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Health & Fitness

Update from St. Paul from Rep. David FitzSimmons

Legislative Update from Rep. David FitzSimmons (R-Albertville)

 

Dear neighbor,

Last week we had our first major floor debates. The first debate revolved around the rules governing the House. The most controversial aspect of the rules was the requirement that all amendments be filed 24 hours before a bill is scheduled to be heard on the House floor. Because the majority caucus decides what is heard on the House floor and when it is debated, this rule inherently puts members of the minority caucus at a disadvantage. Being able to offer amendments on the floor has previously been a useful and practical tool for all members and it’s disappointing that the majority would take this opportunity away.

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The other was on Thursday when the House debated state employee contract agreements. The bill called for a two percent pay increase for state employees. I supported an amendment to these contract agreements that would incorporate pay for performance measures into the agreements and an amendment that would require that state employees (including legislators) pay 10% of their health insurance premiums, currently it is zero. Unfortunately, these amendments were rejected. At a time when take-home pay for Minnesotans is going down, I do not think it is the time to have taxpayers foot the bill for a pay increase for state employees without any sort of reform measures in the agreements. I believe one should lead by example so I co-authored HF 544 that would require legislators pay 10% of their healthcare premiums.

I am proud to announce I am co-authoring two other pieces of legislation. House File 488 would require law enforcement agencies to discard license plate data collected through automatic license plate readers unless it is related to stolen vehicles, active warrants, or active investigations, after 24 hours. Right now there is no standard on how long this data can be kept and data is being collected on every driver in the state.  I believe it is important to protect the privacy rights of citizens while still giving law enforcement the tools it needs to protect the public.

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The other piece of legislation, House File 674, would allow employees to receive employer-provided health club benefits tax free. Currently, if an employer provides health club benefits to their employees, those employees must report that as income and it is subject to taxation. Better health has many benefits to the individual and to society at large and should not be discouraged through taxation.

On Friday, I joined Future Farmers of America members, along with fellow Wright County legislators Representative O’Neill and Representative McDonald, in collecting food for Wright County food shelves. Thank you to the Buffalo Cub Foods and the Wright County Farm Bureau for co-sponsoring this event.  The work of all the great volunteers in the area food shelves is very much appreciated. Please find out how you can help those in need at
www.stpaulsinhanover.org/evangelism/food-shelf (Hanover-St. Michael-Albertville) www.caerfoodshelf.org (Elk River-Otsego) and www.buffalofoodshelf.com.

As your voice in St. Paul, I am interested in your feedback. Please feel free to contact me by e-mail at Rep.David.Fitzsimmons@House.MN or contact my office at 651-296-1534. You can also send me mail to my office address: 227 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155. Please feel free to share this e-mail with your family, friends, and neighbors so they can sign up and stay in touch.

 

Sincerely,

 

 


David

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