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State Rep. Andrew Myers briefs Minnetrista on housing bill changes and anti-fraud proposals
Summary
Representative Andrew Myers told Minnetrista council members on March 2 that the current housing bill reduces local control for many cities but could be amended; he outlined amendments he plans to offer, described oversight proposals including an OIG measure and statute-of-limitations changes, and answered council questions about committee testimony and Highway 7 concerns.
State Representative Andrew Myers visited Minnetrista's March 2 work session to outline a recently released housing bill, describe proposed amendments, and discuss state-level anti-fraud and transportation issues.
Myers said the bill, as released, would change local authorities for many cities and that he planned amendments to limit the bill's reach to larger communities and to delay some comp-plan requirements. "A lot of the stuff that's going to take place will be for metro cities 2,500 or greater," Myers said, adding rural thresholds would be different and that he is seeking language to protect smaller cities. He described four amendments he planned to offer including a change in thresholds (seeking 5,000 or a carve-out for cities under 10,000) and a delay that would push certain comp-plan deadlines into 2029.
On legislative tactics, Myers said he routinely works behind the scenes with colleagues and stakeholders and that he had already reached out to league and Metro Cities representatives. He advised the council on how to participate in committee testimony and suggested local officials consider contacting committee chairs and individual members who can influence the bill, naming Representatives Spencer Igoe and Larry Craft as primary contacts on the committee.
The conversation shifted to state-level fraud and oversight. Myers described bills intended to increase accountability, including measures that would give the legislature additional authority to remove certain executives or expand remedies for theft of taxpayer dollars. He said an 'OIG' bill passed the Senate but had not passed the House and that he had introduced proposals to extend the statute of limitations for certain offenses from six to ten years to allow for longer investigations.
Myers also briefed the council on transportation priorities affecting Minnetrista: ongoing Highway 7 safety discussions with MnDOT, the possibility of targeted spot fixes versus a larger mill-and-overlay scheduled for 2029, and grant opportunities such as a $1,000,000 safe-zones grant and prior Transportation Management Organization funding.
Council members asked about testimony logistics and who to contact; Myers said committee hearings include opportunities for both proponents and opponents to testify and offered to share the bill's committee stops and to suggest influential legislators the council might contact. He said he was not yet prepared to support the housing bill in its current form and would press for amendments that preserve local control for smaller communities.
Myers closed by encouraging continued outreach from local officials and offered to return additional information about committee timing and specific amendment language.
