Taxes: You may have read the story in the Star Tribune earlier this week that highlighted

some of the tension between the House, Governor and the Senate over the Tax bill. While many are eager to get a Tax bill passed and sent to the Governor for his signature (myself included), it is important that due diligence and careful thought be put into the bill. Today, we are taking action on the tax bill. I am pleased to support a bill that responds to our current fiscal environment and makes changes to strengthen our financial future. Highlights include: Federal Tax conformity and Working Class Family Tax Credit Increase ($225.9 million) Repeal of Business to Business Taxes ($231.7 million) Gift Tax Repeal Increased Estate Tax Threshold (to $2 million, I favored $5 million) Budget Reserve Increase ($150 million)

While March Madness is underway, weve had legislative madness occurring here

In addition, this bill includes the extension of the Angel Investment Tax Credit to $15 million per year.

MELF Pilots: On Thursday, I offered an amendment to a bill we heard in Education Finance that allows all MELF pilot sites to be eligible for early childhood scholarships. Our Wayzata community has worked diligently over the last 5 years to be part of a pilot project that created Parent Aware and the beginning of Early Childhood Scholarships. However, due to the funding formula established by the Minnesota Department of Education, they were left out of the expansion of these scholarship awards. Our young children and their families in need were not able to access these new grants. This seemed inappropriate given the hard work they put into this effort and the incredible job they have done for our youngest learners. My amendment stated that all the programs that participated in the pilot would be eligible for the early childhood scholarships. Thank you IOCP and the Wayzata School District for their leadership in this critical area.

Study Abroad: Over the interim, I was contacted by two mothers from our community who went through the tragic experience of losing a child while on a study abroad trip. As a mother, I can only imagine the pain and grief that this caused. In the aftermath of these tragedies, the mothers began investigating Study Abroad programs. They found little information and were even shunned by those they turned to for assistance. They came to me for help. They have courageously used their grief to make a difference for future students and their families. Senate File 1975 attempts to provide students and their parents with information regarding study abroad programs record of health and safety. It requires post secondary institutions to report deaths and illnesses that occur during program participation. In addition it directs the Office of Higher Education to publish data regarding the prevalence of sexual assaults by Country. My own children went abroad at different points in their academic careers. They cherished these opportunities and grew as individuals. This bill is not meant to discourage this activity. Rather, to do all we can to ensure their health and safety. Thank you to Sheryl Hill and Elizabeth Brenner for sharing their stories and making a difference.

Topic Rewind:
So far this year, we have put out two surveys. Enough time has passed for everyone to give their input and we have the results

Minimum Wage:
The first survey we sent out asked for your feedback on the minimum wage debate. Thank you for the huge response. As you can see do not change the minimum wage was the most common response. I believe this is a reflection of many believing the marketplace should set the wage. As a former businessperson, I do understand that perspective. Yet, in our country, Government has had this role.

Legalization of Marijuana:
Last week, I asked constituents how they felt about the issue of legalizing marijuana. The amount of responses favoring legalization did surprise me. Yet, I believe there is a gradual movement towards this sentiment. Many also commented that we should not spend legislative time on this issue. Thank you for your thoughts.