Representative Clients
AAA-Minneapolis
Congratulations to our client AAA-Minneapolis on two important successes at the Minnesota legislature this year. These new public safety initiatives were recently signed into law by Governor Pawlenty.
The first - House File 108 - the universal/primary seat belt law, requires every person in a motor vehicle to wear a seat belt. It raises the offense level for failure to wear a seat belt from a secondary to a primary offense, meaning law enforcement will now be able to stop a vehicle (and issue citations) for failure to comply with this law. The fine for a seat belt use violation remains at $25; as with other moving traffic violations, a surcharge also applies. The passage of this law makes Minnesota the 29th state to adopt a primary seat belt law. It goes into effect on June 9, 2009.
Click here for more information.
The second initiative - Senate File 99 - strengthens Minnesota's current child passenger safety law. It requires children who are both under age 8 and shorter than 4 feet 9 inches to be fastened in a child safety seat or booster that meets federal safety standards. Under this law, a child cannot solely use an adult seat belt until they are age 8 or reach 4 feet 9 inches tall - whichever comes first. This law takes effect July 1, 2009.
Click here for more information.
Fredrikson & Byron lobbyist, Becky Girvan (third from left in below photo), represented AAA-Minneapolis in their efforts to pass these initiatives. This involved working directly with stakeholder groups to plan strategy, communicate with lawmakers, monitor progress, and coordinate testimony at the capitol.
Ceremonial Signing of Primary Enforcement Law, May 28, 2009
Minnesota Seat Belt Coalition Government Relations Team Photo
Metro Meals on Wheels
Metro Meals on Wheels (MMOW) is an association of 40 Meals on Wheels programs located throughout the Twin Cities metro area. Its purpose is to advocate for and ensure that individuals in the community receive nutritious meals and the human connection they need to enable them to live independently. Fredrikson & Byron assisted MMOW in developing legislative priorities and a strategic government relations plan that focused on increasing state and federal senior nutrition funds. Fredrikson & Byron’s role in executing the strategic action plan included a variety of activities such as drafting legislation, recruiting authors for bill introduction, building and coordinating a senior nutrition coalition and lobbying legislators for support.
Perpich Center for Arts Education
BACK TO SCHOOL!! EFFECTIVE GOVERNMENT RELATIONS STRATEGY HELPS PERPICH CENTER AND KEEPS KIDS SAFER IN SCHOOL
It’s that time of year when our children go back to school for another successful year of learning and growing. Minnesota is fortunate to have a strong educational system that provides a safe and nurturing environment for our students and their families. Due in part to an effective government relations strategy, the Perpich Center for Arts Education (PCAE) and Minnesota’s Board of Teaching are making our schools even better.
With a projected $6.4 billion budget deficit for Minnesota’s fiscal biennium of 2010-11, a proposal was put forward at the State Capitol that would have, in essence, dismantled the Perpich Center’s arts-centered high school and other professional resource programs for arts educators around the state. Perpich Center staff and leadership worked with Shep Harris, Fredrikson & Byron’s Government Relations education specialist, to defeat the proposal and any efforts to significantly reduce its annual state allocation.
In recent years, several high profile cases of teacher sexual misconduct created a desire among legislators and the Minnesota Board of Teaching to strengthen the teacher background check system. Shep Harris lobbied on behalf of the state Board of Teaching to tighten the state laws and enhance the type of information school districts receive when conducting a background check on perspective teachers. See House File 523, the School Background Check legislation.
In both cases, for the Perpich Center and for the Minnesota Board of Teaching, Shep worked with both groups to develop and successfully execute a legislative strategy that involved strategic planning, creation of key messages and talking points, drafting of legislation, and regular communication and coordination with lawmakers and stakeholder groups. The Perpich Center’s effective advocacy also included the development and execution of a grassroots plan that included a Perpich “Day at the Capitol” and high-level contacts with key legislators.
Having a strong government relations strategy that reaches and works with policy shapers and policymakers should be a key element to any organization’s strategic business plan. It worked for the Perpich Center and the Minnesota Board of Teaching.