal penalties for individuals who are convicted of assault that causes great bodily harm to a police officer, judge, prosecutor, or correctional officer. It’s currently in the public safety budget bill, which is in the process of being wrapped up. While Matson Strong isn’t done yet, I am optimistic it will be law very soon.
For more than a decade, officials have been discussing the idea of an interchange at the intersection of I-35 and County Road 9 near Faribault. I have been advocating for this project for years, and this year it was included in the final transportation budget. An interchange at County Road 9 will help us maximize our opportunity for economic growth. The interchange will not be built overnight, but this will help the project become shovel-ready so it can be completed as soon as possible.
The transportation budget also includes my bill to allow Minnesotans to purchase their license tabs and replacement license plates from fully-automated kiosks. This is already an option in a number of neighboring states, and I’m glad it’s coming to Minnesota. It’s a simple, common-sense idea that has been proven to work. These kiosks would be administered by local deputy registrars and should be viewed as an extension of the service they provide. It’s good for the registrars and good for the consumer.
The transportation bill also designates a section of Trunk Highway 13 as “Corporal Caleb L. Erickson Memorial Highway,” named for Marine Lance Corporal Caleb L. Erickson of Waseca, who was killed in action on February 28, 2014 in Helmand Province when his convoy came under attack by a suicide bomber. This is an honor to thank Corporal Erickson, and his family, for his service.
This year’s jobs and economic growth bill includes funding for the AIR grants program, which was an idea I came up with a couple of years ago to generate economic development at local and regional airports.
The jobs bill also includes a number of workforce development and skills training programs I worked on.
The biggest one is the new workforce development center in Owatonna. Owatonna was the only community in Minnesota of more than 20,000 people without a workforce center. It will provide career education, wraparound support services, and job skills training in high-demand manufacturing fields.
The bill provides funding for Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities for workforce readiness, and skills development for kids and young adults; funding for the SciTech internship program, which connects college students in STEM fields to paid internships in small to mid-sized Minnesota companies; and funding for the Greater Minnesota Business Development Public Infrastructure (BDPI) program, which is a program I have been a long-time advocate for that provides grants to Greater Minnesota communities to help encourage growth, create or retain jobs, or build the tax base.
If you have any questions about these provisions or any other issue the legislature is working on, feel free to contact me any time at sen.john.jasinski@senate.mn or 651-296-0284. It is a privilege to serve you!