The 2014 Legislative Session is Underway

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1 Dear Carla, The 2014 Legislative Session is Underway The 2014 legislative session is underway! I am hard at work in St. Paul to represent you and be a responsible steward of your tax dollars. With the abbreviated session this year (11 weeks!) it has been a busy start to the session. Some of my committees have already begun to have night-time hearings as the first deadline approaches in just two weeks. I have been meeting with many constituents, a variety of education and healthcare organizations, participating on education policy forums and more. If you have not yet had a chance to weigh in on a number of issues that are critical to the quality of life and economic well-being of Minnesotans that will be addressed this legislative session, please do so by completing my legislative survey. As always, please contact me with any questions or concerns that will help me represent and serve you. It is an honor to be your voice at the Capitol. Take care! Senator Carla Nelson Introduces "Stamp Out Bullying" Legislation (SF2411) Bullying is a serious issue. Schools must be places of safety where students are free from bullying and able to concentrate on learning. Superintendents, school board members, principals, teachers, parents and students have all expressed desires to stamp out bullying and wish to see locally driven policies and not a state driven unfunded mandate. "Stamp Out Bullying" (SF2411) is a result of those conversations. "Stamp Out Bullying" is modeled after A++ rated legislation ( and the North Dakota model called for by 1/14

2 Attorney General Lori Swanson. It has already received support from the Minnesota Association of School Boards. For any policy to be successful, it must be implementable by our school districts, retain local control and not become an unfunded mandate. "Stamp Out Bullying" requires that school districts adopt an antibullying policy which requires bulling incidents to be reported and investigated. Among other things, the law requires the policy to: Prohibit students from engaging in bullying or in retaliation against bullying victims or reporters of bullying Establish procedures for immediate report of alleged bullying and bullying retaliation, including parental notification Establish disciplinary measures applicable to those engaged in bullying or bullying-related retaliation Require law enforcement notification if an investigation results in reasonable suspicion that a crime may have occurred Establish strategies to protect bullying victims Establish a bullying prevention program for all K-12 students While school policies cannot stop all bullying, they can create a culture opposed to bullying. Let's work together to help our schools be the bastion of safety where every child is free to maximize their learning potential and become the prepared leaders of tomorrow we so desperately need. CP R Training In Schools In 2012, my legislation requiring Minnesota students (grades 7 through 12) to receive hands-only CPR training before graduation, the "CPR 2/14

3 Training in Schools" bill (SF1908/HF2329), was signed by Governor Mark Dayton. The law will be implemented for the school year. It is great to see smart legislation translate into real life application, with 60,000 students being trained every year on this life-saving skill. KSTP covered the first group of students to take the course at Southwest High School this past Wednesday. KSTP-TV "Students Prepare for 'Life Saving' Graduation Requirement" Rochester on Tour - March 11th, 2014 Every year I look forward to Rochester on Tour, an annual event where our Rochester community rallies to promote Rochester at the Capitol. This year's event takes place on Tuesday, March 11th and will bring Rochesterarea business leaders and community members together with legislators from across the state for networking, tours, education sessions, roundtable discussions, a rally in the Capitol Rotunda and a Grand Reception at St. Paul College. Roundtrip transportation is available from Rochester to St. Paul. Contact the Rochester Chamber of Commerce to register. I shared my education priorities with the Association of Metropolitan School Districts on March 4th at the Capitol 3/14

4 I contributed my thoughts on the future of STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) education as a part of a legislative panel hosted by SciMathMN at the University of St. Thomas on March 4th (left) Speaking at the 5% Campaign Rally on March 4th in the Capitol Rotunda (right) I was honored to have Cody Bendickson representing the Minnesota Family, Career and Community Leaders of America shadow me in my legislative duties on March 4th Follow w hat's happening in the State Legislature! "MyBills" is a program which allows you to track House and Senate bills by bill number. When you log in, you will be shown alerts for the bills you have selected that have had, or have upcoming, significant action. In the House, these actions include the General Register, Consent Calendar, Calendar for the Day, Supplemental Calendar for the Day, Fiscal Calendar, and Reports of Standing Committees. In the Senate, these actions include General Orders, Consent Calendar, the Calendar, and Reports of Committees. Actions from Conference Committees, such as Reports and Activity, are also included. The service also includes alerts when action is taken on the floor of the House or Senate on one of your bills. 4/14

5 Contact the non-partisan Secretary of the Senate office for additional information about following legislation Constituents at the Capitol I have had the great pleasure of visiting with many Minnesotans from District 26 and the Rochester-area during this Legislative Session. In fact, I've had more than twenty-five meetings with constituents since the beginning of session, representing a wide-variety of issues. Minnesota Occupational Therapy Association (left) RCTC Undergraduate Research Scholars student Alison Seemann (right) Judy Lane, Howling for Wolves 5/14

6 Minnesota Physical Therapy Association 6/14

7 (left) Courtney Forsythe of Rochester (right) St. Francis student City officials from Eyota and Chatfield including Mayor Clark and Mayor Smith 7/14

8 Minnesota Organization of Leaders in Nursing 8/14

9 Minnesota Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 9/14

10 South Eastern Libraries Co-Operating 10/14

11 (top left) MN Milk Producers Association (top right) Rochester Education Association (bottom left) MN Coalition for the Homeless (bottom right) Natl Alliance on Mental Illness St. Francis School 6th grade students (left) Pastor Ron Allen, Stewartville (right) Rich Kramer, American Cancer Society 11/14

12 Minnesota Township Association District 1 officials 12/14

13 American Association of Critical-Care Nurses Not pictured: Rochester-area YMCA, Minnesota Dental Association, Minnesota Business Aviation Association, Minnesota Soybean Growers Association 2014 Legislative Survey Good government requires active citizen engagement. The Legislature will address many issues in the 2014 session. Many will affect you. Please click here to answer a short survey regarding important issues of the 2014 Legislative Session. Please contact my office at if you would like to complete this survey by mail or phone. Keep In Touch And Spread The Word! You may wish to follow me on Facebook and Twitter for quick updates. For more information, visit my Senate website, or the full MN Senate site. Please contact me with any questions and comments or if you need any 13/14

14 assistance on a state government issue. You can reach me at sen.carla.nelson@senate.mn or Please share this on your Facebook page or other social media site, or forward to a friend. Serving you, Senator Carla Nelson Sen.Carla.Nelson@Senate.MN Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. St. Paul, MN Forward this em ail This was sent to carla@senatorcarlanelson.org by carla@senatorcarlanelson.org Update Profile/ Address Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe Privacy Policy. Senator Carla Nelson 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. 117 State Office Building St. Paul MN /14