Thursday, May 2, 2013
Debate over the legislation will likely be taken up at the Capitol next year.
Woodbury Rep. Andrea Kieffer was among a handful of lawmakers who attended a Thursday press conference at the Capitol outlining a plan for medical marijuana in Minnesota. “Why would you allow people to suffer if it has the potential to help patients?” she said. Kieffer, a Republican, said the legislation wouldn’t likely be heard until next year. While Gov. Mark Dayton has said he will not support such a bill without the backing of the law enforcement community, Rep. Carly Melin, DFL-Hibbing, said the legislation “strikes the appropriate balance between compassion, health and safety,” according to an Associated Press report on the Grand Forks Herald’s website. Patients who are prescribed the drug would have to get a special identification …
Friday, April 12, 2013
The Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault recognized Kieffer at a ceremony Thursday.
For her work on a bill that would increase penalties for repeat sex offenders, Woodbury Rep. Andrea Kieffer was recognized Thursday by the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault. Kieffer, a Republican serving her second term in the state House, worked on a similar bill last session and is hopeful lawmakers will support House File 142 this year. “We’re really trying hard to get it passed,” said Kieffer. One sticking point with the previous version of the bill was the fiscal note attached to it, but she said the state Department of Corrections may absorb the costs and help the bill become law. The idea behind the legislation is to prevent those convicted of lesser sex crimes from committing more egregious offenses in the future, she said…
Thursday, March 7, 2013
A column from Sen. Chuck Wiger of District 43.
In 2012, Governor Dayton formed a task force on the prevention of school bullying. Bullying was a problem before 2011, but the Governor’s task force shined a light toward an ongoing problem. Back in 2009, I offered anti-bullying legislation, which passed the House and Senate, but was vetoed by Governor Tim Pawlenty. This year, however, I’m optimistic we will pass legislation based on the task force’s recommendations from last August. Those recommendations, and the current bill, are a result of months of public testimony and deliberation. The task force recommended a complete overhaul of the limited policy against bullying by repealing current law and implementing new definitions, reporting, training and procedures on bullying. Furthermore…
Thursday, February 28, 2013
The Republican’s bill was recently heard in the House Public Safety Committee.
Andrea Kieffer, the House District 53B representative, says it looks as though her legislation to increase penalties for repeat sex offenders may be rolled into a larger public safety bill. “Which is very disappointing,” said Kieffer, of Woodbury, serving her second term in the state House. The bill has bipartisan support, she said, and the fear is that having it included in an omnibus bill could result in lawmakers voting along party lines, rather than supporting it on its own. Kieffer, a Republican, championed a similar bill during the last legislative session and wants to see it as a stand-alone bill in 2013. The legislation was recently heard in the House Public Safety Committee. Critics point to additional costs for keeping such …
Monday, January 7, 2013
The Republican wants the state to require a three-fifths vote rather than a simple majority for the ballot initiatives.
Rep. Andrea Kieffer plans to introduce a bill that would require a three-fifths vote of the Legislature before putting a proposed amendment to the state Constitution on the ballot, rather than a simple majority. “If it’s important enough to change the Constitution, it needs to have bipartisan support,” said Kieffer, a Republican from Woodbury. Specifically, Kieffer said she has issues with amendments tied to state finances, listing the 2008 passage of the Clean Water, Land and Water Legacy Amendment as an example. Other states have similar thresholds in place for constitutional ballot initiatives, she said, and some require passage during two legislative sessions. The November 2012 ballot had two proposed amendments to the Constitution, …
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Joined by other GOP lawmakers on Thursday, the senator who represents Woodbury said the measure would revert state spending to previous levels in the event of a budget impasse.
A group of Republican lawmakers today announced a plan that would effectively end state government shutdowns. Under the proposal, if a budget agreement isn’t reached by the end of the legislative session, funding for state services would continue at previous levels. Twelve other states have similar laws on the books, said Sen. Ted Lillie, who was joined by Sen. Paul Gazelka, Sen. Ted Daley and Rep. Kathy Lohmer during a 15-minute press conference at the Capitol on July 21. The plan—similar to a bill Lt. Gov. Yvonne Prettner Solon proposed as a state senator in 2006—has several permutations, including reverting state spending to 80-100 percent of previous levels or enacting the measure through a constitutional amendment. The longest …
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
The bill would require education and testing about carbon monoxide poisoning as part of getting a driver’s license.
Woodbury residents Kelly and Jeff Lavers took their fight for Tyler’s Law to the Senate on Tuesday. The couple has been working with local lawmakers to pass a bill that would require driver’s education courses to address the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning and require a question about it on permit tests. Their 19-year-old son Tyler—a sophomore at the University of Minnesota—died from carbon monoxide poisoning in December 2010 while working on his car in a garage. The door was wide open. The Lavers family was at the Capitol this week to testify about the bill before the state Senate’s transportation committee. “It was nice, we were first up,” Kelly Lavers said. There is some question regarding how the law would be presented in its …
Jessie
7:46 pm on Tuesday, May 14, 2013
@ Christine. I seen several studys that pharmisudical companys have pushed out in an effort to keep the drug illegal. I will also note that all including goverment regulated tests had to be redone because people used extreme methiods to create faulse results. Gased a monkey without oxigen enough thc for a month in a matter of minnuts. When retaken with oxigen and only enought for a day every day … more ›