Column: Guest Column, by Shannon Savick

On Tuesday, I took the oath of office to serve as your state representative for the first time. I’m so thrilled to be able to serve as a voice for our area, and I’m ready to get to work on the issues that we’re facing.

Our new DFL majority in the House of Representatives is focusing on fixing Minnesota’s budget problems without gimmicks and loopholes. We want to balance the budget without borrowing from our schools or from future revenues.

This will help create long-term stability for our state. We’ll also focus on helping to reduce the cost of medical insurance by creating an insurance exchange that will help Minnesota consumers find the right coverage for them. These, along with addressing property taxes, jobs and education funding, will be the tops issues we address as a caucus.

I’ve been chosen to serve on three committees:

• Jobs and Economic Development Finance and Policy.

• Labor, Workplace and Regulated Industries.

• Public Safety Finance and Policy.

As a member of these committees, I will continue to work on issues that impact our district and serve as a voice for our communities as we address my personal priorities as well.

This session, we must make living wage jobs a top priority. Minnesotans need jobs that can support their families, and as a member of the Jobs and Economic Development Committee, I will work to help our communities across our district and our state to create those jobs.

Addressing property taxes will be equally important. Whether you own farmland or a house right in Albert Lea or Wells, you shouldn’t have to worry about double digit increases on your property taxes. Programs like the Homestead Tax Credit and others need to be put in place so that property owners like you and I don’t have to worry what our taxes might look like at the end of the year.

But we will also continue to fight for resources that can allow us to have adequate funding for our public safety. Due to lack of state funds in recent years, communities have had to decide between funding their fire and police stations or raising taxes.

That is a decision that Minnesota towns should not have to make. While serving on the Public Safety Committee this session, I will continue ensure that those decisions never have to take place.

I will work tirelessly to address all these issues during my first session. And if you have issues you’d like to talk with me about, I welcome any feedback or questions you might have to offer. We all want to find solutions that will work for Minnesota families and businesses. So if you have suggestions, feel free to contact me.

My office is room 539 in the State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Saint Paul, MN 55155.

I can be reached by phone at 651-296-8216 and by email at rep.shannon.savick@house.mn. You can also monitor activities at the House, track bills, watch live video and sign up for my email update list by going to http://www.house.mn.

 

Shannon Savick, DFL-Wells, is the District 27A state representative.