Restoring felon voting rights, City Council supports Drivers License for All, United Way accepting grant applications

Felon Voting Rights

The MN House last week passed a bill, “Restore the Vote”, that would restore the

voting rights of convicted felons once they are released from custody. “Once people are out of prison, then they have their right to vote restored,” says District 58A Representative Kristi Pursell. Currently, those convicted of a felony will only have their voting rights restored after they finish their probation or parole. Since the state currently favors shorter prison sentences with longer probation periods, the time that passes before they have their voting rights restored can be considerable. “There was a woman in the gallery last night who won’t be able to vote with our current laws until she’s 73 years old. She has a two-year old daughter; she must be in her twenties or thirties right now. She struggled with addiction and made some bad choices.”

The DFL majorities in the House and Senate back legislation to eliminate the wait. The House passed the bill 71-59 last week. Its companion bill, sponsored by Senate President Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, is expected to pass soon. Gov. Tim Walz supports the move. House Republicans tried unsuccessfully to amend the bill multiple times. Rep. Paul Novotny, R-Elk River, wanted to require the payment of fines, fees and restitution before voting rights are restored. Supporters say that disenfranchising roughly 50,000 felons on parole or probation violates the core U.S. principle of no taxation without representation. States vary widely in their approaches. In 21 states, felons cannot vote while locked up, but they regain the right immediately on release

The issue of felon voting restoration has been pending at the state Supreme Court for more than a year. In December 2021, the court heard arguments on a lawsuit seeking to restore the voting rights of felons after lower courts declined. Attorney General Keith Ellison says it’s within the Legislature’s authority to change the law.

Drivers License for All

Another issue the legislature has taken up is the Drivers License for All. The bill, if passed, would allow undocumented citizens to apply for a drivers license. The Northfield City Council took up that issue at last night’s council meeting. They were asked by the Northfield Human Rights commission to pass a resolution in support of the bill. After a presentation by the commission, councilor George Zuccolotto, among others, voiced his support “This is a bigger step to get rid of generational trauma and generational stigma against authority, against people that can help you and better introduce these people that are already in our community into the fabric of our society, in the way our government works, and the way of our laws and regulations so I think this is a positive thing that we should move forward.” The resolution passed by a unanimous 7-0 vote.

United Way Grants

Rice County Area United Way encourages local nonprofits to apply for grants by March 22, 2023. The online application is available at ricecountyunitedway.org/grant-application. Grants are awarded annually to 501 C3 organizations serving the Rice County area and working to improve lives through education, health and financial stability/basic needs. United Way is among very few grant makers that offer flexible funding for general operations, as well as grants
tied to specific programs. All grantees are asked to show measurable outcomes, whether applying for organization or program grants. Rice County Area United Way’s 2023 impact focus is childhood literacy. “Given pandemic learning loss, we want to support programs that help children to be kindergarten ready and/or read at grade level by the end of third grade. Both are key to success in school and life,” said Rice County Area United Way Executive Director Elizabeth Child. The impact area is an area of critical need identified by the United Way board of directors.