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After our and the Canadian national anthems were sung and an invocation was offered by Katie Johnson, Anthony Nordan led us in song. Zach Stach announced volunteer opportunities on October 7, 19 and 20 with the United Way's food assistance program. Members were then told that we had heard from our normal provider of roses that it could not provide them this year and that we are in the process of looking into other options, including the possibility of a different fundraiser (Jamie Larson talked about a possible singing/dance fundraiser). We then launched into brags and fines, with Tim Hunt leading off with a report on his 65th class reunion the past weekend, with 51 of 155 of the 1956 graduates attending. David Johnson found a dollar bill on the street walking to our meeting and decided to donate that, while Randy Kempfer was excited about a Canadian fishing trip. Wally Cole reported on his wife's 60th class reunion, being in his hometown Hibbing the prior day and his upcoming 65th class reunion -- 247 in his class of which 119 have passed away. Keith Olson then stated that as of the day we were meeting it has been six months since his son-in-law was deployed to Kuwait and that he is still in that region, hoping for a return home soon. Our speaker, Representative Jordan Rasmusson, was then introduced. Right now Jordan's District 8A consists of 11 towns and 33 townships, all in Otter Tail County. Because Minnesota currently has the only divided legislature in the country, everything has to be done on a bipartisan basis. This past session, Jordan spent a lot of time working on mental health care, noting that this is an issue that many constituents have raised in their discussions with him. The legislature added money to the budgets for Crisis Stabilization Units, one of which is located here in Fergus Falls. A reciprocity agreement for psychologists was also passed, which overnight increased the number of psychologists who can offer services in Minnesota by 800. Working with Governor Walz, Jordan was the chief author of a bill that passed that will help reduce the cost of all lines of insurance in Minnesota. Our representative was also the chief House negotiator on the ECO Act that expands the scope of what can be done with available money to make homes more energy efficient. Legislation he worked on was passed to reopen the Fergus Falls Driving Exam Center and support for the Fergus Falls Riverfront Redevelopment Project was obtained; the Capital Investment Committee he serves on will be in town this week to see the project underway and to learn about Phase II of the effort. Jordan also talked about the broader issues facing the state, including public safety and the tax and regulatory environment. As to the latter, he stated that Minnesota is already one of the top five income tax states in the country and that is causing people to invest in other states. When asked what has been his biggest surprise serving in the legislature, Jordan responded that it was the breadth of issues they have before them. Mark Bring stated his appreciation for Representative Rasmusson and then asked if the legislature could do anything about School Boards having to hold special elections to fill vacancies; in Underwood, where Mark serves on the school board, the cost of such an election is $5,000. Keith Olson highlighted the three issues he believes are most frustrating to businesses; 1) the cost of vehicle tabs and licenses; 2) the cost of workers compensation insurance; and 3) the ease of obtaining unemployment benefits and how that encourages people to not work. We thank Representative Rasmusson for his work on our behalf. |
