Today marks the end of the FEC's first quarter reporting period. Here's one good reason to thank Congressman Walz and contribute to his campaign committee.
With taxpayers still seething over the massive AIG bonuses, First
District Rep. Tim Walz's steady opposition to the Wall Street bailouts
due to a lack of oversight may have him feeling vindicated.
Last fall, the Democrat voted against the bailout plan twice,
voicing concern about a lack of oversight to make taxpayers recouped
their money. He defied newly-elected Democratic President Barack Obama,
voting against releasing the second $350 billion installment of the
bailout funds.
Last week, Walz voted in favor of a bill aimed at strengthening
oversight of the bailout plan, also known as the Troubled Assets Relief
Program. The measure would allow the Special Inspector General to audit
or investigate any action taken under the financial rescue law. It also
mandates the investigator to report to Congress in September how those
taxpayer dollars were spent.
"This increased transparency should have been in the original Wall Street bailout," Walz said.
Last year around this time Katie Felland didn’t know much about community supported farming.
But
then she got to know John Ostgarden and Lowell Gordon, owners of
Clinton Falls Farm, a certified organic farm located in Clinton Falls.
As
a Community Supported Agriculture farm, Clinton Falls Farm sells crop
shares to clients who share in the risks and benefits of farming in
exchange for a locally-grown variety of fresh produce and flowers.
“People
are really receptive to local sustainable farming,” Ostgarden said,
“and I believe mentoring a beginning farmer is really important for our
community. I think there’s a real growing interest for beginning
farmers in organic.”
Felland bought into the shares and
volunteered on the farm to learn more. She also enrolled in the Farm
Beginnings Class, sponsored through the Land Stewardship Project which
is led by farmers for those who are starting their own farm for the
first time or returning to farming after leaving the business.
This
year, her farm, “O-Wata-Farm!, will share its organic fresh eggs with
shareholders of Clinton Falls Farm. She will also grow fresh sweet
corn, strawberries and raspberries on her 10-acre farm north of
Owatonna.
— When staff at the Gainey Conference Center heard about a chance to
partner with a local organic farm for fresh produce and flowers, they
jumped at the opportunity.
Executive chef Jason Hudock changes
the center’s menus and entrees daily. When he heard he could get fresh
produce locally from Clinton Falls Farm, a certified organic Community
Supported Agriculture farm, he thought it was the perfect chance to
bring organic foods to the center.
“The opportunity to use
local, organically grown produce is a fantastic opportunity for us, and
our chef has been wanting to build that level of partnership for many,
many years,” said Marlene Levine, director of the Gainey Conference
Center. “It’s certainly a treat for our guests who more and more
appreciate the health benefits of organically grown foods.”
Equally important, Murphy says, is to recast the debate about good food
from a moral battle to an economic one. Take the school lunch program,
which Congress will review this year. Food activists have long argued
that more fruits and vegetables from local producers should be included
to help improve childhood nutrition. But Murphy says the better way to
sell the idea to legislators is as a new economic engine to sustain
small farmers and rural America as a whole. Talk about nutrition and
you get a legislator's attention, he said. "But you get his vote when
you talk about economic development."
Indeed. Even Collin Peterson, thought by many foodies to be a foe of locally-grown food, has hosted conferences in his district since 2007, touting the economic sense of local food systems. His third annual meeting will be held in four different locations across the sprawling Seventh on April 17; video conferencing will tie together those gathered in Bemidji, Crookston, Marshall and Morris.
Farmers were part of the old progressive coalition in a 1930s Minnesota; another piece was labor. The president of the Mankato Area Labor Assembly writes in Employee Free Choice Act lets workers have say:
. . .Workers should be able to
band together with their co-workers to fight for a livable wage, a
respectful work environment, and health care benefits and a pension
plan they can count on in the future. We need a process that allows
workers to have a say in their workplace rather than the employer
controlling the whole process.
That’s why the Employee Free Choice Act
earned solid congressional support with 40 senators and 223
representatives co-sponsoring the bill.
I want to thank Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep.
Tim Walz for being champions on working families issues by being a part
of that coalition.
Snow is predicted for today, as good a day for finishing up our own garden plan as any.
Rep. Tim Walz, DFL-Minn., might have been privately crowing during the
recent uproar over lavish bonuses for employees of U.S. banking
behemoth AIG. . . .
. . . Here’s what I wrote back
in October, when Walz was in the minority among Democrats by opposing
the biggest of the bailouts, the $700 billion TARP plan:
"Walz
told the Daily News on Monday afternoon that the bill must do more ...
to limit compensation for executives of failing banks and lending
companies."
I double-checked my notes from that interview just
to be sure; Walz said the TARP provisions regulating executive
compensation were "way too nebulous" and cited a "need to stop golden
parachutes" for bank CEOs.
Looks like Walz can justly claim he foresaw this mess before it was made.
We were fortunate to actually get to meet with congressmen Eric Paulson and Tim Walz and Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann. Since he represents southeast Minnesota, members of the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota extended a personal invitation to Congressman Walz to speak at the LAB National Rally/Twin Cities Bicycling Club Weekend on Wheels in Winona July 31 to August 2 in Winona. The added bonus is that he serves on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and will be on the front lines as the next version of the federal transportation bill is authorized.
We only ask that Congressman Walz leave the spandex bike pants to Jim Oberstar.
With $418,000 in grants from the U.S. Department of Education, Saint
Mary’s University plans to assist and mentor K-12 educators in targeted
Minnesota school districts.
The “Teachers Teaching Teachers”
program received a $228,000 grant for professional development for
teachers from the DOE’s Fund for the Improvement of Education Programs
of National Significance, and a grant of $190,000 for technology
upgrades from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education.
Sponsors of the grants included Rep. Tim Walz (D-Minn.), Sen. Amy
Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.).
The
“Teachers Teaching Teachers” project will enhance educators’
professional development through technology, and enable K-12 teachers
from high-need Minnesota school districts to engage in meaningful
collaboration with each other and with content specialists from Saint
Mary’s University, especially in the areas of science, technology,
engineering and math (STEM). . . .
Kind, who represents western Wisconsin, doesn’t endorse all of Obama’s
agriculture-reform proposals but says farm policy must be overhauled in
a larger effort to control the federal deficit. U.S. Rep. Tim Walz,
DFL-Minn., balks at an Obama proposal to eliminate direct payments to
certain farms, and says cutting agricultural subsidies will do little
to rein in the red ink.
“This is the only program in the government that comes in under budget,” Walz said.
Walz -- along with leading U.S. House and Senate lawmakers -- appears
reluctant to revisit debate on the 2008 Farm Bill, which eliminated
some subsidies to megafarms but did little to shift its focus from
subsidizing commodity crops.
In the 2010 federal budget, Obama
has proposed a $250,000-a-year cap on U.S. Department of Agriculture
payments to farmers, a move that Kind supports. Just one farm in
Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District collected more than $250,000 in
USDA subsidies in 2006, while none in Wisconsin’s 3rd District topped
that threshold, according to the Environmental Working Group.
There are 22,163 farms in Minnesota’s 1st District and 29,905 in Wisconsin’s 3rd District, according to USDA statistics.
Walz
has criticized an Obama proposal to eliminate direct payments to farms
with annual sales of $500,000 or more. That approach doesn’t account
for volatile input costs and could even hurt large dairy operations in
Winona County, Walz suggested. Kind backs a different proposal by Rep.
Paul Ryan, R-Wis., which would eliminate all subsidies to farms that
top $250,000 a year in gross income; the current income threshold is
$750,000 a year.
“If you’re an individual that makes $250,000 of profit in a given year, you really shouldn’t be receiving subsidies,” Kind said.
Walz
and Kind’s ag-policy differences may derive from their districts--
southwest and south-central Minnesota farmers depend heavily on corn
and soybean subsidies, while western Wisconsin leans more on dairy and
conservation-reserve payments. Agricultural subsidies are big business
in both areas: Walz’s district ranks 11th out of 435 U.S. House
districts in the total amount of USDA payments from 1995 to 2006, while
Kind’s district ranked 30th.
The Worthington Globe reports that polar explorer and environmentalist Will Steger scheduled to speak at conference on biosciences. The Globe also reports that Steven Burrill, the venture capitalist who will invest $1 billion in Pine Island's Elk Run biotech park, will be speaking at the conference.
Gwen Walz wrote to the Rochester Democrat and others to tell supporters that Tim
Walz's 45th birthday is coming up and there will be a birthday brunch
on Saturday, March 28, for him in Mankato:
In just a few weeks, Tim will turn 45 (yes, I’m sure he will be 45) –
and I would like to invite you to celebrate with our family.
On Saturday, March 28 Bea and Joe Moosally will host a birthday party
brunch for Tim. And, since changing our country and our community is at
the heart of our lives, we are organizing this celebration with the
hope of raising money for our campaign for Congress.
Thanks to your support we just finished another successful campaign.
However, Tim and I never take anything for granted. Our country is
experiencing dramatic change. There are so many things to do, so much
change to take place. Our opponents have made it clear – they do not
share our vision for this country. In fact, they want us to fail.
Your presence and financial support will help us celebrate Tim’s
birthday and provide our campaign with financial resources to get our
message out to southern Minnesota. Please click here to contribute to this worthy cause (changing our country) even if you cannot attend....
Congressman Walz's birthday is April 6, but who can blame his supporters picking another day to celebrate--after all, April 6 is also Congresswoman Bachmann's birthday as well. Things like this cause us to have no faith in astrology.
Prospects for a community-based outreach clinic for veterans to be located in Austin remain in limbo.
According to Norman Hecimovich, ESGR region chairman for District
No. 6, he has personally petitioned First District Congressman Tim Walz
(Democrat-Minnesota) for his assistance.
In return, Walz informed Hecimovich Monday, the decision where to locate the clinic is only in the “preliminary process.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs will make that decision.
Walz, a 24-year member of the Army National Guard, is a member of the House veterans’ affairs committee.
“I was very pleased,” he told Hecimovich in a letter, “when the VA
announced it will be placing a new community-based outpatient clinic in
what it calls the ‘south central border region’ of Minnesota.”
“The new CBOC in southern Minnesota will certainly improve many of our veterans’ access to health care,” Walz said.
According to Walz, the VA Medical Center in Minneapolis has informed
him the decision where to located the clinic is still in the
“preliminary stages.”
The congressman promised he would continue to “advocate” for
veterans and for locating the clinic in “southern Minnesota,” but did
not specify a location.
“Ultimately,” Walz said, “it is up to VA to decide where the CBOC will be located.”
The Owatonna People's Press has also reported interest in having the clinic in that town, though the Steele County city does seem less likely given the description of the proposed location as the " ‘south central border region’ of Minnesota.”
First District Congressman Tim Walz on Monday announced Albert Lea
will receive $550,000 in federal economic stimulus funds to
rehabilitate the Albert Lea Municipal Airport crosswind runway.
Airport Manager Jim Hanson said the project will go out for bids in
the next month with construction expected in June or July. There have
already been contractors from a testing company at the airport
collecting soil and asphalt borings from 10-feet deep. The airport is
built on sand, so base construction will be minimal.
Hanson said the reconstruction of the crosswind runway is a project
that was not expected to be completed for six or seven years; however,
because the city’s engineering staff had already done their part to
make the project “shovel ready,” it was awarded the money.. . .
. . .Albert Lea’s airport project has been in the works for several years.
The city originally started talking about it in the 1970s, but in 2000
and 2001, there was a renewed goal of getting the runway rebuilt by
2005. That goal is now closer than ever. . . .
For tonight's lullaby, an old and somewhat neglected tune by CCR. It's a lovely ditty, if nothing else because the last verse alludes the final one in this mild labor song. A shout out to our union friends:
Our friends at the Southeast Minnesota Area Labor Council sent us this news. SEMNLC president Laura Askelin will probably have more to say about it on the Uptake at 5:05.
If Governor Tim Pawlenty has his way, corporations will pay less and working Minnesotans will pay more. President Obama and Congressman Walz are working hard to rebuild our economy and restore the middle class. But Gov. Pawlenty would pass the responsibility onto mayors, city council, and school district rather than make the tough choices.
Minnesota's unemployment rate continued to climb in February, hitting a seasonally adjusted 8.1 percent as the state shed another 13,300 jobs. As we see the employment rate sore, Governor Pawlenty wants to cut $750 million to balance the budget. His cuts will cause more layoffs and more harm to families already hurting by the poor economy. His cuts mean real pain for union members and every family and community across the state.
1. Call Your Elected Officials and Tell Them:
*Save jobs and services Minnesotans count on.
*Families are hurting by the poor economy and need our vital public services to survive.
*Fix the budget by raising revenue, including fair taxes on the wealthy.
Governor Pawlenty: 651-296-3391
House Speaker Kelliher: 651-296-0171
Senate Majority Leader Pogemiller: 651-296-7809
Your Senator & Representative: 651-296-2146 (call for names and numbers)
2. On Thursday, March 26 Take Your Lunch Hour with Us!
The Governor's budget plan puts the services you depend on at risk. Passage will lead to major local government aid (LGA) cuts, reducing funds available for rec. centers and libraries, as well as regulatory services, public safety and public works. Minnesota can't afford the Governor's hit!
Rally on Capitol Steps to Support LGA Thursday, March 26 Noon to 1:00pm
For more information contact Bree Halverson at 651-222-3787, ext. 20 or [email protected]
*To carpool from the Rochester Labor Temple 3-26-09 at 10AM, contact Liz McLoone [email protected]or 507-254-9249
What the Governor’s Budget Would Do to a Struggling Minnesota:
*Cut health services including those that benefit seniors and the disabled by 35 percent
*Remove 113,000 families from access to affordable health care
*Cut 11,000 private sector jobs
*Place the safety of families at risk by stretching police and firefighters too thin
*Raise property taxes by hundreds of millions of dollars
*Weaken the research capacity of the University of Minnesota by cutting its budget by 10%.
Once again, Congressman Walz is praised for his prudent choices for earmarks in the district. The Post Bulletin editorial board writes in Regional earmarks are well spent:
. . . the Bolder Options youth mentorship program in the Rochester area
will receive $200,000 to expand its services, as will the Rochester
Sheriffs Youth program, which provides services for at-risk youths.
Rochester also will receive $712,000 for a new bus garage, and the
Hormel Institute in Austin will get $323,000 that will help fund
biomedical research. Also, Winona State University's National Child
Protection Training Center will get a $700,000 cash infusion to help
train social workers, teachers and health care providers to detect
signs that children are being abused.
Those are just some of
the earmarks that First District Rep. Tim Walz, D-Mankato, helped bring
to southeastern Minnesota, and we must say that we don't see anything
remotely pork-like in any of these projects and programs. Rather, they
have the potential to change many lives for the better.
That's
not to say that the earmarking process is even modestly efficient. It
isn't. The bill Obama signed includes tax breaks for racetrack
builders, rum producers in Puerto Rico and manufacturers of wooden
arrows meant to be used by children (no, we're not making this up.)
Also included is $2 million to promote astronomy in Hawaii, and perhaps
most fittingly of all, $1.7 million to study odors from hog farms in
Iowa.
Obviously, there's no shortage of waste. Everyone knows
it, but the rules in Congress seem to be "I won't raise a fuss about
your pet projects if you grant me the same courtesy." We doubt that one
lawmaker actually read every earmark in the spending bill, and the same
thing almost certainly can be said of President Obama.
That
needs to change. We hope Obama follows through on his pledge to do
better next time, to weed out the blatant "bridges to nowhere" while
funding projects and programs that truly are good investments.
But for now, we're simply glad that southern Minnesota can accept its share of earmarks with no apologies. [emphasis added]
And given Walz's openness in releasing his list of budget requests and posting them online, we're wondering if transparency means never having to say you're sorry. Perhaps more representatives will let the sun shine on their earmarks.
. . .According to the Institute of Medicine, medical mistakes cause between 44 and 98 thousand deaths or injures every year.
Surpassing those who die from aids, breast cancer and car accidents.
"This is part of the health care reform, we can not wave a magic
wand. Medical mistakes, they are a 6 billion dollar a year problem and
that does not even include the loss of life that may come with it,"
said Minnesota Congressman Tim Walz.
According to the Institute of Medicine there are currently no
federal mandates forcing hospitals to release this information to the
public.
“It’s always better to be informed and have those things out there.
The goal is to have quality care and a lower cost,” said Walz.
The American Medical Association opposes making every mistakes
public because doctors fear discussing them can lead to punishment and
numerous lawsuits.
However in 2003 Minnesota was the first state to pass a law
requiring all hospitals to report what they call “28 serious adverse
events.” . . .
Now also would be a good time to put an end to secret spending and insider
trading immunity for government officials.
A recent piece of legislation proposes to do just that. Introduced by
Reps. Brian Baird (D-Wash.), Louise McIntosh Slaughter (D-NY) and Tim Walz
(D-Minn.), the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act” (H.R. 682) would
ensure that those with access to privileged "non-public information"
gathered through oversight proceedings would not be able to use that
information for personal benefit in securities and commodities trading.
Specifically, H.R. 682 would negate a little-known loophole in the law which
could allow members of Congress as well as executive staffers and government
officials to practice insider trading in order to enrich themselves as
well as their associates. Of course, this type of insider trading would be wholly
illegal for citizens like you and me.
The act would also be effective in combating corrupt lobbying
practices, since lobbyists and stock traders ("political intelligence
consultants") who haunt the halls of Congress precisely in order to
glean
insider tips from staff would also be banned from insider trading.
The legislation would require members of Congress and their staff to
disclose stock transactions of $1,000 or more within 90 days, and require
“political intelligence consultants” to register under the Lobbying Disclosure
Act and disclose their financial activities.
CONGRESSMAN WALZ ANNOUNCES MORE THAN $1.5 MILLION IN AIRPORT GRANTS FOR SOUTHERN MN
Funding part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(Mankato, MN) – Today, Congressman Walz announced more than $1.5 million in grant money for regional airports. The Mankato Regional Airport will receive $1 million and the Albert Lea Municipal Airport will receive $550,000. The funds are part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and will be used to rehabilitate the airports’ runways.
“These projects will put people to work in Mankato and Albert Lea,” said Walz. “Regional airports in southern Minnesota are a vital economic development tool and these projects will expand jobs and future economic opportunity. This funding will be used to rehabilitate the runway in Mankato. In Albert Lea, the funding will rehabilitate the crosswind runway, increasing safety and allowing for the utilization of the airport in all wind conditions.”
More stimulus dollars funded by the Recovery Act are on their way to Southern Minnesota. A press release from Walz's congressional office:
CONGRESSMAN WALZ ANNOUNCES $326,000 IN DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FUNDING FOR SOUTHERN MINNESOTA NATIONAL GUARD FACILITIES
Funding Comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(Washington, DC) – Today, Congressman Walz and the Department of Defense (DoD) announced $326,000 in funding for improvements to DoD/MN National Guard facilities in southern Minnesota. St. Peter’s National Guard Armory will receive $156,000 and Jackson’s National Guard Armory will receive $170,000 to install backup heating units. The funding is being provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
“This modernization of our National Guard facilities in St. Peter and Jackson will put people to work and enhance the quality of life for our troops who regularly train in these facilities,” said Walz. “This is our down-payment on ensuring that our Guard is ready to meet the security challenges of the 21st century.”
DoD Recovery Act funds will be spent at DoD facilities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico. The primary purpose of these funds is to create jobs and stimulate economic activity across the country. All projects focus on making much-needed improvements to military installations, including hospitals, child development centers, and housing for troops and their families.
ARRA funds are also being used to support DoD high priority programs such as care for wounded warriors and energy security. Facility improvement projects include many energy conservation measures. $300 million of ARRA funds will be used on military energy research programs so that the DoD can continue to lead the way in the national effort to achieve greater energy independence.
The DoD intends to spend ARRA funds as quickly as possible with full transparency and accountability. To view a complete list of the specific projects announced today, please visit http://www.defenselink.mil/recovery and http://www.recovery.gov. The DoD will continue to use these websites to post future announcements related to ARRA funding.
News of the new White House vegetable garden got us thinking about our own plot. We're pleased to be able to find seeds for some of our favorite veggies, including the White Princess eggplant, a slender Asian variety.
Reader Becky Byrn-Schmid writes to the editors of the Mankato Free Press that Unions are not the problem:
I was taken aback by the Laurie Valentin My View
regarding unions and their supposed negative impact on the economy and
state budget. I am not sure how she has escaped all the headline news
about school and social service budget cuts. There are many factors
hurting our economy, and it isn’t public service unions.
I am offended by the
thought that “government workers” are arrogant and that we believe we
deserve better benefits than others. I feel fortunate to have good
health insurance and a retirement plan (for now, anyway). These costs
are figured into our “employment package” and are considered part of
our salary. We take these benefits in trade for cash. Some businesses
have better benefits than I do, and some do not. It all depends on
ownership and organizational goals.
Government workers have not created this
economic crisis. School, human service staff and public administrators
are some of the most frugal people I know. It seems that when there is
an economic downturn, blame is tossed at workers, or consumers, or
both. Either workers get too much or consumers want too much. I believe
those with power are highly skilled at shifting blame to hard-working
Americans, diverting attention to where the real problems lie
(corporate greed).
In these times, I believe it is better to
shed old prejudices and grievances and positively pull together as
people to figure out how to make this country stronger. Our politicians
and government administrators have some serious thinking to do about
the founding philosophies of our country. There is much to correct, and
hopefully, the pendulum of economics will swing towards honesty,
loyalty, integrity and sensibility.
The inclusion of money for commuter rail development in the federal
stimulus package has boosted the spirits of train advocates and
increased the likelihood of high-speed rail service between Chicago and
the Twin Cities.
But it likely will be years before any additional trains roll through La Crosse, Wis., or Winona.
Included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act signed into law
last month was $8 billion to develop high-speed passenger train
systems. Obama’s budget proposal includes $1 billion a year in grants
to states for high-speed rail over the next five years.
“That
was an important acceleration of this whole years-long quest,” said Jim
Hill, executive director of the La Crosse Area Development Corp.
The
rail funding comes at a time when ridership — driven largely by
Amtrak’s popular Chicago-Milwaukee service — is surging. Wisconsin rail
use rose more than 23 percent in 2008. The number of passengers getting
on and off the Empire Builder in La Crosse was up 13 percent. . . .
Fast trains are creating a furious debate in southeast Minnesota, as the Minneapolis Star-Tribune observed yesterday.
High-speed
rail boosters across the country are vying for a slice of the $8
billion for high-speed rail that was included in the federal stimulus
package. Leaders in St. Paul, Winona and other Minnesota cities want to
tap those funds to create a St. Paul-to-Chicago high-speed route along
the Mississippi River, with a stop in Winona. That route has been
studied for years, though Rochester leaders recently have pushed for a
route that connects to their city.
In Monday’s edition, I wrote
about a bonding bill in the Minnesota Senate - which may be voted on
this week - that would fund a study of routing high-speed trains along
the Mississippi River. Another proposal to study routing the trains
through Rochester has been sidelined, at least temporarily, in the
Senate, said Sen. Sharon Erickson Ropes, DFL-Winona.
But in yesterday’s Star-Tribune, Rochester advocates made it clear they haven’t given up:
In Sunday's Pioneer Press, Patrick McIlheran, a
Milwaukee writer, railed against the Employee Free Choice Act — a bill
restoring American workers' ability to form workplace unions without
employer interference.
Despite Mr. McIlheran, the Employee Free Choice Act earned
solid congressional support long before it was introduced in the U.S.
House and the U.S. Senate last week. Forty senators and 223 U.S.
representatives, including the Democrats in Minnesota's delegation,
co-sponsored the bill.
Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Reps. Betty McCollum, Jim
Oberstar, Collin Peterson, Keith Ellison and Tim Walz were all
co-sponsors, and for good reason: Unions can help rebuild the middle
class. For that to happen, workers who want unions need to be able to
form them.
The Employee Free Choice Act levels the playing field between
workers and employers. And it should come as no surprise that
mega-employers that pay minimum wage and offer few benefits, like
Wal-Mart, Target and McDonalds, are pouring hundreds of millions of
dollars into a campaign to influence Congress and kill the bill.
Opponents of the Employee Free Choice Act have suggested that
they, not workers or their unions, are champions of workers. Some have
gone so far as to suggest that union organizers will abolish "sacred"
secret ballot union elections.
Baloney.
Workers want to unionize (or not) freely, fairly and unobstructed by intimidation from co-workers, organizers or employers. . . .
Read the whole thing in the PiPress.
Our friends at the Land Stewardship Project have sent us the following press release about the USDA's beginning farmers program. Congressman Walz was instrumental in including language for the program in the Farm Bill:
Federal Beginning Farmer Program Launched this Month
USDA Seeking Applications for the Beginning Farmer & Rancher Development Program
3/19/09
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The USDA announced this month that it is accepting applications for efforts that support new farmer training, education and assistance. Applications will be accepted through May 13 for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP). BFRDP, passed in the 2008 Farm Bill with $75 million in dedicated funding, is a competitive grants program aimed at providing resources to community-based organizations and other institutions and groups which offer support to beginning farmers and ranchers.
“The program is a good example of how federal support can provide resources to on-the-ground organizations in communities across the country to stimulate action,” said Bill Gorman, a Land Stewardship Project Federal Farm Policy Committee member and Goodhue County dairy farmer. “This program is geared to those working to help new farmers succeed — new farmers that are needed to grow our food, care for the land and strengthen our rural economy and Main Streets.”
During the 2008 Farm Bill debate, the Land Stewardship Project (LSP) organized widespread grassroots and organizational support for the BFRDP initiative. LSP testified in Congressional hearings and worked closely with policymakers such as House Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN), House Agriculture Committee members Tim Walz (D-MN) and Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin (D-SD), as well as Senate Agriculture Committee chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA), to win for the first time ever a beginning farmer development policy with dedicated funding.
USDA announced the availability of funds and request for applications on March 13. The initiative will be administered by the Cooperative States Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES), an arm of USDA. This year over $17 million is available in grants to applicant organizations that work with beginning farmers and ranchers.
“Never before have there been these type of resources to support those who work face-to-face and often day-to-day with new farmers,” said Gorman. “This isn’t the only public policy or approach to help new farmers, but it is a piece of the puzzle and an important signal for those interested in starting farming.”
To see the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program‘s “Request For Applications,” as well as additional information on the program, [click here.]
A number of stories Bluestem has been following almost from our beginnings in the summer of 2006 are criss-crossing our reading today. First, we're overjoyed to read inVetVoice:: DoD Stop-Loss Press Release:
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
No. 179-09
March 18, 2009
________________________________________________
End to Stop Loss Announced
The Department of Defense announced today a comprehensive plan to
eliminate the current use of Stop Loss, while retaining the authority
for future use under extraordinary circumstances. This is an important
step along the path in adapting the Army into an expeditionary force.
The Army Reserve and Army National Guard will mobilize units
without employing Stop Loss beginning in August and September 2009,
respectively. The Regular (active duty) Army will deploy its first
unit without Stop Loss by January 2010.
For soldiers Stop Lossed during fiscal 2009, the department
will provide a monthly payment of $500. Until the department is able
to eliminate Stop Loss altogether, this payment will serve as an
interim measure to help mitigate its effects.
"Stop Loss disrupts the plans of those who have served their
intended obligation. As such, it is employed only when necessary to
ensure minimal staffing in deploying units, when needed to ensure safe
and effective unit performance," said Bill Carr, deputy under secretary
of defense for military personnel policy. "It is more easily
rationalized in the early stages of conflict when events are most
dynamic; but tempo changes in this war have frustrated our efforts to
end it altogether."
The department intends to provide Stop Loss Special Pay to
eligible service members until the point of separation or retirement,
to include that time spent on active duty in recovery following
redeployment. Stop Loss Special Pay will begin on the date of
implementation, and will take effect for those impacted on or after
Oct. 1, 2008.
Stop Loss Special Pay implements the authority granted by
Section 8116 of the "Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and
Continuing Appropriation Act, 2009." The appropriation is available to
secretaries of the military departments only to provide Special Pay
during fiscal 2009.
Upgrading Highway 14 is an important goal for Southern Minnesotans, given the safety and economic factors involved. The Mankato Free Press reports today in H14-CR41 plan advances:
North Mankato may still have a long road ahead when
it comes to accumulating nearly $30 million to construct a new
interchange on Highway 14, along with related road work. But city officials are
sensing some momentum in the multi-year effort to build the
infrastructure they say they need for economic and residential growth.
“I think there’s a meeting of the minds
that we’re ready to move forward on this project,” said City
Administrator Wendell Sande.
The minds meeting last week included those
of Sande, Mayor Gary Zellmer, Nicollet County representatives and
officials from the Minnesota Department of Transportation. MnDOT is
looking to finish up environmental studies related to the proposed
interchange of County Road 41 and Highway 14 in the next few months,
Sande said.
And there was preliminary discussion of the
interchange design, Sande said. Getting environmental and design work
finished could make the project more attractive as a target for
additional federal funding — either from a future economic stimulus
package or from the upcoming federal transportation bill.
Congressman Tim Walz is expecting a
five-year transportation bill of somewhere around $500 billion.
Although the bill is to be completed by Oct. 1, Congress often misses
its deadline on large multi-year funding bills — sometimes by as much
as a year.
Walz said the chairman of the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Minnesotan Jim Oberstar,
is hoping to avoid a long delay in getting a bill passed.
“It won’t take a year,” said Walz, who serves on the committee. “Oberstar assures us of that.”
With the interchange itself projected to
cost $23 million, supporting road construction totaling $6.3 million,
and the project left out of MnDOT construction plan for the next 20
years, supporters of the project will probably need to rely on a
substantial federal contribution to get the interchange in place in the
foreseeable future. But even as they await congressional action, money
is beginning to accumulate from a variety of sources.
Nearly $660,000 in federal funding acquired
for the project by Walz and Sen. Amy Klobuchar — and matched by a 20
percent local share from the city and county — will be spent in coming
months to acquire 40 to 50 acres of land for rightRich Text of way at the site
of the proposed interchange. . .
Congressman Tim Walz released a guidebook to help citizens
understand the funding available under The American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (H.R.1). The guidebook, which will be posted on Walz’s
Web site (walz.house.gov), explains which types of projects can receive
funding under the Recovery Act and provides contact information for the
various federal, state and local agencies responsible for distributing
the funding.
Call Walz’s Mankato office at (507) 388-2149 or (877) TIM-WALZ.
Back in October, Congressman Walz was scolded by the editorial board of the Star Tribune for voting against the bank bailout bill. He defended his choice in Why I Voted Against the Bailout Bill. One of the things he wrote about the legislation he said no to twice:
It continues to permit excessive CEO compensation by instituting
so-called limits on compensation and golden parachutes that are
essentially all bark and no bite. As the Washington Post puts it,
"executive pay experts said the regulations are too weak to spark major
reform in the way companies compensate top officers, and too narrow in
scope to change the pay structure that encouraged finance executives in
boom times to take on enormous risks."
While American International Group
Inc.’s chief executive says the firm could recover millions in bonuses
via voluntary means, that’s not slowing a legislative effort to recoup
the money and shift the incentive-based pay structure traditionally
used by financial institutions.
The House is scheduled to act Thursday on legislation (H.R. 1586) that would impose a 90 percent tax on bonuses given to highly paid
employees not only of AIG, but of all recipients of more than $5
billion in federal bailout funds, a group expected to include about a
dozen financial institutions, according to Ways and Means Chairman Charles B. Rangel , D-N.Y. Bank of America Corp., Wells Fargo & Co. and Citigroup Inc. would likely be among the affected companies.
“I expect to see an overwhelming vote,” House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer , D-Md., told reporters Wednesday afternoon.
The
House response, and Senate legislation also likely to see action in the
coming days, will largely change the incentive structure for many banks
on the receiving end of federal bailout funds.
The
bills represent a continuation of a huge shift in the government’s
approach to corporate management that began last fall, when the
government started to take stakes in private firms. . . .
. . .But for lawmakers barraged with calls and
e-mails from critical constituents, the corporate bonuses are part of a
larger problem surrounding the troubled institutions — the idea that
there is no financial accountability for risk-taking.
As one staffer suggested, it's certainly an I-told-you-so moment for Congressman Walz.
Other friends' recent observations foreshadowed Senator Grassley's rhetoric about what to do about those who received both bailout benjamins and bonuses. Cat Power has a how-to video. Or maybe not--though certainly a lovely voice. We offer the following video for rhetorical purposes only, in order to point out that today's bill simply isn't an extreme moment of the bonus discourse:
The House passed the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education (GIVE) Act, H.R. 1388 today by a vote of 321 to 105. Third Congressional District Republican Erik Paulsen joined all five DFLers in Congress in voting for the measure, which Republicans John Kline and Michele Bachmann voted against.
A press release from Congressman Walz's office:
Representative Walz Votes to Renew America's Commitment to Service
(Washington, DC) Today, Congressman Tim Walz joined a bipartisan majority in the House of Representatives in voting for a bill that will launch a new era of American service and volunteerism. The Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education (GIVE) Act, H.R. 1388, answers President Obama's call for Americans of all generations to help get the country through the economic crisis by serving and volunteering in their communities
The House passed the legislation, the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education (GIVE) Act, H.R. 1388, by a vote of 321 to 105. The Senate is considering similar legislation.
"In his inaugural address, President Obama called for all Americans to dedicate themselves to serve in their communities," said Walz. "This bill will give southern Minnesotans the tools they need to rebuild their communities."
The GIVE Act would more than triple the number of volunteers currently engaged in Senior Corp, AmeriCorps, and Learn & Serve America, from the current 75,000 to 250,000, and increase the education reward they receive to $5,350 for next year, the same as the maximum Pell Grant scholarship award. The education award would also be linked to match future boosts in the Pell Grant scholarship in order to keep up with rising college costs.
It would create a new national Call to Service campaign to encourage all Americans to get involved in service and would encourage Americans to observe September 11th a National Day of Service and Remembrance.
The legislation provides new incentives for middle and high school students to volunteer in their communities. It would create a Summer of Service program to engage students in service and allows them to earn a $500 education award to be used for college costs.
In addition, the legislation would:
Strengthen existing service programs and create new innovative programs to help improve student achievement and graduation in low-income schools, expand health care access, provide seniors with help living independently, enhance services for veterans, and help build a green, energy-efficient economy;
Establish a Veterans Corp to meet the unique needs of veterans and military families;
Expand the focus of the National Civilian Community Corps to infrastructure improvement, environmental and energy conversation, and urban and rural development, in addition to disaster relief;
Create new opportunities for Baby Boomers and seniors to serve and volunteer;
Recruit scientists and engineers into service to keep America competitive; and
Build a nationwide community-based infrastructure to leverage investments in service.
One of our uncles was a member of the CCC in Minnesota in the 1930s, working in the North Woods. MinnPost linked to a MSHS YouTube about the CCC in Minnesota, which btrought a number of his stories about work in the camps back.
Image: A poster for the Illinois CCC from the National Archives.
Today the WDN has printed a letter supporting Walz's position by local DFLer and progressive activist Doug Nopar,
The criticism in Sunday’s paper of Rep. Tim Walz and the Employee Free
Choice Act by Della Schmidt and the Chamber of Commerce is certainly
predictable. It is part of an ongoing national campaign by corporate
business interests to maximize profits at the expense of working people.
What
is deceitful about the chamber’s opposition is the suggestion that this
legislation somehow “robs workers of a fundamental, democratic,
American right.” Now, wait a minute. Are we supposed to believe that
Big Business opposes this legislation because it would hurt workers?
Maybe we should believe that Big Business had spent the past 30 years
defending workers’ rights as well. Instead, both nationally and
internationally, the corporate business community has used every tool
available, legal and illegal, to prevent workers from organizing. The
result has been the greatest slide in working people’s real wages the
nation has ever seen, while those at the top have amassed more and more
wealth.
Do we as a nation really want to keep widening the income
gap between the haves and the have-nots? I don’t believe this kind of
income disparity helps anyone, be they rich or poor. Thank you, Tim
Walz, for looking out for what is best for all of us.
Proponents of the Employee Free Choice Act received a big boost Tuesday morning with the publication of an independent poll showing majority support both for the legislation and the greater concept of increased unionization.
Gallup Surveys released a study on Tuesday finding that 53 percent
of respondents favored a new law that would "make it easier for labor
unions to organize workers." Only 39 percent of respondents opposed
such a law.
When asked how important it was that Congress pass such a law, 26
percent of respondents said "very," 29 percent said "somewhat," 23
percent said "not too important," and 20 percent said "not important at
all."
Once upon a time in some Midwestern states, the rooster was a symbol of the Democratic Party. The photo of the watchful bird gracing this digest is drawn from a post by Rachael Spiegel Photography - Blog: Minnesota Congressman Campaign Photo. Spiegel certainly captured that chicken's essential roosterhood. Click on the link above for some lovely shorts of a Southern Minnesota farm in summer, and a great picture of Tim and Gus Walz talking with the farmers. Photo used with the photographer's permission.
We're going to be doing some birding this afternoon along the Minnesota River Valley in Nicollet and Blue Earth Counties, and will let readers know if we see any birds with that much attitude.
Last month I urged you to ask Congress for action on geography
education. A huge "THANK YOU" to everyone who participated! Nearly
6,000 emails went out, and in late February the House introduced a bill
called Teaching Geography is Fundamental (H.R. 1240). Not only does
TGIF have the best acronym on the Hill, it has a strong, bipartisan set
of lead sponsors: Chris Van Hollen (MD), Roy Blunt (MO), Vernon Ehlers
(MI), and Tim Walz (MN). TGIF will provide funding for teacher training
and research in geography, currently the ONLY core subject without a
dedicated source of federal support. Thanks. You guys rock!
We received Walz congressional office press release about a new tool for understanding the Recovery Act--and post the pdf of the guidebook below:
WALZ RELEASES ECONOMIC RECOVERY ACT GUIDEBOOK
Document will help citizens understand funding available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congressman Walz released a guidebook to help citizens understand the funding available under The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (H.R.1). The guidebook, which will be posted on Walz’s website (walz.house.gov), explains which types of projects can receive funding under the Recovery Act and provides contact information for the various federal, state and local agencies responsible for distributing the funding.
“Many individuals and local governments are seeking access to important recovery funds during these tough economic times,” said Congressman Walz. “Some funding is being distributed by the State of Minnesota and other funds are available directly from federal government agencies. This guidebook will be a good starting point for folks seeking more information about recovery funds.”
Walz also encouraged individuals to call his Economic Recovery Coordinator, Meredith Salsbery, if they have questions after reviewing the guidebook. Salsbery can be reached in Walz’s Mankato Office at 507-388-2149 or 1-877-TIM-WALZ.
Download a copy of the Walz Recovery Guidebook by clicking on this link Walz ARRA Guide..
American workers would gain leverage to organize unions under a
controversial bill that Rep. Tim Walz, DFL-Minn., recently confirmed he
will support.
Federal lawmakers, particularly in the U.S.
Senate, are ginning up for a bruising fight on the Employee Free Choice
Act, which supporters say could help reverse decades of declining
influence for American labor. Business leaders have fiercely criticized
the bill, calling it a “job killer” and saying it would rob some
workers of the right to a private vote on whether to unionize.
The act would enable employees to unionize without a
secret vote that is now required, if a majority of workers sign cards
to support forming a union. It also would set deadlines to force
employers to negotiate contracts with newly formed unions or enter
binding arbitration moderated by federal labor officials.
Rep.
Ron Kind, D-Wis., and Walz voted for the act in 2007 before it stalled
in Congress, but this year, Walz waited until last week to co-sponsor
it — causing a business leader in Owatonna, Minn., to speculate earlier
this month that the congressman might be undecided. But Walz said
Thursday he hasn’t wavered on the measure.
Employees should be
able to control their destiny,” Walz said. “We’re just trying to make
sure that people have the opportunity to make a living wage.”. . .
You'll have to go read either paper to find out the management view.
we're happy Walz is sticking with a campaign pledge and vote during his
first term.
However, isn't "ensnaring" somewhat overblown rhetoric?
Can you demonstrate which of the individual contributions from
employees of PMA Group clients to Minnesota's federal lawmakers are
linked with the corruption probe? As you point out, that probe seems
more linked to the big honchos at the PMA Group giving money to others
to contribute to campaign and leadership PAC committees. This violates
federal law.
The other scandal--which though legal--is the apparent quid-pro-quo
of contributions for earmarks. Again, the connection between our
lawmakers should be established prior to claims of ensnarement.
Both instances underscore the need for meaningful reform in the
appropriations process. How's about a civil conservation about that?
It seems difficult when burdened by loaded language. While the Star
Tribune used the Taxpayer for Common Sense's recent report on all
earmarks as the basis for an article larded with loaded language like
"pork", the careful reader of Taxpayer s for Common Sense documents
will note that the organization never uses that sort of language. At
the recent Transparency Camp in DC, a thoughtful employee of the TCS
explained to me that the group's choice of words was deliberate so as
to avoid oversimplification of the debate.
Over the past few weeks Congressman
Tim Walz has given a few one minute speeches on the floor of the House
of Representatives. The first came the day after the speech to Congress
by President Obama. Walz highlighted how the 1st District would benefit
from the investment (energy, health care, & education) priorities
laid out by the administration.
Here's the first MN MuseTube:
The second, on veterans :
The third:
We appreciate the Muse's putting together these YouTubes almost as much as his Weekly romp through the Blogosphere.
The Irish in New Ulm are hopeful that the new stimulus package that
President O'Bama is working on will finally lead to a 4-lane highway
leading into New Ulm. "It will make it easier for the Germans to leave
and the Irish to move in," said O'Connor.
It would also ease the
traffic jams leading into New Ulm on St. Patrick from all the tourists
coming to town to see the parade. The traffic sometimes backs up as far
as Nicollet.
Southern Minnesota: To know Mayberry 2.0 is to love it.
Photo: Our friend DJ is tired of seeing our stock pictures of Congressman Walz, so he supplied this gorgeous picture of a 6-lb pot roast from a union meat cutting shop. Don't you just want a slice of that emblem of the middle class American way of life?
We're happy to see federal funding going to a place like the Hormel Institute, which has assembled an international team to conduct research essential for fighting and preventing cancer. The Austin Herald reports in Hormel Institute 'thankful' for funding:
The Hormel Institute is now officially the recipient of $323,000 in
federal funding in an effort to establish an International Center of
Research Technology.
President Barack Obama signed the federal funding of 16 important
local projects into law Wednesday that will help create and save jobs
across southern Minnesota. The funds, which were requested by
Congressman Tim Walz, are included in the FY 2009 Omnibus
Appropriations bill. The bill passed the Senate Tuesday.
“We are extremely thankful for the funding support secured by
Congressman Tim Walz and his staff,” said Dr. Zigang Dong, executive
director of The Hormel Institute. “This type of support is needed from
the state of Minnesota and nationally, through federal funding, and is
vital to continue to grow The Hormel Institute and bring even more jobs
and advances to our research center. One of The Hormel Institute’s
greatest strengths is in its strong partnerships. We are very thankful
to Congressman Walz and his staff for the work they do to help us —
they, too, are our important partners.” . . .
Yesterday, the Mankato Free Press reported that 250 regional leaders at the Southern Minnesota Regional Competitiveness Project had identified bioscience as one of three top growth areas for jobs in the area. The summit was the capstone for earlier gatherings in which "more than 500 people who have attended regional meetings for the project during the past six months," according to the MFP.
Most communities across the United States are facing job losses this year.
But Pine Island and surrounding communities stand on a precipice
with the Elk Run biotechnology project that could bring thousands of
new jobs to the region, increase construction, draw national attention,
boost population growth and add a whirlwind of activity in the coming
decade.
California-based Tower Investments, and venture-capital group
Burrill & Co., also of California, announced that nearly $1 billion
is in play for development of a biotechnology center at Elk Run.
Burrill specializes in the life sciences.
Hormel Institute impact
Officials at Austin's Hormel Institute are watching the development
with great interest, because of the potential it has to impact the
center.
"We congratulate the leaders who are making the development of the
Elk Run BioBusiness Park possible and we appreciate how this project
will strengthen the assets of bioscience and biotechnology in our
region," said Dr. Zigang Dong, executive director of the Hormel
Institute. "The Hormel Institute looks forward to participating in and
contributing to Elk Run's development through future collaborations." . . . .
We'll keep an eye on developments for our readers.
Photo: The namesake elk at Elk Run, from an earlier report on the site from Minnesota Public Radio. Developers say there will still be room for the elk in the new project, according to the cutline on the photo by MPR Rochester area reporter Sea Stachura.
News is getting out about the projects MNDOT will be funding with Recovery Act dollars. The Jackson County Pilot reports in Stimulus upgrades local rest areas:
Federal stimulus money will pay for repaving of the parking lots at
Interstate 90's Clear Lake and Des Moines rest areas in Jackson County,
according to a list of state projects announced Thursday by the
Minnesota Department of Transportation.
The $320,000 parking lot overlay and rehabilitation of curb and walkway at both rest stops is expected to start in September.
Bridge work in Windom was the next closest state project.
MnDOT earlier announced federal stimulus package projects being
undertaken by local governments, of which one was the replacement of
the Highway 20 bridge over County Ditch 3 a mile and a half west of
Okabena by the Jackson County Highway Department. That project has a
price tag of $378,000 and construction is expected to start right away
this spring.
In We need solutions, not slogans, an LTE from DFL activist Phil Castrovinci published in the Rochester Post Bulletin, we read:
Just three months into his second term, right wing Republicans have
begun their attacks on Rep. Tim Walz, as demonstrated by Mr. Klinger in
your paper on March 4.
Shame on them.
Rather than come
up with sound solutions for the devastating problems facing our
country, they want to use funny names (like "Porkulus," coined by Rush
Limbaugh) and associations with tired old rhetoric to describe
Democrats (tax and spend).
Sadly, right wing ideologues have made it clear they are rooting for failure that seems to be their only hope.
Mr.
Klinger, Rush Limbaugh and the other right wingers should take a deep
breath and actually think about proposing solutions rather than
partisan slogans.
Thank you to Rep. Tim Walz for standing up
for Main Street rather than for the Wall Street banks. Walz voted to
create jobs in southern Minnesota and he voted against spending
billions on a Wall Street Bank bailout. Clearly, his priorities are to
represent and fight for Southern Minnesota.
The comments that follow the letter are instructive, as the Republican line seems to be that none of the funding in the Recovery Act or Omnibus spending bill is destined for southern Minnesota. For ourselves, we can only hope that, whatever the passion that informs their denial, those Republicans slow down for the safety of the construction workers on Highway 14 (Omnibus funding) and I-90 (Recovery Act), as well as using the rest areas as needed when passing through Jackson County.
Winona and Goodview police will lose state funding in 2009 but hope to
bolster or maintain their forces with grants from a federal program
re-invigorated by the federal stimulus bill.
The departments are
joining thousands of police forces nationwide vying for $1 billion in
the stimulus bill to hire officers through the Community Oriented
Policing, or COPS program. Winona police hope a COPS grant will pay to
replace an officer position they expect to lose next month, while
Goodview police say the grant could fill a longstanding need to expand
patrols in that department.
Luverne was among more than two dozen southern Minnesota communities to receive funds for the express purpose of modernizing and developing public housing.
In Luverne that translates to more money for maintenance and improvements at the Blue Mound Tower apartments.
Luverne HRA Director Marcia Linssen said the money will be a welcome addition to the capital improvement fund at the Blue Mound Tower.
"Every little bit helps," she said. "We're looking forward to finding good ways to utilize that money, either by upgrading apartments or by making improvements to the building itself."
She said Luverne's HRA has been receiving roughly $72,000 in federal funds for capital improvements, so the $92,287 will allow for extra or more thorough improvements.
HRA owns the Blue Mound Tower apartments, which were built in 1970.
"It's an old building, and there are always capital projects that need attention," Linssen said. "Whether it's air exchange issues, plumbing issues or structural issues."
An ambitious project to identify and seize economic
opportunities in southern Minnesota sought advice Friday from hundreds
of southern Minnesota leaders from the public and private sectors.
Using hand-held voting
devices, 250 participants winnowed six key industries to three:
bioscience, health care and renewable energy. It’s in these areas the
region has the best resources and opportunity to create jobs, they
agreed.
The wider process is called the Southern
Minnesota Regional Competitiveness Project, led by the Southern
Minnesota Initiative Foundation. . . .
. . .Next up was Margaret Anderson Kelliher, speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives and a Mankato native.
“This is not the southern Minnesota of the 1970s,” she said. No one here is looking back, Kelliher said.
After her address, she said the best
economic strategy takes advantage of home-grown entrepreneurs, who are
looking at a range of factors, not just tax breaks.
“Relocation is a bit of the Old World of economic development,” she said.
Both Klobuchar, currently the state’s only
senator, and Rep. Tim Walz touted the recently passed $787 billion
stimulus bill as promoting similar goals.
Walz acknowledged the bill essentially borrows from the future and said he doesn’t like deficit spending.
But doing nothing was a worse option, and the only way out of the recession is creating growth, Walz said.
Photo: A waggish friend sent us this lolcats, recommending it as an allegory of First District Republican efforts to unseat Congressman Walz. We have some really funny friends.
If you've stuck with us and read this whole post, you deserve a song. How about a little Anthony and the Johnsons:
Rochester, Minn. — A real estate developer and a
venture capitalist said today they are joining together to launch a
biobusiness park near Rochester, reportedly costing nearly $1 billion.
The developer,
Tower Investments, and the venture capitalist, Burrill & Co., hope
to move forward with the Elk Run master planned development, which
would feature what they call a BioBusiness Park to launch medical
startup companies.. . .
. . .U.S. Rep. Tim Walz, who represents the area, says the project could revitalize the southern Minnesota corridor.
"They've chosen this because Minnesota had the vision to invest in
things like the University of Minnesota, the Mayo Clinic, and the
Rochester education system, and all the things that have brought growth
to the area before," said Walz.
The development would also include office and warehouse space, retail and residential components.
Walz says to make the project work, more investment in infrastructure
is needed. He says he hopes to find a way to help fund a new highway
interchange at Elk Run.
First District Rep. Tim Walz requested the funding for the projects,
including money for an extension of 55th Street and a new 60-bus garage
facility in Rochester. Also receiving funding is the Hormel Institute
in Austin and the National Child Protection Training Center in Winona.
Officials with Austin's Hormel Institute said they were thrilled with the $323,000 they received.
Previously, Dr. Zigang Dong, Hormel Institute executive director, has noted the importance of the funding.
"The
growth we have achieved -- and the future growth we will continue to
strive for -- depends on the important partnerships we share with our
community and the support we receive from our leaders," he said.
"Progress to improve the health of the world is not possible without
research."
One Minnesota Department of Transportation report had called for the rail project to receive $10 million from the stimulus package. Proponents of the project state that it is “shovel ready” and a economic contributor to the entire region.
The project of upgrading the track is estimated to cost $40 million. This would include allowing 255,000 pound rail cars that could travel 25 mph on the track.
Last month, Minnesota House File 660, authored by Morrow, appropriated $10 million in bond proceeds for a grant to the Minnesota Valley Regional Rail Authority to rehabilitate the track. The track is owned by Carver, Sibley, Renville, Redwood and Yellow Medicine Counties and operated by the Minnesota Prairie Line, a subsidiary of Twin Cities and Western Railroad.
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar and Congressman Tim Walz helped appropriate $950,000 in federal railroad improvement funding.
Rep. Buyer discussed a new bipartisan bill he plans to introduce with
Rep. Tim Walz of Minnesota that would provide equity in DIC compensatio
for surviving military widows. The landmark bill would finally provide
equity for military widows, who currently receive 12 percent less in
compensation compared to civilian federal employees.
FarmPolicy.com notes the call by the House Rural Caucus's call for a White House Office of Rural Ploicy. Walz is a leader in the caucus.
