►
Description
LWV Bloomington 2022 MN Sen Dist. 51 & MN House Dist. 51B Candidate Forum
A
B
Shepherd
and
I'm,
the
current
president
of
the
League
of
Women
Voters
in
Bloomington
I,
want
to
thank
the
city
of
Bloomington
I,
want
to
thank
all
of
the
our
candidates
this
evening
and
to
our
moderator,
Debbie
O'neill,
and
thanks
to
all
of
you
audience
members
for
being
here
this
evening.
The
League
of
Women
Voters
is
a
Grassroots
organization
working
to
protect
and
expand
voting
rights
and
ensure
everyone
is
represented
in
our
democracy.
The
league
is
nonpartisan,
the
league
does
not
support
or
oppose
political
candidates
or
parties.
B
Now
more
than
ever,
our
efforts
are
focused
on
helping
people
become
informed
voters.
When
more
people
vote,
we
get
a
stronger,
more
representative
city
and
state.
To
that
end,
the
league
hosts
candidate
forums
like
this
evening
and
provide
straightforward
information
about
candidates
and
ballot
issues
through
print
and
online
resources.
Our
website,
the
Secretary
of
State
website,
which
is
mnvotes.gov
and
including
our
award-winning
One-Stop
shop
for
election
information
vote
411.org.
We
equip
voters
with
essential
information
about
the
election
process
in
our
city.
B
Today
is
National
voter
registration
day,
so
ask
your
family
and
friends
if
they're
registered
and
if
they
know
where
to
vote
on
November,
8th
and
also
a
reminder.
Early
voting
starts
this
week
on
Friday
September,
23rd
I'm,
looking
forward
to
an
informative
exchange
of
views
and
ideas
during
our
Forum
this
evening,
we
invite
you
to
join
our
Bloomington
League
or
another
league
in
the
area
and
now
I'll
turn
the
program
over
to
our
moderator.
Thank
you.
C
C
Thank
you
very
much.
The
League
of
Women
Voters
requests
that
for
the
safety
of
the
audience
and
the
candidates
that
attendees
wear
masks
and
candidates
May
remove
their
masks
while
in
front
of
the
camera.
The
purpose
of
this
evening's
forum
is
to
hear
the
candidates
for
Minnesota
Senate,
District,
51
and
Minnesota
house
district
51
B
discuss
issues
that
are
important
to
the
residents
of
these
districts.
C
All
the
candidates
for
these
offices,
whose
names
will
be
printed
on
the
ballot,
have
been
invited
to
participate
in
this
forum
and
a
copy
of
the
Forum
rules
was
mailed
to
each
candidate.
We
will
try
to
cover
as
many
issues
as
possible
in
the
time
we
have,
and
if
your
question
is
not
addressed
tonight,
please
feel
free
to
contact
the
candidates
directly.
C
C
C
Each
candidate
will
have
one
and
a
half
minutes
to
answer
each
question:
League
volunteers,
Terry,
Mackin
and
Heather
Starks
sitting
before
the
candidates
here
and
in
front
of
the
audience,
will
time
the
candidate's
responses
and
they
will
hold
up
signs
to
show
the
candidates
when
they
have
30
seconds
left
when
they
have
15
seconds
left
and
when
they
must
stop
and
candidates.
I
would
ask
you
to
heed
the
stop
sign.
C
C
As
moderator
I
will
ask
all
the
questions
and
the
legal
Women
Voters
Bloomington
will
determine
which
questions
will
be
asked
and
they
attempt
in
good
faith,
to
cover
the
topics
of
Interest
indicated
by
the
questions
submitted
by
Bloomington
residents
of
the
community
that
they'll
they.
These
questions
could
have
been
submitted
via
email
before
this
evening
or
they
can
be
submitted
by
attendees
during
this
live
event.
C
D
C
E
At
a
time
where
gas
prices
are
going
up,
food
is
expensive.
We
all
feel
it
when
we
go
to
the
grocery
store.
People
are
having
a
hard
time
paying
rent
they've
got
to
choose
between
rent
and
gas
and
food.
My
opponent
wants
to
raise
taxes.
He
wants
to
raise
real
estate
taxes
in
Bloomington.
He
wants
to
raise
the
sales
tax
in
Bloomington.
I.
Don't
think.
Now
is
the
time
to
be
taking
money
away
from
the
constituents
and
from
the
people
that
are
having
a
tough
time
making
those
payments.
We
also
need
Safe
Streets.
E
We
have
people
that
are
afraid
to
go
to
their
cars,
they
feel
like
they're
going
to
get
carjacked
and
they
afraid
that
their
catalytic
converter
is
going
to
get
stolen.
I.
Just
don't
think
I
think
we
need
to
prioritize
the
safe
streets
and
make
sure
that
people
feel
safe,
I
guess
basically
we're
all
here.
For
the
same
reason,
we
want
Bloomington
to
thrive.
We
want
Bloomington
to
be
a
great
place
to
raise
a
family,
have
a
business
and
I.
Just
don't
think
my
opponent's
way
of
doing
it
is
the
right
way.
E
He's
a
government
guy
he's
he's
worked
in
government
and
politics,
his
whole
life.
His
answer
is
government
tax
and
give
more
money
to
the
government
I'm.
A
small
business
guy
I've
had
to
make
decisions
my
whole
life
and
make
sure
I
had
the
money
to
pay
the
bills
and,
if
I
didn't
have
the
money
I
had
to
figure
out
a
way
to
pay
it
myself.
I
love,
Bloomington
I
want
to
make
sure
that
we
Thrive
that
people
are
excited
to
move
to
Bloomington
and
excited
to
say
that
they
live
in
Bloomington.
C
A
Thank
you.
Excuse
me
well,
thank
you,
first
of
all
to
League
of
Women
Voters,
and
thank
you
all
for
being
here
tonight.
It
really
is
just
wonderful
to
be
here
in
front
of
a
live
audience
again:
I'm
Nathan,
Coulter
I'm,
a
husband
and
father
I'm,
a
lifelong
resident
of
Bloomington
and
a
proud
product
of
our
Bloomington
Public
Schools
I'm,
serving
my
second
term
on
the
Bloomington
city
council
and
I'm,
the
dfl
nominee
for
the
Minnesota
house
in
District
51b.
A
It
feels
like
every
single
day
we're
reminded
of
what's
at
stake
in
this
election.
Just
with
what
we
see
in
the
news,
investments
in
things
that
we
know
are
top
of
mind
for
folks
here
in
Bloomington
and
across
the
state
Early
Childhood,
K-12
education,
higher
education,
housing
infrastructure,
that's
on
the
ballot
this
year,
Reproductive
Rights,
are
on
the
ballot
this
year.
A
thriving
democracy
is
on
the
ballot
this
year,
our
values,
our
families
and
our
future
are
on
the
ballot
this
year
and
I
I.
A
Absolutely
critical
that
folks,
here
in
Bloomington,
know
who
we
are
and
where
we
stand
and
that's
why
I'm
so
excited
to
be
here
tonight,
I'm
running
because
now
I
think
more
than
ever
before
we
need
leadership.
That's
focused
on
working
hard
taking
on
the
tough
but
needed
conversations
and
grounding
the
choices
we
make
in
our
shared
values.
That's
what
I've
done
on
the
Bloomington
city
council
and
that's
what
I'm
ready
to
do
in
the
Minnesota
House
of
Representatives
I'm,
looking
forward
to
the
conversation
here
tonight
and
Beyond
through
election
day.
C
D
I
am
also
a
lifelong
Bloomington
resident
graduate
from
Kennedy
High
School
as
well
and
I
have
been
representing
Bloomington
and
Richfield
in
the
state
senate
now
since
being
elected
in
2012,
and
it's
been
an
honor
to
be
a
representative
to
the
state
senate
representing
these
communities.
I
have
enjoyed
the
time
I've
spent
there
and
I've
worked
hard
to
represent
the
communities
of
Bloomington
Richfield,
as
well
as
I
can
and
I
look
forward
to
earning
your
vote
to
represent
Bloomington
Richfield
and
a
little
bit
of
Minneapolis
in
the
new
Senate
District
51..
D
During
my
time
in
the
Senate
I've
focused
on
some
key
areas
and
those
are
the
areas
that
I
would
like
to
continue
to
to
work
on.
If
I'm
re-elected
this
year,
I
worked
on
improving
health
of
our
fellow
minnesotans
through
access
to
more
affordable
health
care,
working
on
reducing
costs
for
prescription
drugs,
I
authored,
a
bill
that
provides
access
to
emergency
insulin
for
people
with
diabetes,
who
can't
afford
their
next
prescription
and
I'm
very
proud
of
that
program.
C
You
now
we'll
go
to
questions
from
the
community
and
here's
the
first
question
and
all
of
the
questions
will
be
one
and
a
half
minute
answers
the
first
question
and
we'll
start
with
Nathan
Coulter
for
this
as
a
member
of
the
legislature.
What
measures,
if
any,
would
you
support
to
reinforce
or
ensure
voter
confidence
in
our
elections?
So
the
question
is:
what
measures,
if
any,
would
you
support
to
reinforce
or
ensure
voter
confidence
in
our
elections
start
with
Nathan
Coulter?
Thank
you.
A
A
We
care
about
democracy
in
Minnesota,
I
think
it
also
may
have
something
to
do
with
the
fact
that
we're
okay
waiting
in
line,
sometimes
it's
incredibly
disappointing
to
me
that
there
are
folks
who
would
damage
that
reputation
who
would
demean
our
dedicated
public
servants
just
to
score
political
points
and
I'm
appalled
at
efforts
that
would
seek
to
disenfranchise
minnesotans
and
limit
communities
ability
to
speak
with
their
whole
voice.
There
are
a
lot
of
things
we
can
do
to
strengthen
our
democracy.
We
have
great
voter
turnout,
but
we
can
do
more.
We
can
expand
early
voting.
A
We
can
make
sure
that
folks
know
what
they
need
to
do,
that
that
there
is
information
available.
That
polls
are
open
longer
that
folks
are
more
accessible.
One
thing
we've
seen
recently
is
folks
attempt
to
limit
options
that
folks
have
for
early
voting
and
I
think
we
can
have
a
conversation
about
ranked
Choice
voting.
What
that
means
for
this
state?
How
that
might
strengthen
our
democracy,
public
financing
of
campaigns?
There
are
things
that
we
can
do
to
make
it
accessible
for
everyone
in
Minnesotan,
and
that
should
be
our
Focus.
D
Thank
you
yes
voting
and
our
democracy
is
something
that
we
should
all
be
taking
care
to,
strengthen
and
to
make
sure
that
all
of
the
processes
are
working
well,
when
we
were
getting
ready
for
the
2020
election
I
met
with
election
officials
in
Hennepin
County
and
learn
more
about
the
system.
That's
used,
I
I,
believe
in
our
system
in
Minnesota
and
I
believe
that
it
is
secure
and
I
believe
it
is
working
effectively
and
if
there
were
things
to
do
to
increase
increase
opportunities
for
people
to
vote.
D
I
would
support
those
if
that
means
additional
access
to
early
voting.
Additional
opportunities
for
people
to
be
become
registered.
To
vote.
There's
been
ideas
presented
to
encourage
automatic
registration
at
certain
points
and
I
would
be
supportive
of
that
ranked
Choice
voting
I
have
supported
the
bills
to
promote
use
of
ranked
Choice
voting
in
Minnesota,
because
I
think
it
does
help
ensure
that
there's
greater
participation,
and
so
there
are
are
some
things
that
we
could
do.
D
E
It's
important
to
vote.
Obviously,
we
love
bringing
our
kids
every
time
to
vote.
They
get
their
I
vote
stickers
and
they
they
can't
vote
yet,
but
they
love
it
with
me
being
a
politics
when
I
was
elected
in
2016
that
really
to
the
state
legislature
that
got
them
more
involved
and
they
talk
about
it
and
instead
of
saying
like
who
are
we
gonna?
Who
do
we
want
to
win
the
game?
It's
how
they
always
say.
E
E
You
know
my
vote
doesn't
even
matter
and
they
they
see
the
politicians
standing
up
and
saying
lies
and
mistruce
and
they
and
they
know
what
they're
doing
and
everybody
does
it
and
I
think
we
just
need
to
if
we
want
to
get
people
excited
to
vote,
let's
as
a
culture
as
politicians,
let's,
let's,
let's
make
that
happen,
I
think
people
are
I.
Think
people
are
just
tired.
E
C
D
Thank
you
well,
I
think
I
kind
of
answered,
partly
because
I
wasn't
sure
if
it
was
going
to
come
up
in
a
separate
question.
I
do
support
ranked
Choice
voting.
I
have
been
a
co-author
on
bills
that
allow
for
greater
use
of
it
in
Minnesota
and
I.
My
reasons
for
supporting
it
are
because
I
think
it
does.
It
increases
the
ability
for
people
to
participate
in
meaningful
elections.
D
If
we
look
at
our
city
of
Bloomington
election
last
year,
when
we
have
a
primary,
it's
generally
been
very
low
torn
out,
and
this
allowed
the
focus
to
be
on
one
election
where,
where
people
could
get
to
know
all
the
candidates
running
and
make
choices
about
those
candidates,
so
I
think
that
it
does
increase
the
the
ability
for
people
to
participate
and
I.
Think
that's
a
good
thing
and
I
do
support
it.
Thanks.
E
So,
as
we
can
tell
from
the
last
election
at
the
city
level,
like
I
said,
my
opponent
won
and
he
had
less
than
50
percent
of
the
First
Choice
votes.
He
then
took
that
to
say
that
that's
that
means
that
people
like
what
we're
doing
here
in
Bloomington
and
we
should
keep
doing
what
we're
doing
and
I
would
look
at
as
like
50
over
50
percent
of
the
people
didn't
vote
for
your
first
choice
and
the
other
two
candidates
that
ran
against
him
against
him.
E
I
think
were
a
little
bit
more
aligned
and
so
I
think
sometimes
I.
Think,
with
the
ranked
choice
of
voting
I'd
like
to
see
that
someone
gets
50
over
half
the
people.
That
vote
voted
for
this
candidate
and
you
look
at
Minneapolis
when
Minneapolis
I
think
mayor
fry
one
with
35
percent
of
the
vote.
The
first
choice
so
I
I
liked.
E
A
But
having
looked
at
it,
having
thought
about
it
and
having
run
in
an
election
as
a
in
any
ranked
Choice
voting,
election
I
can
tell
you
the
does
incentivize
positive
things.
It
incentivizes
positive
campaigning,
it
incentivizes,
building
a
broader,
Coalition
and
I
think
at
the
end
of
the
day,
it's
more
reflective
of
the
community,
because
we're
not
limited
to
two
choices
and
I
will
just
tell
you
as
well
as
again
having
been
the
only
one
up
here.
Who's
run
in
a
ranked
Choice
voting
election
I
certainly
noticed.
A
Last
year,
when
I
was
running,
an
increased
level
of
Engagement
folks
were
more
tuned
in
to
the
campaign
they
were
more
aware
of
who
was
running
and
who
and
what
folks
stood
for,
because
there
were
more
choices
on
the
ballot
and
I
think.
Ultimately,
those
are
all
good
things.
Those
are
all
positive
things
for
our
democracy,
and
so
that's
why?
Yes,
I
have
come
around
on
ranked
Choice
voting.
C
The
next
question
concerns
Women's
Health,
given
the
recent
Supreme
Court
ruling
regarding
Roe
v,
Wade
state
legislatures
may
be
enacting
new
laws
regarding
women's
reproductive
health
issues,
including
access
to
care.
What
measures,
if
any,
do
you
think
the
Minnesota
Legislature
should
enact
regarding
women's
reproductive
health
and,
let's
begin
with
Melissa
Wicklund.
D
Well,
thank
you.
This
is
a
very
important
topic
this
year
due
to
recent
the
recent
Supreme
Court
decision,
which
has
limited
access
to
reproductive
care
and
abortion
care
for
many
women
across
the
country.
Minnesota
is
a
state
where
women
can
still
access
abortion,
and
my
belief
is
that
women
should
retain
that
that
ability
and
that
right
to
make
decisions
about
their
reproductive
health
care,
and
that
includes
being
able
to
access
abortion
care,
and
so
my
position
I
mean
right
now.
D
A
Well,
we
need
to
be
clear.
You
might
hear
a
claim
tonight
that
abortion
care
is
a
constitutionally
protected
right
in
Minnesota.
It's
not.
It
is
protected
by
a
court
case
and
clearly
we've
seen
how
quickly
that
can
change
the
reality.
Is
that
all
of
us,
whether
we
realize
it
or
not,
likely
know
someone
who's
had
an
abortion.
A
A
I
simply
do
not
believe
that
that
deeply
personal
decision
is
a
place
for
government
to
insert
itself.
We
do
need
to
protect
abortion
care.
We
do
need
to
protect
Reproductive
Rights
in
law,
and
that
includes
I
think
the
potential
discussion
of
a
constitutional
amendment
securing
those
rights,
because
it
is
just
that
critically
important,
let's
be
clear,
Roe
versus
Wade
was
about
more
than
just
having
kids.
It
was
about
folks
rights
to
determine
what
happens
to
their
body
and
we
need
to
protect
those
rights.
E
So
the
abortion
is
protected
by
the
Minnesota
Supreme
Court,
the
Supreme
Court
is
made
up
of
mostly
Democrats,
so
that
is
not
changing
anytime
soon.
The
legislature
cannot
do
anything
to
take
that
away
this
year.
So
it's
become
a
topic.
Obviously,
because
of
what's
happened
at
the
federal
level
and
Democrats
are
leaning
on
it
and
they're
pushing
it
because
they
don't
want
to
talk
about
other
stuff.
They
don't
want
to
talk
about
the
gas
prices.
They
don't
want
to
talk
about
inflation.
They
don't
want
to
talk
about
all
the
other
stuff.
E
That's
happening,
I
mean
there's,
there's
so
much
going
on
and
it's
it's
that's
what
they
want
to
talk
about,
but
it
is
protected
in
the
Constitution
I
mean
at
the
state
supreme
court
and
it's
it's
not
going
to
be
overturned
because
of
who's
on
the
court
and
the
legislature
can't
do
anything
about
it.
Right
now,.
C
E
So
we're
looking
at
eight
billion
dollar
Surplus
right
now
so
I
would
say
we
should
stop
taxing
senior
citizens
in
their
social
security.
They've
already
paid
taxes
when
it
when
they
earned
it
first
people
they
they
depend
on
the
Social
Security
I
had
a
tenant
who
I
own
some
rental
property
in
Bloomington
I
had
a
tenant
that
messaged
me
and
just
said
I.
E
You
know
I
sent
her
her
new
lease
and
raised
her
rent,
but
not
a
not
a
bunch,
and
she
just
says
thanks
so
much
you're
making
this
affordable
for
me
and
then
I
said
to
her.
You
know
because
she
lives
off
Social,
Security
I
said
you
could
have
more
money
if
they
wouldn't
take
it
out
of
your
Social
Security.
So
I
would
say
the
government
taxes
enough.
We
have
a
surplus
and
so
I
think
we
should
not
tax
Social
Security
benefits
we're
only
one
of
12
or
13
states
that
do
it
to
begin
with.
So.
D
Yeah,
so
in
the
case
of
Social
Security
benefits
and
the
taxation
I
mean
Minnesota
is
a
state
that
taxes
benefits
after
an
individual
reaches
a
certain
level
of
income.
So
for
those
who
are
at
the
lowest
levels
of
income,
they
are
not
paying
taxes
on
their
social
security
benefits
and
it
increases
to
be
part
of
the
taxation
after
that
level.
D
In
the
past,
I
have
been
concerned
about
removing
this
in
our
tax
code,
removing
the
the
taxation
at
the
higher
levels,
because
we
do
have
to
balance
where
we
need
to
provide
funding
for
for
schools
for
health
care
benefits
for
other
needs
of
our
government.
However,
in
the
last
session
we
did
have
a
bill
developed
in
the
tax
committee
that
would
remove
taxation
on
all
Social
Security
benefits,
and
I
would
support
that.
D
It
was
unfortunate
that
the
the
tax
bill
was
part
of
an
agreement
that
was
reached
by
the
three
leaders,
the
governor,
the
speaker
of
the
house
and
the
majority
leader
in
the
Senate,
but
that
agreement
fell
apart
and
we
weren't
able
to
successfully
pass
the
tax
bill.
It
was
in
there
and
I
would
support
it.
If
it
comes
up
again
in
the
future,.
A
So
he
you
know,
as
Senator
wicklin
mentioned,
we
only
tax,
Social
Security
benefits
once
once
folks
reach
a
certain
income
level.
I
believe
that
income
level
is
seventy
thousand
dollars
a
year.
So
I
think
we
need
to
be
clear
that
we're
not
taxing
particularly
low
income.
Folks,
that
being
said,
I
think
in
principle,
I
have
a
hard
time
justifying
taxing
Social
Security
benefits.
I
think
this
is
a
guarantee
that
the
government
makes
to
folks
who
pay
into
Social
Security
and
it
to
be
honest
it.
A
It
doesn't
wholly
feel
right
to
me
that
we
do
tax
it.
That
being
said,
it's
as
Senator
wicklin
mentioned
it's
a
significant
price
tag
and
I
think
any
time
we
talk
about
taxes
and
the
budget.
We
need
to
make
sure
we're
talking
about
both
sides
of
that
equation
that
we're
talking
about
what
we
pay
and
what
we
pay
for,
and
so,
if
we're
removing
those
taxes
on
Social
Security
benefits,
then
we
need
to
talk
about
what
that
means
for
education,
for
health
care,
for
housing,
for
Consumer
and
Environmental
Protections,
and
things
like
that.
A
C
A
Well,
I
would
say
that
my
focus
is
that
the
budget
that
the
budget
surplus
should
go
to
long-term
Investments
that
we
know
will
do
the
most
good
early
childhood
K-12
and
higher
education
as
I
mentioned
consumer
and
Environmental
Protections
infrastructure
and,
yes,
I,
do
think
some
tax
relief
for
working
minnesotans
is
appropriate
as
far
as
education.
We
are
behind,
where
we
were
20
years
ago
for
funding
for
public
education
in
this
state.
A
As
I
said,
I'm
proud
to
be
a
product
of
our
Bloomington
Public
Schools
I
got
an
excellent
education
here,
but
we
know
that
our
district
is
facing
significant
Cuts
because
of
the
way
education
is
funded
in
this
state
and
it
needs
to
change
and
again
with
a
significant
Surplus.
Now
really
is
the
time
to
do
it.
I
have
long
believed,
and
maybe
it's
because
I'm,
the
son
of
a
teacher
and
because
I'm
married
to
a
teacher
but
I,
have
long
believed
that
education
really
is
the
silver
bullet.
E
So
we
just
had
mentioned
part
of
it
would
be
the
social
security
cuts
to
the
seniors
and
what's
hard
about
the
reserves,
is
that
if
we
start
spending
money,
how
do
we
stop
spending
money?
So
we
we
have
this
money.
We
think.
Oh,
let's
start
these
great
programs,
because
we
have
all
this
money
and
then
what
happens
the
next
year
and
the
next
year
and
the
next
year,
when
maybe
the
income
from
taxes
isn't
as
high.
E
So
then
we're
stuck
with
all
these
programs
that
we
started
and
then
we
say
oh
wait,
wait
we
had
the
money,
but
now
we
don't
have
the
money,
so
they
either
got
to
cut
the
programs
which
makes
everybody
look
bad
or
they
got
to
raise
taxes
then
to
cover
their
problem.
It's
like.
If
you
get
a
job
increase
and
you're
like
okay,
we
can
buy
a
new
house
and
you
go
out
and
buy
a
new
house
and
then
you
don't
or
something
happens,
your
job.
E
And
then
you
can't
afford
the
house
anymore
and
so
I
think
when,
when
we
look
at
the
the
Surplus
I
like
the
Social,
Security
and
I,
like
making
sure
we
have
reserves
in
case
something
happens,
I
just
don't
like
starting
programs
without
they
call
it
in
the
Tails
just
to
it
continues
and
continues
so
I.
Just
don't
want
to
start
something
and
then
two
years
down
the
road
hand
it
off
to
another
legislature
and
say:
okay
here
it
is,
you
got
to
figure
out
a
way
to
keep
funding
it.
D
Thank
you,
yeah
I
think
that
a
combination
of
the
the
factor
or
the
the
types
of
spending
and
tax
relief
that
have
been
mentioned
are
things
that
I
think
would
be
beneficial
to
move
forward.
With,
with
that,
the
Surplus
that
we
discussed
this
year,
we'll
have
to
see
in
in
the
next
session
what
is
in
the
Surplus
or
what
the
Surplus
level
is.
This
year
we
had
discussions
about
putting
aside
some
of
the
money
for
a
tax
bill,
and
that
would
include
the
tax
provision
having
to
do
with
social
security
benefits.
D
It
also
had
some
other
changes
that
would
have
increased
or
made
changes
to
the
the
current
Homestead
taxation
numbers
and
allowed
for
property
value
increases
so
that
today,
I
think
there's
many.
There
are
many
seniors
who
are
in
homes
that
have
increased
in
value
a
great
deal
and
their
their
income
has
not
increased,
and
so,
as
their
property
taxes
have
gone
up,
that's
been
a
burden
on
them,
and
so
there
would
have
been
tax
relief
for
for
having
to
do
with
housing
value.
D
A
I
think
the
legislature
is
responsible
for
setting
basic
standards
when
it
comes
to
school
curricula
and
I.
Think
that
means
ensuring
that
our
students,
that
graduate
are
prepared
to
go
on
if
they
choose
to
higher
education,
to
joining
the
workforce,
to
joining
military
to
to
whatever
they
choose
to
do
so
that
they're
able
to
contribute
to
our
society
in
a
positive
and
valuable
way.
A
D
You
know
I,
think
the
role
for
the
legislature
is
to
look
at
curriculum
or
look
at
standards,
but
not
to
prescribe
curriculum.
I
think
that
as
Nathan
Coulter
mentioned,
I
think
that
the
school
districts
have
a
process
for
evaluating
curriculum
before
I
was
a
part
of
the
legislature.
I
was
on
the
school
board
and
could
see
some
of
those
processes
at
work
where
different
areas
are
examined
and
curriculum
is,
is
discussed
at
the
district
level,
with
parent
involvement,
with
teacher
involvement
and
all
of
the
stakeholders.
D
Kind
of
working
together
on
on
that
to
select
curriculum
and
set
that
for
the
district.
I
think
that
that's
more
appropriate
appropriate
than
for
the
legislature
to
to
be
getting
into
that
level
of
detail.
I
think
that
we
do
have
role
to
play
in
the
the
standards
and
we
do
examine
standards
after
they
are
developed
and
again,
the
standards
are
actually
developed
by
a
very
comprehensive
group
of
Educators
and
stakeholders,
and
so
I
I
place
a
lot
of
faith
in
the
way
that
they
work
through
the
process
of
developing
those
standards.
E
You
know
handing
down
on
it,
but
like
Reading,
Writing
arithmetic,
you
know
the
three
R's
I
would
say:
I
mean
every
night,
our
kids
and
I
15
minutes
20
minutes
before
bed.
We
read
to
them
and
we're
lucky
that
we
can
sit
down
with
our
kids
and
have
the
time
to
read
and
I
think
that's
a
basic
thing
and
so
I
think
we
need
to
focus
on
reading
and
writing
and
adding
two
plus
two
I
know
it.
E
E
Just
they
got
a
tough
job,
my
wife
during
covet
homeschooled
for
a
year
she
was
homeschooled
all
12
years,
along
with
her
seven
other
brothers
and
sisters.
So
she
was
like
I'd
like
to
give
this
homeschooling
a
try
and
she
did
it
and
she's
like
teachers
know
what
they're
doing,
and
so
we
enrolled
them
back
in
school.
So
but
I
think
just
you
know:
parents
getting
involved
and
everything,
but
Reading,
Writing
and
math
and
and
the
basic
things
and
go
from
there.
C
Candidates
who've
been
such
good
sports
about
answering
questions
at
length.
Are
you
up
for
trying
a
lightning
round?
So
this
will
be
a
question
where
we
ask
you
to
answer
in
just
one
reasonable
sentence.
You
know
not
a
run-on
sentence,
but
just
like
a
reasonable
sentence.
Okay,
let's
try
that
so
the
question
is:
do
you
support
keeping
election
day
registration
for
voting
in
one
sentence,
or
even
one
word
is
even
better,
but
you
have
one
sentence
and
so
Melissa
Wicklund.
C
Thanks
for
being
such
good
sports
and
answering
hard
questions
and
one
sentence,
so
let's
go
back
now
to
questions
for
one
and
a
half
minutes.
This
question
concerns
firearm
safety.
Here's
the
question.
Many
people
are
concerned
with
increased
gun
violence
in
our
communities,
What
legislation.
If
any,
would
you
support
to
help
reverse
this
current
Trend
and
respond
to
Citizens
needs
for
safer
communities?
C
E
E
A
I
support,
Universal
background
checks,
I
think
there
are
other
things
that
we
can
do
to
incentivize
incentivize,
safe
storage
of
firearms,
so
that
kids
are
not
so
easily
able
to
get
a
hold
of
dangerous
weapons
and
I
think
we
also
need
to
focus
on
education
that
puts
the
burden
on
adults
rather
than
kids.
It
is
incredibly
disappointing
to
me
that
we
aren't
focused
on
the
folks
who
own
the
firearms
and
ensuring
that
they
are
the
ones
being
safe
and
not
teaching,
and
instead
of
focusing
on
kids
and
expecting
them
to
understand.
D
It's
absolutely
essential
that
we
in
Minnesota
do
more
to
address
preventing
gun
violence
and
in
the
past
six
years
the
the
Republicans
have
been
in
the
majority
in
the
Senate.
They
have
been
absolutely
unwilling
to
hear
any.
You
know,
number
of
bills
that
could
be
brought
forward
or
have
been
written
and
introduced
to
take
action.
D
They
refused
to
have
any
hearings
on
them,
I'm
a
an
author
or
have
been
an
author
multiple
times
for
bills
that
would
Implement
a
red
flag
order,
provision
that
would
increase
the
universal
background,
checks
and
I
think
that
one
way
that
we
can
address
this
legislatively
is
to
have
discussions
about
it
and
hear
from
people
who
know
about.
You
know
how
to
prevent
gun
violence
and
get
information
about
the
best
way
to
create
laws
to
do
that.
Another
area
I
do
think
we
need
to
work
on
is
safe.
D
D
This
can
be
by
working
with
law
enforcement
in
the
way
that
law
enforcement
is
working
in
communities.
It
can
also
be
by
making
sure
that
communities
have
other
resources
that
they
need
to
be
able
to
live
safely.
We
can
look
at
how
people
respond
to
police
calls
that
are
related
to
mental
health.
Do
we
have
enough
resources
in
our
community
for
who
understand
how
to
respond
to
mental
health
crises
and
are
going
out
with
that
knowledge
to
help
people
in
the
community
when
these
things
come
up?
E
E
I
mean
they
go,
they
go
into
like
I,
said,
I
manage
apartments
and
they
go
into
apartments
and
they
have
no
idea
what
they're
going
to
find
and
I
stand
outside
the
door
after
I
open
it
for
them
and
hope
they
come
out.
Okay,
but
you
just
you
just
don't
know,
and
they
don't
know
what
they're
getting
into
and
so
getting
those
recruits
and
training
them
for
those
situations.
So
when
a
split
second
has
to
be
made,
the
decision
has
to
be
made,
they've
gone
through
it
and
I.
Think
that's
I!
E
A
Well,
let's
be
clear
here:
everyone
deserves
to
feel
safe
in
their
home,
full
stop,
but
I.
Think
one
of
the
things
that
we've
learned
over
these
last
few
years
is
that
safety
means
a
lot
of
things
to
a
lot
of
people
and
in
particular,
we
know
that
there
are
systemic
issues
with
Public
Safety.
That
can
mean
very
different
results
for
different
people.
A
You
know
I
mentioned
I've,
served
on
I'm,
serving
on
the
Bloomington
city,
council
and
I've
done
ride-alongs
with
our
police
officers.
The
reality
is
that
yes,
our
local
governments,
our
cities
and
counties
and
townships
across
the
state,
they
need
resources,
they
need
information,
they
need
assistance
and,
yes,
they
do
need
funding.
Just
like
we
provided
here
in
Bloomington,
85
percent
of
our
proposed
Levy
increase
for
next
year
in
Bloomington
is
going
to
Public
Safety,
including
hiring
more
police
officers,
ensuring
they
have
better
equipment
and
better
facilities.
And
you
know
it's
interesting
I.
A
Just
not
too
long
ago,
I
had
conversation,
I
had
a
cup
of
coffee
with
our
new
police
chief
here,
and
one
of
the
things
that
he
mentioned
is
the
biggest
thing
that
he
has
seen.
Is
that
the
Department
of
Corrections
once
folks
come
out
of
the
correction
system?
There
isn't
the
safety
net
there
form
there.
Aren't
the
programs
there
to
make
sure
that
folks
are
able
to
succeed
and
re-enter
life?
And
that's
that's
where
we
need
to
be
focusing.
C
E
So
I
got
my
water
bill
from
the
city.
I
probably
been
getting,
I
mean
I
get
water
bills
all
the
time,
but
looked
at
it
and
I
saw
this
Organics,
Recycling
and
I
guess
I'm
sure
the
emails
went
out
and
I
don't
know
if
everybody's
looked
at
their
water
bill,
but
they
see
that
was
it
11
charge
every
two
months:
five
bucks
a
month
and
so
I
called
the
city
and
said
I.
Don't
you
know
we
recycle
Organics
our
own
way
and
so
I?
What's
this
for
they
said?
E
Oh,
you
gotta
just
order
a
cart,
so
I
ordered
a
cart
with
orange
top
and
I
drive
around
I.
Don't
see
any
orange
tops
I,
don't
know
how
many
people
or
you
know,
recycle
the
Organics,
but
that's
that's
five
bucks
a
month
and
I,
it's
just
when
the
government
spends
money.
It
always
comes
back
to
that
five
bucks
a
month
is
a
lot
of
money.
If
the
city
of
Bloomington
said
look
we're
gonna,
give
everybody
Netflix
for
free
right,
you'll,
probably
talk
Netflix
down
to
five
six,
seven,
eight
bucks
a
month.
E
You
know
you
do
they
get
the
franchise
fees
on
there.
That's
on
your
utility
bills,
I
mean
five
dollars.
A
month's
a
lot
of
money
like
I,
said
if
the
city
of
Bloomington
gave
free
Netflix
everybody's
say
that's
crazy.
That's
awesome!
That's
five
bucks!
So
I,
like
the
decision
making
for
recycling.
For
that
you
know
responsible
recycling
to
be
more
on
the
homeowner
before
the
organized
collection
went
into
Bloomington.
E
You
used
to
be
able
to
recycle
every
week
and
now,
with
organized
collection
you
can
only
the
city
said
you
can
only
recycle
every
other
week
so
with
when
people
had
that
choice,
they
used
to
be
able
to
recycle.
More
now
the
city
said:
No,
it's
it's.
The
regular
recycling
is
only
every
other
week.
So
I
like
the
people
to
decide
and
recycle.
D
You
know,
ban
plastic
bags,
for
example,
or
make
some
other
recycling
decision
and
I
don't
support
making
legislation
at
the
state
level
that
that
will
say
for
the
whole
state
of
Minnesota
that
no
Community
can
put
in
place.
You
know
what
they
locally
decide
is
a
way
that
they
want
to
have
a
recycling
standard,
such
as
as
having
multiple
used
bags
only
and
not
not
allowing
single-use
plastic
bags.
D
A
Well,
as
I
said
before,
I'm
always
a
little
bit
wary
of
the
state
stepping
in
and
and
making
decisions
for,
local
governments,
I
think.
As
far
as
you
know,
any
kind
of
state
requirement
about
use
of
plastic
bags,
or
things
like
that
I,
would
need
more
information.
I
would
need
to
know
how
effective
that
might
be
so
I
I
really
can't
say
for
certain.
C
Here's
another
generally
environmental
question:
this
is
more
about
climate.
Are
there
steps
that
should
be
taken
at
the
state
level
to
help
mitigate
climate
change
and
or
to
adapt
to
its
implications?
And
can
you
explain
your
thinking
on
that,
so
steps
should
steps
be
taken
at
the
state
level
to
help
mitigate
climate
change
or
to
help
adapt
to
its
implications
and
explain
your
thoughts?
Can
we
start
with
Melissa
Wicklund.
D
Yes,
absolutely
we
should
be
taking
steps
at
the
state
level
to
address
climate
change
and
also
addressing
the
impact
of
climate
change
on
our
state.
So
looking
forward,
we
should
be
doing
taking
actions
to
address
climate
change
by
looking
at
our
our
energy
uses
and
moving
towards
use
of
more
cleaner
energy
sources,
so
that
will
reduce
the
the
amount
of
non
or
more
polluting
energy
sources
in
in
Minnesota.
D
We
have
taken
some
steps
in
in
that
area,
but
I
think
we
could
be
doing
a
lot
more
to
to
move
quickly
to
cleaner
energy
sources
and
allowing
for
use
of
more
electric
vehicles
in
Minnesota
are
encouraging
use
of
electric
vehicles.
If
we
look
at
the
impacts
already
happening
on
our
state,
we
see
more
intense
rainfalls,
we
and
a
more
intense
heat
he
situations,
and
so
we
should
be
looking
at
how
we
can
mitigate
the
impact
of
those
events
on
our
people,
the
living
conditions,
and
we
need
to
be
looking
forward.
A
That's
not
such
an
easy
word
to
say:
I
think
the
infrastructure
investment
jobs
Act
is
going
to
give
us
a
lot
of
potential
to
invest
in
clean
energy,
electric
electric
charging
stations
and
that
sort
of
thing,
but
really
one
of
the
best
things
that
we
can
do
is
invest
in
our
infrastructure
and
pass
a
bonding
Bill
ensure
that
resources
are
there
for
communities
and
for
our
state
agencies
to
invest
in
mitigation
measures
and
things
that
we
know
will
protect.
Folks
from
the
effects
of
climate
change.
We
can
incentivize
Energy,
Efficiency
and
weatherization.
A
One
of
the
things
that
we've
done
here
in
Bloomington
is
now.
When
folks
sell
their
home,
they
get
a
time
of
sale,
energy
disclosure
information.
So
folks,
still
a
buyer
and
a
seller
know
what
can
be
done
to
their
home
to
make
it
more
energy
efficient
and
save
them
money.
At
the
same
time
time
our
dfl
house,
Speaker,
Melissa
Hortman,
was
actually
the
author
of
Minnesota's
clean
energy
standard
and
it's
been
a
wonderful
tool.
It's
something
that
has
led
the
nation
and
I
think
we
can
expand
on
that.
If
we
elect
a
dfl
majority.
E
So
I
want
to
touch
on
the
time
of
sale
right
now,
I'm,
a
realtor
and
so
I
see
these
I
know
Minneapolis
adopted
it
to
begin
with,
so
what
they
do
when
they
talk
about
the
energy
they
have
to
drill
a
hole
in
a
closet,
feel
around
and
see
how
much
insulation
is
there
based
on
that,
they
tell
you
how
energy
efficient
your
home
is.
There
might
be
some
windows
and
stuff
involved
there
too
I,
don't
the
the
people
that
are
buying
the
house.
E
They
don't
really
look
at
that
I
mean
they
don't
see
that
so
I
mean
it
sounds
good
and
I.
Think
a
lot
of
this
stuff
is,
you
know,
a
lot
of
stuff
sounds
good
I
hate
when
government
does
things,
because
it
sounds
good
when,
when
Minnesota
through
rulemaking
Governor
walls,
it
was
not
part
of
the
legislature,
the
legislature
not
vote
on
it
decided
to
follow
California
with
all
their
standards.
E
E
C
A
A
We
can
address
some
of
the
accessibility
issues
that
we
know
folks
have
to
existing
programs
and,
frankly,
I
would
like
us
to
do
what
Bloomington
did
and
establish
a
state,
affordable,
housing
trust
fund
that
we
know
will
be
available
to
assist
projects
and
to
ensure
that
folks
have
affordable
housing,
but
the
I
mean.
The
fact
is
that
we
do
need
to
do
more
when
it
comes
to
housing.
Affordability
in
Minnesota.
D
Yes,
we
do
need
to
do
more
across
the
state
to
increase
the
supply
of
affordable
housing.
We
hear
about
it
in
northern
Minnesota,
where
there
are
areas
where
there
are
jobs
available,
but
there
is
not
affordable
housing
that
then
people
who
run
the
businesses
are
having
a
hard
time
attracting
workers.
We
know
in
the
metro
area
that
it's
very
difficult
to
find
affordable
housing.
So
it
is
a
Statewide
issue,
I'm,
not
sure
if
a
Statewide
affordability,
some
kind
of
standard
would
be,
it
seems
like
would
be
difficult
to
to
write.
D
But
I
do
think
that
we
should
be
taking
the
examples
of
cities
like
Bloomington
and
Richfield,
who
have
developed
strategies
to
encourage
more
affordable
housing
to
be
built
and
to
help
help
the
citizens
of
their
communities
access,
affordable,
housing,
I
think
we
should
be
taking
those
ideas
and
expanding
them
and
and
supporting
them
at
the
Statewide
level.
Another
way
we
could
do
it
is
through
housing
supports
or
vouchers
that
can
be
developed
in
a
way
that
people
pay
only
a
certain
percentage
of
their
income
for
housing,
and
that
could
be
supported
as
a
Statewide
program.
D
E
So
those
are
the
four
things
that
go
into
a
house
payment,
and
so
it's
just
interesting
me.
When
we
talk
about
affordable
housing.
My
opponent
talks
about
affordable
housing.
It
wants
affordable
housing,
but
yet
they
want
to
raise
property
taxes.
I
mean
Piti,
it's
right.
There
there's
the
math
and
so
I,
always
chuckle
of
like
how
do
you
say
that
you
want
affordable
housing,
but
yet
you're,
making
things
not
affordable
for
people
to
stay
in
their
house,
also
with
affordable
housing
with
Bloomington,
with
the
the
apartments
that
you're
seeing
going
up.
E
So
these
apartment
units
are
probably
costing
to
build
275
000
a
unit
each
like
one
bedroom,
so
one
bedroom
is
275
000,
a
two
bedroom
probably
is
more
than
that
I
mean
you
think
about
a
house.
I
mean
that's
about
what
a
house
costs
and
that's
what
these
new
buildings
in
Bloomington
are
costing
to
be
considered.
Affordable
housing,
a
two
bedroom
is
fifteen
hundred
dollars
a
month
so
when
they
say
we're
building
affordable
housing.
That
means
a
two
bedroom's
1500
bucks
a
month.
E
I
do
a
lot
of
rentals
in
Bloomington
and
not
a
lot
of
my
units
are
at
1500
bucks
a
month
and
so
I.
Don't
think
that
is
Affordable.
So
once
again,
this
is
the
government
doing
things
and
saying
things,
so
they
can
get
credit
for
doing
things.
But
you
know:
is
the
fifteen
hundred
dollars
a
month
affordable
the
275
000
where's
that
where's
the
Builder
or
the
developer
coming
up
with
money,
so
they
can
charge
that
little
rent.
C
A
Well,
I
think
we
all
I
think
we
all
know
that
inflation
obviously
is
real
and
it's
putting
significant
strain
on
family
budgets.
I've
seen
the
big
numbers
at
the
grocery
store
too.
The
reality
is
that
the
continued
follow-up
from
the
pandemic
and
supply
chain
issues
have
made
it
more
acute.
But
a
lot
of
folks
right
here
in
Bloomington
and
across
the
state
had
their
backs
against
the
wall.
A
Already
costs
of
housing,
Child
Care
education,
prescription,
drugs
and
so
many
other
things
were
already
problematic
for
so
many
of
our
neighbors,
and
there
are
things
we
can
do.
Dfl
has
put
forward
a
bill
to
address
to
address
price
gouging
that,
unfortunately,
Republicans
didn't
take
up
moving
forward.
We
also
need
to
focus
making
sure
that
we're
focusing
on
creating
jobs
not
just
for
their
own
sake,
but
building
an
economy
that
works
for
everyone
and
creating
good
jobs.
That
folks
can
raise
a
family
on
and
retire
from.
E
Anderson
I
I
would
say
would
stop
printing
money.
We
make
things
less
valuable
when
there's
more
money
out
there,
so
I
think
yeah
I
mean
when
the
government
spends
more
money,
there's
more
money
out
there
and
things
then
get
more
expensive,
so
I
think
we
got
to
let
the
businesses
do
what
they
do.
I
think
the
government
steps
out
of
the
way
a
little
bit
and
instead
of
More
Money
More
programs,
which
causes
the
inflation
I
and
I
I
go
back
to
two.
What
do
we
do
to
with
the
inflation?
E
What
do
we
do
to
stop
the
effects
or
trying
to
trying
to
hold
the
effects?
It's
not
it's!
Not
it's
not
back
to
raising
tax
I
hate
to
say,
I
keep
going
back
to
that.
But
in
a
time
when
people
are
having
a
hard
time
buying
gas
I
mean
they
want
to
raise
the
gas
tax
they
wanted
to
tie
it
to
inflation.
Could
you
imagine
if
the
Democrats
got
their
way
and
tied
it
to
inflation?
I
think
that's
what
it
was
I
mean
gas
tax
would
be
crazy.
E
D
Yeah,
it's
a
complicated
question
and
I.
Think
that
saying
there's
a
direct,
something
direct
that
the
state
legislature
could
do
to
impact
inflation
would
be
would
be
challenging.
I
think
the
things
that
we
had
discussed
doing
this
year
in
our
session
that
didn't
move
forward
because
of
lack
of
agreement
at
the
end
of
session
would
have
helped.
We
could
have
passed
the
the
tax
bill,
which
would
have
provided
some
tax
relief
to
minnesotans
and
that
would
have
been
relatively
quick
to
be
enacted.
D
We
could
have
passed
the
bill
that
would
have
increased
the
funding
from
the
Surplus
to
go
towards
education,
which
would
have
taken
some
of
the
pressure
off
of
school
districts
to
either
have
to
cut
their
budgets
or
to
raise.
You
know,
raise
taxes,
property
taxes
is,
and
so
that
would
have
been
helpful,
just
relieving
stress
on
schools.
D
In
the
current
situation
that
they're
in
we
could
have
put
more
money
into
the
long-term
care
industry
and
raised
wages
for
those
workers
who
are
really
feeling
the
impact
of
inflation
more
than
many
others,
because
they're
their
wages
are
so
low.
That
would
have
been
another
area
that
we
could
have
taken
action
this
year
during
session
and
unfortunately
weren't
able
to
so.
E
So
if
we
I
think
go
back
to
when
this
has
passed,
I
think
the
people
at
the
state
didn't
know
what
they
were
passing
I
think
they
thought
it
was
a
technical
bill.
They
listened
to
what
someone
said
and
said:
oh
it
just
changes
these
couple
things
and
then
they
signed
the
bill
and
they
didn't
know
I,
guess
what
was
going
on
I.
Think
there's.
If
we're
going
to
implement
it,
I
think
there's
other
ways
to
implement
to
implement
that
I
think
the
discussions
need
to
go.
E
So
I
think
I've
seen
things
at
the
legislature
that
that
when
you're
there,
you
trust
people-
and
maybe
you
shouldn't
and
someone
says-
oh
I
mean
there
is
a
situation
that
that
happened
in
Bloomington
here
with
with
something
that,
with
a
paved
path
where
someone
said:
oh
yeah,
it's
it's
no
big
deal,
Bloomington
doesn't
care,
and
so
it
got
in
a
statute
that
you
know
that
path
must
be
paved.
And
then
it
comes
out
that
that
was
a
big
deal.
A
Well,
I,
like
just
about
every
city
council
member
across
the
state,
was
a
little
bit
flummoxed
when
this
bill
became
law
because
there
was
no
framework
for
licensure.
There
was
no
information
on
how
to
address
safety.
It
just
kind
of
happened
and
now
we're
all
kind
of
scrambling
to
to
make
up
for
it
and
I
think
in
Bloomington.
A
We
we
are
approaching
this
in
I
think
a
very
measured
way
of
of
working
with
our
Public
Safety
professionals,
working
with
Distributors
working
with
local
businesses
and
having
the
conversation
about
what
folks
would
like
to
see
how
they
would
like
to
see,
THC,
Edibles
and
so
on
available
in
our
community
I
think
there
are
obviously
some
safety
concerns.
It
is
as
one
of
our
council
members
mentioned.
It
is
an
intoxicating
product
and
I
think
we
need
to
be
aware
of
that
and
aware
of
what
that
means.
I
think
there
is
potential
for
safe
use.
A
I
know,
I
will
confess
I
know
folks,
who
have
partaken
I
myself
have
not,
but
I
I
do
believe
it
can
be
used
safely,
and
you
know
in
in
that
sense
much
the
way
we
do.
You
know
we
license
liquor
here
in
Bloomington
and
you
know
much
of
the
way
we
do
license
other
products.
You
know
I
think
there
is
a
way
that
we
can
move
forward
and
ensure
that
this
is
safe,
but
certainly
I
I
would
not
have
done
it.
That
way.
D
Well,
thanks:
well,
this
provision
was
in
a
bill
that
was
made
up
of
many
provisions
and
I
think
that
in
the
Senate
there
wasn't
a
lot
of
discussion
about
it.
I
did
support
the
bill
and
I
would
have
supported
the
provision.
If
that
had
been
brought
up
to
me,
you
know
a
specific
question
about
it.
It
was
passed
very
close
to
the
end
of
session,
but
I
think
that
the
the
problems
that
have
resulted
from
it
not
getting
a
full
Hearing
in
the
Senate
are
clear
from
Nathan
coulter's
comments
about.
D
You
know
the
the
framework
that
wasn't
specified
or
or
put
into
place
in
the
statute
that
gave
you
know
communities
more
instructions
on
on
that
aspect
of
it.
So
would
I
recommend
doing
it.
That
way,
no
I
would
say
that
it
should
have
had
a
full
hearing.
The
Health
and
Human
Services
committee
chair
chose
not
to
give
it
a
hearing
in
the
Senate,
and
so
we
were
not
able
to
have
the
full
discussion
with
stakeholder
is
present,
and
we
could
have
asked
some
of
the
questions
about
about
that
aspect.
D
C
This
will
be
our
last
full
time,
question:
here's
the
question:
should
the
legislature
mandate,
Paid,
Family
and
Medical
Leave,
and
if
so,
what
size
employers
should
be
required
to
provide
it?
How
long
should
it
be
for
and
what
employees,
for
example,
full-time
as
opposed
to
part-time
should
be
entitled
to
it.
So
the
question
is:
should
the
legislature
mandate,
Paid,
Family
and
Medical
Leave,
and
on
what
terms
can
we
start
with
Melissa
Wicklund?
C
D
That
is
a
requirement
for
people
to
participate,
because
what
I
hear
from
parents
and
from
you
know,
families
is
that
they
don't
have
adequate
time
to
take
care
of
their
children
when
they're
born
and
we
as
a
society,
are
not
helping
families
with
that
with
those
early
days
by
not
having
a
Paid
Family
Leave
program,
like
almost
every
developed
country,
already
has
in
place
the
the
actual
length
of
time.
I
think
other
states
have
implemented
Statewide
paid
and
family
leave
and
I
think
there
are
varying
amounts
of
time.
D
Given
so
I
think
that
that
can
be
worked
out.
How
many
weeks
is
appropriate
and
and
who
should
be
included?
I
believe
that
it
should
be
small
businesses
and
and
large
employers
by
having
a
Statewide
pool
it
does
make
the
cost
spread
the
cost
across
many
people,
and
that
makes
it
economically
feasible
to
implement
and
a
bill
has
been
introduced
and
I
am
supportive
of
it.
E
So,
as
you
can
see,
maybe
from
my
family
here
and
my
like
I
said
my
other
kid
hockey
is
probably
over
now,
but
family
is
really
important
to
me.
I
think
it's
very
important
I
make
sure
to
spend
a
lot
of
time.
With
my
kids,
like
I,
said
we
read
every
night
we
wake
up
every
morning,
my
wife,
you
know
she
adjusts
her
schedule
because
she
wants
to
see
him.
E
It's
really
important
for
her
to
see
him
every
morning
before
they
go
to
school,
so
family
is
very
important
to
me
and
especially
in
the
early
on
years.
Just
the
time
spent
with
the
kids
is
very
important.
The
late
nights
things
like
that
I
mean
we
need
to
support
families
and
that
but
I
I
have
a
hard
time
kind
of
When
government
steps
in
I
think
you
know
employers
employees
want
to
feel
valued
by
their
employer.
E
A
lot
of
businesses
offer
this,
and
if
a
certain
business
doesn't
offer
it,
the
employee
is
free
to
go
where
they
want,
but
I
I.
Don't
like
government
saying
we
know
the
answer,
we're
in
charge.
We
know
what's
best
and
you
have
to
do
it
and
I
feel
like
that
is
a
lot
of
what's
going
on,
but,
like
I
said,
family
is
very
important.
A
Well,
I
do
excuse
me:
I,
do
support
Paid,
Family
and
Medical
Leave
I
have
I
supported
it
well
before
I
had
kids,
but
I
learned
truly
how
important
it
was
when
I
did
I
was
I,
think
maybe
the
second
or
third
person
at
my
job
to
actually
take
advantage
of
our
paid
family
and
medical
leave.
Policy
and
I
am
incredibly
grateful.
There
is
no
more
important
time
for
a
family
than
when
you've
just
become
a
family
or
you've
just
grown
and
I'm.
A
Just
so
aware
in
the
work
that
I've
done
in
our
community,
how
many
folks
don't
have
that
and
don't
have
the
ability,
don't
have
the
agency
to
get
a
job
that
allows
them
to
have
that
I
think
as
far
as
the
details
that
needs
to
be
a
larger
conversation,
just
as
we
did
here,
just
as
we
had
here
in
Bloomington
with
our
earn
sick
and
safe
leave
ordinance,
we
need
to
involve
workers.
We
need
to
involve
businesses,
large
and
small
service
providers,
health
care
companies
and
everybody
else
in
between
and
the
entire
Community
about.
A
A
C
We
have
so
those
are
all
the
full
length
answer,
questions
that
we
have
tonight,
but
there
are
a
couple
of
short
questions
and
I
wonder
if
you'd
be
game
to
answer
them
in
maybe
one
sentence.
Okay,
we
have
two
of
these
here's,
the
first
one.
What
is
the
biggest
difference
between
you
and
your
opponent?
Can
you
answer
in
one
sentence?
E
A
C
E
C
D
D
Have
it
in
person
again
this
year,
so
I
again,
I
am
seeking
your
vote
this
year
to
be
elected,
to
represent
Bloomington
and
Richfield,
and
part
of
Minneapolis
and
I
wish
to
continue
my
work
on
behalf
of
our
community
on
the
issues
that
you
care
about
and
that
you
know
we've
talked
about
some
of
them
tonight,
but
we
haven't
really
touched
on
many
other
topics
that
we
could
have,
such
as
addressing
mental
health
concerns,
addressing
substance,
abuse
and
and
the
issues
that
our
society
is
facing.
So
I
encourage
you.
D
C
A
Well,
thank
you
again
to
the
League
of
Women
Voters
for
hosting
this
event
tonight.
Thank
you
all
for
being
here
in
person
and
and
everyone
watching
at
home,
and
thank
you
as
well
to
my
fellow
candidates.
I
know
it
always
takes
a
lot
of
guts
to
put
yourself
forward.
Put
your
name
on
the
ballot
and
I
always
respect
anyone
who
does
that
I'm
really
grateful
for
the
important
conversation
that
we've
had
here
tonight.
I
care
very
deeply
about
our
community
and
our
state
and
I
know
you
do
too.
A
That's
why
it's
so
important
that
we
elect
leaders
that
not
only
share
our
values
but
are
ready
and
eager
to
do
the
work
to
answer
the
tough
questions
and
be
honest
about
the
needs
that
we
Face
here
in
our
state,
I've
shown
that
I
am
that
kind
of
leader
by
the
work
that
I've
done
here
in
our
community
being
elected
twice
to
the
Bloomington
city
council,
so
I'm
asking
for
your
vote
because
your
vote
is
more
than
just
expressing
a
preference.
Your
vote
is
an
investment
in
the
kind
of
future
you
want
to
see.
E
So
I
want
to
start
off
by
saying
thank
you
for
the
invitation
and
also
if
anybody
needs
to
get
a
hold
of
me
phone
call.
Email
I'll
come
talk
to
anybody.
If
there's
something
that
came
up
here
and
you
disagreed,
don't
know
about
and
need
more
explanation,
please
get
a
hold
of
me.
I
guess.
I
I
just
want
to
point
out
the
the
differences
that
are
between
us
here.
He
keeps
talking
about
shared
values
and
I've,
seen
some
of
his
emails
to
constituents.
E
That
say,
if
I
don't
think
this
conversation
is
productive,
I
don't
need
to
be
a
part
of
it,
and
so
I
hear
that
shared
value,
and
it's
like
what
part
of
that
shared
value
is
that
there
was
a
500
000
deficit
that
he's
on
the
board
of
and
he's
like
yeah.
We
should
look
into
that
more
give
me
some
time
and
and
then
we
want
to
send
them
the
state
where
he's
going
to
be
in
charge
of
a
billion
dollars,
and
so
there's
differences
between
us
and
I'm.
C
Thank
you
very
much
candidates
for
participating
in
this
forum
and
for
your
willingness
to
participate
in
the
Democratic
process
by
running
for
office.
Thank
you
to
the
League
of
Women
Voters
Bloomington
for
sponsoring
this
forum.
It
has
been
video
recorded
in
its
entirety
and
it
can
be
viewed
unedited
on
YouTube.
There
will
be
links
posted
on
the
city
of
Bloomington
website
and
on
the
League
of
Women
Voters
Bloomington
website,
and
it
will
be
rebroadcast
on
Bloomington,
cable
TV
until
election
day.