(Editor’s Note: The following article was unsolicited from Tom Emmer’s office).

Wednesday, I was available to answer constituent’s questions and discuss the important legislative items coming before the House of Representatives. I also was joined by an expert from the IRS to answer any questions related to Economic Impact Payments and tax season. 

As stimulus checks continue to be dispersed and the individual tax filing deadline was pushed back to May 17th – there are plenty of important tax questions to address.

A Hockey Legend

Last week, I had the opportunity to introduce an important bill that would honor Willie O’Ree with the Congressional Gold Medal. Alongside my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, Mike Quigley, Brian Higgins, and John Katko, we introduced the Willie O’Ree Congressional Gold Medal Act.  

Willie is known as the “Jackie Robinson of Hockey” – he broke historic barriers in 1958 when he became the first Black player to compete in the National Hockey League as a member of the Boston Bruins. More than 60 years later, O’Ree continues to have a profound impact on one of our nation’s major sports as an active champion for diversity and opportunity – in hockey and beyond.

Despite adversity, he spent a long career spanning more than 22 seasons as a professional hockey player in both the NHL and minor leagues.

Following his professional hockey career, O’Ree became the NHL’s official Diversity Ambassador – a role he continues to hold today. In the 1990s, he established the Hockey is for Everyone initiative to offer marginalized, disadvantaged, and underrepresented children an opportunity to play hockey and develop important life skills both on and off the ice – empowering them with lessons about leadership, inclusion, and perseverance. The initiative now includes 26 non-profit organizations with over 40 program centers and has welcomed more than 120,000 new children to the game since its inception.

It was also wonderful to see, less than a week prior to reintroduction of our legislation, that the Ontario Reign, the American Hockey League affiliate for the Los Angeles Kings, formed the first all-black line since 1942. None of this would have been possible without Willie O’Ree’s contributions to the expansion, growth, and accessibility of the game of hockey.

Innovative Technologies

I had the opportunity to join the virtual Security Token Summit to discuss blockchain and cryptocurrency regulation. This event was focused on security tokens and digital currencies, and covered custody, compliance, regulation, investing, marketing issues. 

I recently wrote about the revolutionary impact fintech can have on our financial system for The Hill. Last week, the Star Tribune wrote about my work on blockchain technologies, like cryptocurrency. 

As a member of the House Financial Services Committee and the Ranking Member of the Task Force on Financial Technology, I am interested in the way emerging technologies can serve the unbanked and underbanked. I believe these technologies have huge implications for countless aspects of our lives, and it will give us the power to do things, like improve access to our financial markets from our phone or computer.

Vietnam Veterans

March 29, we recognized National Vietnam War Veterans Day, taking some time to focus on the bravery and sacrifice of those who fought for the United States. Over 1,079 Minnesotans lost their lives in Vietnam, and 10s of thousands of Americans and their families had their lives changed forever by the conflict. The service men and women who risked their lives for our freedom will not be forgotten.

The legacy of the Vietnam War is closer than you might think. You can hear first-hand stories from Minnesotans who served in the Vietnam War, and explore the Minnesota Remembers Vietnam Story Wall, a project of Minnesota PBS.

As your Member of Congress, I fight every day to ensure that those who served are given the respect and care they deserve. My newly-reintroduced SAVE Act will help veterans receive timely primary and mental health care by creating accountability measures for same-day treatment initiatives at Veterans Administration health facilities. 

Local Police Engagement

Community policing is more important now than ever. As we continue a nation-wide discussion about the role of law enforcement in our communities, we should be focusing on efforts that connect police officers to the people they are sworn to serve and protect. 

I recently reintroduced an important bill, the Community OutPost (COP) Outreach and Engagement Act. This bill would establish a national federal pilot program using as an example one of our local initiatives: the St. Cloud COP House.

Last week, the Star Tribune wrote about the COP House in St. Cloud. The house is a residential home where local residents can receive critical services like health screenings, and attend afterschool education programs while building relationships with law enforcement in that community. With improved police-citizen communication, officers can more effectively establish trust and build rapport with the citizens that they are sworn to protect.

When the St. Cloud Police Dept. embarked on this new initiative, my office was honored to assist them in securing the location.

Recently, the St. Cloud Times also wrote about the COP Outreach and Engagement Act, my proposal would issue grants to establish COP Houses nation-wide. This effort works in St. Cloud and it can work in cities across this country if we are willing to invest in the community relations needed to build rapport between law enforcement and communities. As Chief Anderson puts it, this effort is helping to “humanize the badge,” and efforts like this should be supported and expanded. 

Regional Airports

Recently, I announced that the U.S. Dept. of Transportation awarded both the Blaine and Buffalo airports with grant funding. Collectively, they received $104,162 to help support operations and services at both facilities. This is a significant investment in our regional airport!

This money will be used for operation, personnel, cleaning, sanitization, janitorial services, and to combat the spread of COVID-19. These grants are funded by the Coronavirus Relief and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, which I supported. 

Regional airports play an important role in our region, and they make areas in our community economic hubs. These airports serve as vital connection points to ensure the region grows and thrives.