Legislative Updates

FMR is proud to be a leading voice in protecting the Mississippi River and all the people and wildlife who depend on it. 

Join us! Sign up to be a River Guardian to receive email action alerts when the river needs your help, plus invitations to educational happy hours and other events.

Legislative Updates
Multiple bills undermine state drinking water protection authority

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We can all agree that clean, safe drinking water should be accessible and affordable for everyone regardless of geography or income. Unfortunately, no fewer than five bills have already been introduced this session that undercut state authority to protect public and private wells from contamination through the 1989 Groundwater Protection Act. >>

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Environmental policy & budget defense

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At FMR, we stand with Minnesotans from all walks of life who believe that clean and healthy rivers, lakes, streams and drinking water supplies must not be compromised for political gain. As the Minnesota Legislature sets to work on its two-year budget, we'll be keeping an eye out for unfair cuts, raids and rollbacks. Learn more and sign up to be a River Guardian to take action when it's needed most.  >>

 
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Water glass in a forest
Our 2018 legislative priorities

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Budget uncertainty, election-year politics and a sometimes-heated debate on environment and conservation issues should make for a fascinating legislative session. Here are our priorities for the 2018 session, which kicks off Tuesday, February 20.

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Our Capitol rotunda, full of hundreds of Minnesotans calling on legislators to support clean water.
Media coverage of our lawsuit against the state

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As articles about our lawsuit roll in, we'll be sure to post them here. First up, the Star Tribune. >>

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Evaluating the final Clean Water Fund bill

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HF 707 betrays the expectations of Minnesota voters by raiding $22 million in Clean Water Fund money for administrative costs for local governments, while failing to heed the recmmendations of Minnesota's Clean Water Council.

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How water fared in the legislative session + a happy hour invitation

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While the 2017 Minnesota legislative session didn’t go as well as we hoped — we failed to make any meaningful progress on water quality — we can say for certain that the final bills were a great improvement over those originally vetoed by Gov. Mark Dayton. 

Thank you FMR River Guardians, Water Action Day participants and everyone who joined in our efforts to stand up for clean water this session! 

Learn more from our Legislative Updates blog and join us for happy hour, Tuesday, June 27 to recap the session with the FMR Capitol Crew and discuss what's next.

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Environment bill becomes law: What’s in & what’s out?

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The Minnesota Legislature's original environment bill was one of the most sweeping anti-environmental bills to advance at the Capitol in many years. Luckily, it was vetoed by Gov. Mark Dayton on May 12. So what made it into the final bill that the governor signed on May 30? Some rollbacks, no water quality progress, but not the worst provisions were removed during final negotiations with the Dayton administration.

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