Yearly Archives: 2014

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) penned the following op-ed in the Minneapolis Star Tribune this morning on our current housing investements.

Legislation authored by Congressman Erik Paulsen (MN-03) combating sex trafficking passed the Senate by unanimous consent. The bill, H.R. 4980, the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act, includes provisions from previous Paulsen legislation that improves data and law enforcement reporting for youth who are at-risk of being trafficked. In addition, H.R. 4980 makes critical changes to the foster care system to decrease the likelihood that children will run away or become homeless. A study by the Department of Health and Human Services found that 1 in 3 children are lured into sex trafficking within 48 hours of being on the street.

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar announced today that the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) has passed the Senate and will now head to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The final legislation contains several key provisions Klobuchar fought to include that will help strengthen Minnesota’s water infrastructure and economy. The bipartisan agreement will help keep invasive carp out of Minnesota’s waterways, ensure the long-term viability of the inland waterway system, including the Mississippi River, address port and harbor maintenance on the Great Lakes, and advance key flood protection projects

Today the House of Representatives unanimously passed a bipartisan amendment authored by Reps. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), Tom Marino (R-Penn.), Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) and Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) to H.R. 10, the “Success and Opportunity Through Quality Charter Schools Act.” The amendment would help to ensure that foster and homeless youth are not unfairly disadvantaged in the enrollment process for charter schools.

Today, Mayor Mitch Landrieu, The Neighborhood Capacity Building Initiative (NCBI) and the Mayor’s Neighborhood Engagement Office announced the Creating Communities for Change campaign. The NCBI is a collaborative training program designed to enhance community development across New Orleans through training, skills development, and small grants that build neighborhood and organizational capacity.

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) released the following statement on learning of the apartment building and grocery store fire in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis: