Woodbury Rep. Keiffer Works on Bill to Increase Penalties for Sex Offenders

Rep. Andrea Kieffer, a Republican from Woodbury, will have the second hearing for her bill to increase penalties for sex offenders on Thursday.

The bill (HF532) relates to inappropriate conduct with minors and would sentence offenders to up to five years in prison if the individual has a qualifying prior offense.

The bill has the support of Washington County Attorney Pete Orput, Kieffer said.

“It should be a good one for our state,” she said.

Kieffer has also been asked to carry a bill that would reform the state’s corporate income tax rate. It has yet to be introduced and details weren’t available, but she said she is “excited” about it. She is also busy with issues relating to workers compensation reform.

Work at the state Capitol is heating up, Kieffer said, as representatives and senators are making sure any bill that has a fiscal component is submitted by the March 25 deadline. Although she is a freshman lawmaker and can't make a comparison herself, she said fellow lawmakers report that it things are ahead of schedule.

“It would be great if we could finish this session on time,” she said.

Kieffer’s colleague in the House, Rep. Kathy Lohmer, who represents parts of Woodbury, is sponsoring a bill (HF866) that would appropriate funds for the Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans. The funds would be used to help homeless veterans in the state. There is no companion bill in the Senate.

In the upper chamber, Sen. Ted Lillie in his weekly was touting the passage of SF1, a jobs bill he co-authored. The legislation has three major components, according to Lillie: “a phased-in 50 percent reduction of the business income tax rate, a roll back and freeze on business property taxes and regulatory relief.”

Lillie, a Republican from Lake Elmo who represents Woodbury in the state Senate, is also offering a survey for residents of District 56. To take the eight-question survey, click here.