Upcoming: Coffee with TomI am pleased to share that I will be hosting 'Coffee with Tom' in Waseca and Owatonna in the upcoming weeks. On the first Friday of the month, beginning tomorrow, February 7th, I will be available at the Owatonna Chamber of Commerce. On the second Friday of the month, beginning February 14th, I will be available at the Waseca Chamber of Commerce. 'Coffee with Tom' will be from 12:00-1:00pm until further notice. I will also be available on February 28th from 9:00-10:00am at Medford Congregational United Church (211 S Main Medford St.). I look forward to enjoying a cup of coffee and the opportunity to connect with community members, hear local concerns, and understand how I can best serve our communities. The Aging Population in MinnesotaIn several different ways this week, I had the opportunity to talk about the challenges that we are facing regarding care for and service to our aging population in Minnesota. As I met with folks from the Minnesota Association of Farm Mutual Insurance Companies, they shared their concerns about fraud towards the elderly population. With the bad storms we get in Minnesota, there is ample opportunity for individuals to take advantage of elderly homeowners by claiming that they have roof damage and need repairs. This insight is disheartening but I am thankful that they shared the concern with me and how it can be addressed with more stringent legislation. We have also been unpacking what the impacts of the Governor Walz's budget will be on our elderly population. With proposed cuts to long term care and the way that assisted living facilities receive funding from the state, there will be increasingly negative impacts on the ability of assisted living facilities and nursing homes to care for their residents. Through these conversations this week, it is very clear that we need to address the pressing issues facing our elderly population and the facilities that we have to best serve them. Bill ProgressI had the opportunity this week to meet with Rep. Mary Franson, who will be the Chair of the Capital Investments committee once we resume official legislative activities. I presented her with the bonding bills for Owatonna and Waseca that I shared with you a few weeks ago. Although these bills cannot make any progress through the legislature at this time, this was a great first step to familiarize Rep. Franson with the scope of the bills and what they will do for our community. Stay tuned for further updates on these bills as they come. In addition, I regularly reach out to local leaders in Owatonna, Waseca, and Medford to provide updates on the status of legislation and State of MN initiatives. By the way, I campaigned for bringing our tax dollars back to southern MN. Thus, I am a member of the Capital Investment committee, and I am keeping a close eye on all of our southern Minnesota projects. |