Abeler in Action.

Voting to end Emergency Powers

For seven months MN has been fighting Covid. It has been a long haul for everyone.
The Governor and I recently had a conversation during which he mentioned how heavy it is to carry the burden of running the state response alone.

I agree. One leader and his small team should not still be unilaterally making all the Covid executive orders and negatives impacting more businesses and families than they even realize.

It is time to share that load, as Covid is not going away anytime soon. County public health officials, county commissioners and other elected officials should be enabled to make locally-based decisions on masks, ratios, and protecting their citizens.

It will improve the effectiveness and public support for the challenging path that is ahead of us. If we are going to be effective against COVID we have to do it together because we will be fighting this for a long time.

Jim Abeler

Disability Service Providers

We passed $30.4 million in federal CARES funding for retention and public health grants for disability service providers. They were in dire financial straits as Governor Walz's COVID-19 executive orders required them to shut down for months. This has also been very hard on the clients, many of whom have not left their group home since March.

These facilities have done everything in their power to survive the effects of this pandemic, but many were about to shutter. They deliver excellent quality of life and care that everyone deserves. This funding will help continue serving their clients into the post-Covid world.

Since March, Senator John Hoffman and I have led the bipartisan charge to get this funding to providers despite consistent indifference from the Governor.

Watch the Senate floor session. It is an example of how working together gets things done.

Reopening Schools

I believe the Governor sincerely wants to do what is best for Minnesotans. As he considers mandating school closures for the fall, I just want to remind him that he does not have to make sweeping decisions for our whole state, nor should he. The legislature and local elected officials are ready to help him make tailored decisions with our communities’ input. Some districts should open, some should stay closed, and the best choice will be made through collaboration with parents, teachers, administrators and community leaders.