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Dear Neighbors,

As I talk with our neighbors, it is clear that folks want the legislature to focus on the bread-and-butter economic issues. The cost of housing, health care and child care continue to squeeze far too many families. Meanwhile, corporations and special interests continue to play by a different set of rules.  

Ideally, we would be spending our time addressing these economic challenges on a bipartisan basis. Unfortunately, House Republicans are using their current one-seat advantage to push an entirely different kind of agenda. This Monday, they will hear a bill on the House floor to bully trans kids, and I spoke against these backwards priorities.

The good news? This bill will not become law. The bad news? We’re going to have to waste a lot of valuable time talking about a hateful topic when we could be fixing actual problems.

But it’s not just at the state level where we’re seeing Republicans push forward misplaced priorities. This week in D.C., Republicans in the US House passed a budget resolution by razor-thin margins that only serves to cut taxes for billionaires at the expense of cutting crucial government programs like Medicaid.

Medicaid covers about 1.2 million Minnesotans, providing some form of support to our seniors, people with disabilities, and 42% of children in the state. Balancing a budget on their backs to benefit the wealthy is not only irresponsible, it’s cruel. Rest assured, we will be organizing at the state level and doing everything in our power to protect health care for Minnesotans who need it.

More Affordable Homes

This week, I presented my bill to further fund the Greater Minnesota Infrastructure program and build more homes all over our state, because we need to recognize our housing crisis is an interconnected, border-to-border issue.

The 2023-24 Housing budget included historic investments, including $8 million for the Greater Minnesota Infrastructure program. This was an investment well spent, but it was one-time. This new bill would provide additional $5 million for this important program.

I want to thank Cristin Incitti from Habitat for Humanity for testifying in support of the bill, as well as mayors and business leaders from across the state.

Another bill I’ve introduced this session would ban the rent-fixing algorithms landlords are using to abuse shared data and inflate rents.

By promoting significant rent hikes — sometimes by double digits in major metropolitan areas — these algorithms contribute to higher eviction rates, the consolidation of local housing markets, and the rise of monopolistic landlords and property management companies.

Across the state, Minnesota renters have been telling us loud and clear - the rent is too damn high - and they’re right. Corporate landlords that are conspiring to jack up rents, purely to pad their excessive profits, must be stopped. Cracking down on this type of corporate greed is an important way we can continue to make the dream of home more affordable for all Minnesotans.

Extreme Risk Protection Orders are saving lives

I also want to highlight active solutions that are currently working! During the 2023 legislative session, my DFL colleagues and I took bold action to protect our communities against gun violence. One of the measures lawmakers enacted allows for Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs), also known as a “red flag” law. This tool helps prevent tragedies by allowing law enforcement and family members to request court orders temporarily removing firearms from individuals who pose an imminent risk of harming themselves or others.

After one year of implementation, the evidence is clear: Extreme Risk Protection Orders are protecting Minnesotans from senseless gun violence. The Star Tribune recently published an op-ed spotlighting the impact of this important law, which you can read here.

So far, 135 ERPO cases have been filed, with law enforcement initiating the vast majority of the petitions. The red flag law is saving lives, particularly in situations involving domestic violence or when individuals are experiencing mental health crises. Minnesotans overwhelmingly support common-sense gun violence prevention measures, like ERPOs and criminal background checks, and House DFLers remain committed to keeping our communities safe.

If you have any questions about legislation in the Minnesota House - the good and the bad - or the impacts of new laws we recently passed, please feel free to reach out! I’m always happy to hear from you!

In partnership,

Michael Howard