Letter to the Hon. Tim Walz, Governor of Minnesota - Stauber, Emmer and Hagedorn Send Letter Urging Governor Walz to Release Federal Funding to Rural Minnesota

Letter

Governor Walz,
Your continued engagement with the Congressional Delegation through our weekly calls is
greatly appreciated during the pandemic. This example of collaboration from government leaders
is what Minnesotans expect from their elected officials. However, we are concerned that
counties, municipalities, and local governments have not received a proportional share of the
$2.2 billion that was appropriated to the State of Minnesota through the CARES Act.
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.