Senate Media Services

Senate Spotlight Episode 105: Senator-elect no more! This week, Senator Doron Clark, DFL-Minneapolis, is officially sworn in, ending the Senate's historic tie. Now with 34 members, the DFL assumes the majority and votes to dissolve the power-sharing agreement. Plus, it’s Super Bowl Sunday, but is Minnesota any closer to legalizing sports betting? Senate Spotlight’s Veronica Marshall talks to senators about what it'll take to expand sports betting in the state. And dozens of black business owners and their supporters come to the capitol to rally for resources. Why they say supporting minority-owned businesses benefits the entire state.

Senate Spotlight Episode 104: After a special election in Senate District 60, the historic 33 to 33 tie is broken. We'll let you know what this means for the Senate moving forward. And while the power-sharing agreement is now over, the spirit of bipartisanship is not. If you aren't already familiar with the Civility Caucus, you will be after this episode. We talk to the caucus's co-chairs about the value it brings to this session in particular and Minnesota as a whole. Plus, experts testify that Minnesota's housing market isn't meeting the demand. Senator Eric Lucero, R-Saint Michael and Senator Lindsey Port, DFL-Burnsville, tell Senate Spotlight's Veronica Marshall about the unique challenges the state faces when it comes to providing affordable housing, and their ideas on how to resolve them.

Senate Spotlight Episode 103: Who will preside over the Senate once the results from January 28th’s special election are certified and the temporary tie is lifted, and how quickly could that happen? We talk to the Senate’s Co-Presiding Officers, Senators Jeremy Miller and Bobby Joe Champion, about the power-sharing agreement that created their unique roles and what they hope carries forward into the remainder of the session. Plus, students from across the state came to the capitol to work through the nation’s pressing problems. We talk to them about what the process taught them about government and why they think kids need to be involved.

"'My kids asked me to move to a little house with no steps. I am in my 90s. I moved to a place with no stairs. But when I visit my children, it became harder and harder to navigate the stairs to enter their homes,'" Ann Bussey read. The community advocate was reciting the story of a senior from her community to the Legislative Task Force on Aging during Wednesday's meeting. Bussey continued, "'I joined our fitness program and can now easily navigate the steps again. If you don't do steps, you can't do steps. I really liked my house a lot.'"

Bussey added that the fitness program that could've kept the senior in her home has faced closure four-times since 2010 and survives now due to sponsorship from the YMCA, not through intervention by local or state government.

The half-dozen elderly advocates at the task force meeting argued that government needs to play a larger role in helping seniors thrive. Currently, services for seniors are spread out amongst private and public groups, as well as local, state and federal departments and programs such as the American Association of Retired Persons (also known as AARP), Meals on Wheels, the Department of Human Services, and others.

"What we have in the state of Minnesota and in most counties is a siloed approach. This group is doing this, this group is doing this, this group is doing this," Olmstead County Commissioner Gregory Wright said. "A siloed approach is doomed to fail."

He and the other advocates said the time for the government to act is now.

"We have on record a number of plans that were written as far back as the 90s," said Kathy Kelso, a public policy advisor for Elder Voice Advocates. "It is 2024. Nothing has been actualized." "We can no longer afford to ignore this issue. Minnesota is facing a rapidly aging population, and our current systems are not equipped to handle this demographic shift," said Kristine Sundberg, the Executive Director of Elder Voice Advocates/Disability Voice Advocates.

To face the problem, the presenters proposed a new state department – the Minnesota Department of Aging.

"The Minneapolis Regional Retirees Council urges this task force recognize the complexity of the challenges Minnesota faces as our population ages and rises to meet these challenges through creation of cabinet level department. A department capable of developing a strategy to change the existing culture about aging, plan to meet the challenges we face and capable of coordinating resources now scattered among a bewildering array of departments, and agencies," testified Leif Grina, President of the Minneapolis Regional Retirees Council.

The proposal was met with discussion from task force members. One task member cautioned that creating a new department without new infrastructure to support it could lead to disappointment, while others called for studies on the state's current efforts.

"I would like to have a cost analysis on every single thing that we're spending money on in aging Minnesota," said task force member Maureen Schneider, with the Minnesota Board on Aging. "What is this really costing us? And what are we getting for our money?"

Still, several task members supported the idea.

"Having a department will make the work more intentional and dedicated," said Senator Alice Mann. "I also think that we can come up with some more flushed-out ideas of what we need that department to focus on instead of just saying, 'This is what we need to do, you go ahead and do it,' because we've seen those plans fail in the past as well."

"I personally believe that yes, we do need a cabinet level entity to oversee aging services," said Dr. Joseph Gaugler, Director, University of Minnesota's Center for Healthy Aging and Innovation. "I think we just have to be clear-eyed as well, that if this is a recommendation coming from this task force, how can we ensure it is as successful as possible."

A tension exists between those who seek to protect Minnesota’s waters and those who seek to utilize the state’s mineral resources to create jobs and economic development. Senator Jenn McEwen, DFL-Duluth, is promoting legislation called “Prove It First,” which would require that certain standards be met before copper-sulfide mining permits can be issued. Senator Robert Farnsworth, R-Hibbing, is the chief sponsor of a bill that would streamline the review and permitting process for metallic mineral mining projects. The lawmakers join Capitol Report moderator Shannon Loehrke to explain the proposals.

Also in the program, Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan and DFL lawmakers celebrate new laws aimed at protecting the rights of tenants and eliminating the gender and racial pay gap.