MINNESOTA – Today, Congressman Pete Stauber (MN-08), Congressman Tom Emmer (MN-06), and Congressman Jim Hagedorn (MN-01) sent a letter to Governor Walz requesting that he work with the state legislature to ensure federal funds that were provided by the bipartisan CARES Act are quickly and equitably distributed to local governments across greater Minnesota.

In their letter, the Congressmen said (in part):

As you know, nearly eight weeks ago, Congress came together to pass the bipartisan CARES Act which was subsequently signed into law. Included in the CARES Act was funding that was disbursed to states based on populations outside of metropolitan areas. We ask that you quickly disburse the state and local government allocation to Greater Minnesota in an expeditious and equitable manner. 

In the eight weeks since the CARES Act funding was signed into law, hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans have lost their jobs, countless businesses have closed, and Greater Minnesota has suffered an identical economic fate as Hennepin and Ramsey Counties. As you know, Hennepin and Ramsey Counties received their allocation quickly from the federal government, yet the rest of Minnesota has been sidelined as funds sit idle awaiting deployment.

Rural Minnesota matters and it is our request that you urgently work with the legislature to allocate the local share of the nearly $2.2 billion Minnesota received.

Read the full letter HERE.