By Steve Morse, executive director of MEP Now that the 2012 Legislative session has ended and the commotion about the stadium has somewhat subsided, let’s look back at what our elected leaders did on some issues that garnered less press, but faced significant threats: Minnesota’s water and Great Outdoors. Sadly, for those keeping score, the… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Legislature
Gov’s signing of Enviro, Game and Fish bills disappointing
Statement by Steve Morse, executive director of the Minnesota Environmental Partnership Omnibus Environment and Game and Fish Bills’ passage further chips away at Minnesota’s environmental foundation Legislative Approval of Rules Bill (HF 203) Governor Dayton’s veto of this bill is good news for Minnesotans. With the Governor’s veto, a very real restriction and defacto moratorium… Read more »
Coalition letter to Gov. Dayton about three environmental bills
On May 1, members of the Minnesota Environmental Partnership sent the following letter to Governor Mark Dayton: Dear Governor Dayton, As you know, this Legislature has made a number of efforts to weaken environmental protections in this state. Your staff and staff from the MPCA, DNR, and BWSR have done a great deal to eliminate… Read more »
The Ominous Environmental Bill
I know, let’s sell Split Rock Lighthouse State Park! Think how much tax income we could secure if it was private condos along those six miles of shoreline! All those pesky citizens around Ely and Isabella, asking the state’s executive council to protect their private property from mineral leases underneath? Let’s cut them off. And,… Read more »
Omnibus Environmental Policy Bill contains too many bad provisions
By Steve Morse, Executive Director Our coalition is disappointed today that the Minnesota House passed the Omnibus Environmental Bill (H.F. 2164) without addressing the some serious problems identified by our nonprofit members and Governor Dayton’s agencies. Troubling provisions of this bill include: Loss of wetlands Instead of following the current Wetland Conservation Act that replaces… Read more »
Solar bonding saves the public money
Energy issues have not received as much attention as the Vikings Stadium or the constitutional amendments this session, but there have been attempts at rollbacks to our Renewable Energy Standard. There is still an opportunity to move forward on clean energy with the inclusion of solar in the bonding bill. The House version of the… Read more »
Week in Tweets: March 2-8
You don’t have to use Twitter to follow #ProtectMN, but we’re making it even easier for you to get in on the #ProtectMN conversation with this roundup of tweets from this past week (from earliest to latest):
Week in Tweets: Feb. 27-March 1
You don’t have to use Twitter to follow #ProtectMN, but we’re making it even easier for you to get in on the #ProtectMN conversation with this roundup of tweets from this past week (from earliest to latest):
Capitol Update: Community rights, bonding and Aquatic Invasive Species
Defending Community and Township Rights Rep. Beard (R-Shakopee) and Sen. Vandeveer (R-Forest Lake) introduced H.F. 389 and S.F. 270, bills that weaken township and community rights and make it more difficult for citizens to work through their local units of government to make sure large-scale developments don’t harm the well being of their communities. Merely… Read more »
Capitol Update: Here we go again with the rollbacks
It’s disheartening when our legislative leaders are so out of step with Minnesotans. Statewide polling done earlier this year by a professional bipartisan polling team found that the majority of Minnesotans want strong environmental protections.