Legislative Updates (now The Water Blog between sessions)
FMR is proud to be a leading voice to protect the water of our Big River, and all the people and wildlife who depend on it.
From the halls of the Legislature to the banks of the Mississippi, our Water Blog strives to keep you up to date on important water-quality issues.
Blog updates are also shared on social (Facebook and Twitter) and in FMR's Mississippi Messages newsletter.
Join us! Sign up to be a River Guardian to receive email action alerts when we need your help the most, plus invitations to educational happy hours and other events.
Despite the sudden spring blizzard, over 450 Minnesotans from across the state joined us at the Capitol for a day of action and advocacy. Together, they attended trainings on a range of issues, met individually with almost a quarter of the Minnesota Legislature, participated in the first Water Town Hall and rallied for clean water. >>
Today is Water Action Day! If you can't join us at the Minnesota State Capitol, participate remotely by emailing your legislators and asking them to #ProtectOurWater!
Check out Minnesota Public Radio's recent coverage of our coalition's press event on one of our major legislative priorities this session: The University of Minnesota's Forever Green Initiative to research and develop clean-water crops. >>
On March 5, Gov. Tim Walz signed bipartisan legislation to fix last year’s controversial use of Minnesota’s voter-approved Environment & Natural Resources Trust Fund. This is a win for taxpayers and our environment, and restoring the fund was a major priority for FMR this session. Here’s what happened. >>
Great news! We’re thankful legislative leaders and Gov. Tim Walz agreed to a funding fix that gets shovels in the ground as soon as possible for worthy projects while preserving the citizen-driven Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund voters created 30 years ago. >>
FMR is championing a pair of innovative bills that will protect our water, diversify our croplands, and strengthen rural communities. Please join us in asking legislators to support full funding for Forever Green and the Working Lands Drinking Water Protection Program. >>
Legislation introduced this month would fund the Working Lands Drinking Water Program. The program will help farmers plant and sell alternative crops that protect drinking water while maintaining farm profitability. As a pilot initiative, it's limited to the state's most vulnerable wellhead areas — places where conservation crops can protect public health. >>
On Tuesday, Gov. Walz announced his state budget proposal. We took a look at how our priorities for the river and clean water fared. Our take-away so far? We have some work to do. New investments in environment and agriculture were minor and failed to include full funding for the few initiatives that are essential to achieving Minnesota's clean water goals. >>
To get to our clean water goals in Minnesota, we need to plant more perennial and cover crops. But these crops need to be profitable before farm operations can effectively make the change. To address this challenge, two bills were introduced in mid-February in the house and senate that will fully fund the University of Minnesota’s Forever Green Initiative. >>