It's been too long since I've made time to post. Over the next weeks, I'll begin a series of posts about energy efficiency and energy conservation.
This week, it was my honor to visit with Ed Mazria, founder of Mazria, Inc. Architecture Planning Conservation in Santa Fe. He was in town to speak to the University of Minnesota's College of Design about his latest project, Architecture 2030.
Ed wrote the Passive Solar Energy Book in 1979, for years the bible for solar-sensitive design. He then disappeared from the broader architecture world, hunkered down in New Mexico building millions of square feet of energy-efficient architecture.
Mazria reappeared on the scene with his October 2003 cover piece Turning Down the Global Thermostat. For nearly four years, he's staunchly advocated for sustainable design requirements in architecture curricula all over the U.S.
Monday, Mazria spoke to about 400 students, faculty and advocates at the U of M. That same afternoon, I was invited to a smaller workshop with master's students, faculty, the Dean of the College of Design, and leaders in the field, to propose new action steps in education, practice, research and policy to push energy efficiency in Minnesota, especially in Green Building.
I will write more about this in coming weeks. Thanks for your continued interest in patience.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
From the Floor II: the Bonding Bill
Another day, another floor session. This time it's Tuesday evening, and the bill is the Capital Investment bill. Generally, the odd-numbered year's bonding bill is a bit slimmer than the even-numbered year's. This is again the case this year.
But there is good news for Chisago County. $500,000 will be bonded for the Rush Line commuter transit corridor infrastructure along highway 35 and highway 61.
The debate is just beginning, but I will be sure to add an update or two or three before the night is done.
UPDATE: Only four amendments, all of which were voted down with a wide majority. We're now on third reading.
UPDATE II: The bill passed 84-45, after a fairly brief discussion. Perhaps we're on the path to somewhat quicker sessions...?
Regardless, the next step of investment in the Rush Line is one evening closer to reality.
But there is good news for Chisago County. $500,000 will be bonded for the Rush Line commuter transit corridor infrastructure along highway 35 and highway 61.
The debate is just beginning, but I will be sure to add an update or two or three before the night is done.
UPDATE: Only four amendments, all of which were voted down with a wide majority. We're now on third reading.
UPDATE II: The bill passed 84-45, after a fairly brief discussion. Perhaps we're on the path to somewhat quicker sessions...?
Regardless, the next step of investment in the Rush Line is one evening closer to reality.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
the Transportation Bill on the House Floor
We are on the House Floor today in an unusual Saturday session. We are taking up the Transportation Finance bill, one that I've worked very hard on this session as a member of the Transportation Committee. I am unfortunately missing one of my favorite events of the year - the Friends of Wild River State Park annual maple syrup and pancake breakfast (with freshly-boiled syrup!). But this Transportation Bill will help meet an incredible need facing the people I represent: traffic congestion and unsafe roads.
The bill is also a Jobs bill. My friend, Congressman (and Chair) Jim Oberstar often cites this statistic: 1 lane mile of new road brings 55 new jobs.
I spoke frankly with my MnDOT Area Manager last week. I asked him whether the state can fund the North Branch Bridge at highway 95 without more funding. His straightforward answer was - not before 2009, certainly. Without this bill, North Branch would have to levy $4.2 Million in property tax bonding to build the bridge.
For a long time, the DFL House Caucus has listed its top priorities as "Education, Health Care and Property Tax reform." I've long thought that one critical issue has been missing, and spoke several times directly with the Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader as well. I am satisfied that we're taking the Transportation Finance Bill before all others, because the need is so great across the state.
One last specific note before I share with you a little bit of what's happening on the floor. The 2005 Transportation Bill would have provided $17 million in state funding just to our Chisago County county-state-aid roads. Because the bill did not become law - and because we then had the worst county roads in a MnDOT study - the county was forced to bond $14 Million in property taxes to make up for the lost revenue.
- - - -
We're now about 30 minutes into the floor action on the bill. Representative Holberg offered an amendment that would violate our balanced budget principles over the next two years - the budget "tails" as they are called around here. I voted no.
As Vice-Chair of Public Safety, I've worked closely with the Republican Lead, Rep. Paul Kohls. I'd now call him a friend. His amendment to strip out the major funding of the bill just failed - and I voted no on this one as well.
Many of these amendments were discussed through the three-month committee process this year. We worked diligently in a bi-partisan manner to write the bill, which passed with only 3 nay votes in Committee.
- - - -
Rep. Sviggum is offering an amendment that would micromanage the transit system. My professional training is, of course, in architecture and planning. I know that we need to trust professionals to design a system that works well - and that we need to fund the system to reach the critical mass so that transit is available to areas where there is real need and desire for it - like Chisago County. My largest city is 29.5 miles away from the closest connection to the metro transit system, though we are part of the metro MnDOT district and pay for the roads the busses ride along. I will vote no on the Sviggum amendment.
Rep. Garofalo just offered an amendment to prohibit toll roads in Minnesota. While I generally agree with the principle, there are a few worthy areas where a toll road may make sense. The proposed major freeway-style bridge in Stillwater would cost $494 Million - primarily to move Wisconsin residents to their Minnesota jobs. This immense project will benefit Wisconsiners mostly, and a toll charge will help the users actually pay for the bridge project. I voted no on the Garofalo amendment for this reason.
- - - -
After I spoke urging a "green" vote, the Republican lead on our committee, Doug Magnus, spoke about the bill as well. He pointed out that there are a lot of good elements in the bill, even though he'll vote against it.
Now, finally, Transportation Chair Bernie Lieder is wrapping up the debate, sharing his wisdom as one of the true legends in the Minnesota House. He is also refuting some of the exagerations previously stated about the funding part of the bill. I've especially enjoyed getting to know Bernie, and learning at his feet. He's sharp, fair, and even-keeled.
The bill just passed 83-46.
Thanks for reading this post. Please do let me know if you enjoyed the format and the discussion. If you'd also prefer shorter updates more frequently, please do let me know as well. As always, your comments, questions, ideas and input are encouraged. Thanks for your attention. Enjoy the spring weather!
The bill is also a Jobs bill. My friend, Congressman (and Chair) Jim Oberstar often cites this statistic: 1 lane mile of new road brings 55 new jobs.
I spoke frankly with my MnDOT Area Manager last week. I asked him whether the state can fund the North Branch Bridge at highway 95 without more funding. His straightforward answer was - not before 2009, certainly. Without this bill, North Branch would have to levy $4.2 Million in property tax bonding to build the bridge.
For a long time, the DFL House Caucus has listed its top priorities as "Education, Health Care and Property Tax reform." I've long thought that one critical issue has been missing, and spoke several times directly with the Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader as well. I am satisfied that we're taking the Transportation Finance Bill before all others, because the need is so great across the state.
One last specific note before I share with you a little bit of what's happening on the floor. The 2005 Transportation Bill would have provided $17 million in state funding just to our Chisago County county-state-aid roads. Because the bill did not become law - and because we then had the worst county roads in a MnDOT study - the county was forced to bond $14 Million in property taxes to make up for the lost revenue.
- - - -
We're now about 30 minutes into the floor action on the bill. Representative Holberg offered an amendment that would violate our balanced budget principles over the next two years - the budget "tails" as they are called around here. I voted no.
As Vice-Chair of Public Safety, I've worked closely with the Republican Lead, Rep. Paul Kohls. I'd now call him a friend. His amendment to strip out the major funding of the bill just failed - and I voted no on this one as well.
Many of these amendments were discussed through the three-month committee process this year. We worked diligently in a bi-partisan manner to write the bill, which passed with only 3 nay votes in Committee.
- - - -
Rep. Sviggum is offering an amendment that would micromanage the transit system. My professional training is, of course, in architecture and planning. I know that we need to trust professionals to design a system that works well - and that we need to fund the system to reach the critical mass so that transit is available to areas where there is real need and desire for it - like Chisago County. My largest city is 29.5 miles away from the closest connection to the metro transit system, though we are part of the metro MnDOT district and pay for the roads the busses ride along. I will vote no on the Sviggum amendment.
Rep. Garofalo just offered an amendment to prohibit toll roads in Minnesota. While I generally agree with the principle, there are a few worthy areas where a toll road may make sense. The proposed major freeway-style bridge in Stillwater would cost $494 Million - primarily to move Wisconsin residents to their Minnesota jobs. This immense project will benefit Wisconsiners mostly, and a toll charge will help the users actually pay for the bridge project. I voted no on the Garofalo amendment for this reason.
- - - -
After I spoke urging a "green" vote, the Republican lead on our committee, Doug Magnus, spoke about the bill as well. He pointed out that there are a lot of good elements in the bill, even though he'll vote against it.
Now, finally, Transportation Chair Bernie Lieder is wrapping up the debate, sharing his wisdom as one of the true legends in the Minnesota House. He is also refuting some of the exagerations previously stated about the funding part of the bill. I've especially enjoyed getting to know Bernie, and learning at his feet. He's sharp, fair, and even-keeled.
The bill just passed 83-46.
Thanks for reading this post. Please do let me know if you enjoyed the format and the discussion. If you'd also prefer shorter updates more frequently, please do let me know as well. As always, your comments, questions, ideas and input are encouraged. Thanks for your attention. Enjoy the spring weather!
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Picking up the pace
The House policy committee deadline is next Friday, March 23. As a result, committees are pressing hard to advance the most critical bills before next Friday.
The House Rules have set the most aggressive committee deadlines in memory, to get our work done on time, and to bring the most important issues to the fore earlier, rather than waiting until the last week of session.
The consequence is multiple committees at the same time, on all floors of the State Office Building. For instance, tonight I had a Transportation Committee hearing in room 10, a Public Safety Committee meeting in room 400S (I think!), a significant Property Tax bill in the Basement hearing room, and I still hoped to make it to my Township Annual meeting and a planned reception near the Capitol, too.
I will present no fewer than 7 bills over the next 5 days, with at least 3 or 4 more bills a possibility (depending on whether the substance is included in other bills.) I am also essentially "second author" on two other bills.
In addition, I am still working hard to keep up with the literally hundreds of daily emails and phone calls from constituents.
All of this to say.... I love this job.
The House Rules have set the most aggressive committee deadlines in memory, to get our work done on time, and to bring the most important issues to the fore earlier, rather than waiting until the last week of session.
The consequence is multiple committees at the same time, on all floors of the State Office Building. For instance, tonight I had a Transportation Committee hearing in room 10, a Public Safety Committee meeting in room 400S (I think!), a significant Property Tax bill in the Basement hearing room, and I still hoped to make it to my Township Annual meeting and a planned reception near the Capitol, too.
I will present no fewer than 7 bills over the next 5 days, with at least 3 or 4 more bills a possibility (depending on whether the substance is included in other bills.) I am also essentially "second author" on two other bills.
In addition, I am still working hard to keep up with the literally hundreds of daily emails and phone calls from constituents.
All of this to say.... I love this job.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Nice Profile in ECM Papers
ECM Publishers reporter Tim Budig stopped by my Capitol office last week. One never knows how the final piece might turn out, but Mr. Budig did a pretty good job capturing my general approach to serving Chisago County in the State House. Catch it here.
The Energy Bill he references, House File 1221, was initially presented today in the Energy Finance Committee, and will be voted on in committee on Wednesday. When fully implemented by 2025, we will save over 24% of the state's electricity, making the Renewable Energy Standard we passed last week easier and less expensive to achieve.
The cost savings may be immense. The cost of adding new power to the system is about 8 cents a kilowatt hour. The cost of saving energy is about 1.5 cents a kilowatt hour. More later...
The Energy Bill he references, House File 1221, was initially presented today in the Energy Finance Committee, and will be voted on in committee on Wednesday. When fully implemented by 2025, we will save over 24% of the state's electricity, making the Renewable Energy Standard we passed last week easier and less expensive to achieve.
The cost savings may be immense. The cost of adding new power to the system is about 8 cents a kilowatt hour. The cost of saving energy is about 1.5 cents a kilowatt hour. More later...
Monday, February 19, 2007
History in the Making
Earlier this summer, I took a break from campaigning for a couple of days. My fiancee was aready up at her family cabin on Lake Vermillion, and I was cramming through a bunch of tight deadlines at work and on the campaign. It was one of those months where the pace gets faster and faster and it seems you can't do anything but keep working your way through it. I barely had time to keep up with email let alone absorb any of the news. I was just diligently keeping my head down, trying to get enough done to finally get away.
So, when the moment finally came, I treated myself to a quiet drive up I35 towards Duluth, savoring the relative silence. All of a sudden, there it was. Barreling down the freeway the other way was a long and massive white object, taking up nearly all of the freeway. I developed a knot in my stomach, wondering what in the world had transpired the last few days. Quickly, I snapped the radio on, flipping from WCCO to MPR to ClearChannel, hoping for any hint of news. By the time I looked up again, the object and its oversized flatbed trailer was vanishing in my rear-view mirror.
We all probably remember that 8th-grade civics lesson about the Interstate Highway system, and Eisenhower's emphasis on a means to move military infrastructure quickly.
About two minutes later, another missile-like object appeared at the top of a ridge. I watched it very carefully as it approached. This time, it was closely followed by a large, towering, bulky object. On the side of this large manifold was a barely distinguishable logo.
Only after these trailers passed me did I realize that these were not missiles headed to a silo, but instead were the blades and the hub of a new wind turbine, likely headed for southeastern Minnesota from the port in Duluth.
Tonight, the House convenes at 6 p.m. in our first evening session of the year, to debate and vote on the Renewable Energy Standard (RES), Senate File 4. The bill will require that Excel energy generate 30% of its electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2020. All other utilities are required to generate 25% of their electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2025. The mandate for Excel - who provides almost half of Minnesota's power - is larger and sooner partly due to their license to operate the two nuclear power plants in Minnesota. Overall, Minnesota will generate 25% of its electricity from cleaner sources by 2020, and an average of 27.5% or so by 2025.
This bill will create thousands of new jobs in Minnesota - from operating engineers to manufacturers of the turbines themselves. In fact, those turbine parts I saw this summer on I-35 - many of them will now be made at a Suzlon plant in Pipestone, Minnesota, saving a ton of money in transportation costs.
Combined with an Energy Efficiency performance standard, see my bill, House File 789, the RES will likely ultimately result in a net drop of carbon dioxide emissions from power generation in Minnesota by 2025 - as much as a 15% drop in CO2 emissions, actually.
And, most importantly, as I speak with veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, the RES is a major step toward Energy Independence, at least for Minnesota. By adopting one of the nation's most aggressive and achievable standards, we can lead the way toward an Apollo Alliance style national initiative for Energy Independence and self-sufficiency. Is 25 or even 30% independence? Not yet. But we will control much more of our own energy destiny - without sacrificing our high quality of life - and can reduce the staggering amount of money we send to areas of the world intent on killing our soldiers.
Tonight, history is in the offing. I look forward to the debate. You can watch it live here by clicking on "Updates from the House Floor" on the upper right hand corner of the page.
So, when the moment finally came, I treated myself to a quiet drive up I35 towards Duluth, savoring the relative silence. All of a sudden, there it was. Barreling down the freeway the other way was a long and massive white object, taking up nearly all of the freeway. I developed a knot in my stomach, wondering what in the world had transpired the last few days. Quickly, I snapped the radio on, flipping from WCCO to MPR to ClearChannel, hoping for any hint of news. By the time I looked up again, the object and its oversized flatbed trailer was vanishing in my rear-view mirror.
We all probably remember that 8th-grade civics lesson about the Interstate Highway system, and Eisenhower's emphasis on a means to move military infrastructure quickly.
About two minutes later, another missile-like object appeared at the top of a ridge. I watched it very carefully as it approached. This time, it was closely followed by a large, towering, bulky object. On the side of this large manifold was a barely distinguishable logo.
Only after these trailers passed me did I realize that these were not missiles headed to a silo, but instead were the blades and the hub of a new wind turbine, likely headed for southeastern Minnesota from the port in Duluth.
Tonight, the House convenes at 6 p.m. in our first evening session of the year, to debate and vote on the Renewable Energy Standard (RES), Senate File 4. The bill will require that Excel energy generate 30% of its electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2020. All other utilities are required to generate 25% of their electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2025. The mandate for Excel - who provides almost half of Minnesota's power - is larger and sooner partly due to their license to operate the two nuclear power plants in Minnesota. Overall, Minnesota will generate 25% of its electricity from cleaner sources by 2020, and an average of 27.5% or so by 2025.
This bill will create thousands of new jobs in Minnesota - from operating engineers to manufacturers of the turbines themselves. In fact, those turbine parts I saw this summer on I-35 - many of them will now be made at a Suzlon plant in Pipestone, Minnesota, saving a ton of money in transportation costs.
Combined with an Energy Efficiency performance standard, see my bill, House File 789, the RES will likely ultimately result in a net drop of carbon dioxide emissions from power generation in Minnesota by 2025 - as much as a 15% drop in CO2 emissions, actually.
And, most importantly, as I speak with veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, the RES is a major step toward Energy Independence, at least for Minnesota. By adopting one of the nation's most aggressive and achievable standards, we can lead the way toward an Apollo Alliance style national initiative for Energy Independence and self-sufficiency. Is 25 or even 30% independence? Not yet. But we will control much more of our own energy destiny - without sacrificing our high quality of life - and can reduce the staggering amount of money we send to areas of the world intent on killing our soldiers.
Tonight, history is in the offing. I look forward to the debate. You can watch it live here by clicking on "Updates from the House Floor" on the upper right hand corner of the page.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Welcome to the Fireside Blog
Welcome to the Fireside Blog. I plan on using this platform to write about my work as your State Representative, serving the residents of Chisago County, Minnesota - district 17B. As a first-term legislator, my primary concern is making sure that your interests and your voice is represented here in the halls of the Capitol.
Nearly 75 years ago, the nation faced terrible challenges and economic hardship. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt enlisted the help of new technology - radio - to address the nation. These addresses became known as the Fireside Chats, and largely helped rally the country to a shared cause, especially once World War II broke out across Europe and the U.S. was drawn into the war by the attack on Pearl Harbor.
I've borrowed this phrase from FDR and applied it to a fairly new medium - internet web-logging a.k.a. blogging - because I realized that during the heart of winter, I do most of my work at home, sitting by the side of a toasty-warm fire.
I hope to post as regularly as possible. Sometimes you'll get an inside look at a policy discussion or a legislative event. Other times I hope to share community news and events. And, unfortunately, sometimes you may have to settle with a news release that is pasted here for your interest.
Above all, I invite you email me about any and all concerns you have about your government. You can reach me at the Capitol office at Rep.Jeremy.Kalin@House.mn or at 651-296-5377. You can also reach me at home at Jeremy@Kalin.com or 651-257-9861. You can always, of course, visit my official webpage here.
Thanks for your time and interest, and as always, stay warm. I recommend a fire in a wood-stove, whenever you can.
- Jeremy
Nearly 75 years ago, the nation faced terrible challenges and economic hardship. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt enlisted the help of new technology - radio - to address the nation. These addresses became known as the Fireside Chats, and largely helped rally the country to a shared cause, especially once World War II broke out across Europe and the U.S. was drawn into the war by the attack on Pearl Harbor.
I've borrowed this phrase from FDR and applied it to a fairly new medium - internet web-logging a.k.a. blogging - because I realized that during the heart of winter, I do most of my work at home, sitting by the side of a toasty-warm fire.
I hope to post as regularly as possible. Sometimes you'll get an inside look at a policy discussion or a legislative event. Other times I hope to share community news and events. And, unfortunately, sometimes you may have to settle with a news release that is pasted here for your interest.
Above all, I invite you email me about any and all concerns you have about your government. You can reach me at the Capitol office at Rep.Jeremy.Kalin@House.mn or at 651-296-5377. You can also reach me at home at Jeremy@Kalin.com or 651-257-9861. You can always, of course, visit my official webpage here.
Thanks for your time and interest, and as always, stay warm. I recommend a fire in a wood-stove, whenever you can.
- Jeremy
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
