Legislative Update August

Neighbors,
Like it or not, it'll be August before you know it. That means some of the policies we passed in the legislature will go into effect, and I want to make sure you have all the information you need – including for the hands free while driving law!
- States that have passed hands free while driving laws have already seen major decreases in traffic fatalities. This law will help keep us safe from distracted drivers - but make sure you know all there is to know - here's a helpful fact sheet from the Department of Public Safety.
- A woman shared her story of having no legal recourse when a man grabbed her buttocks while she was holding her child. The "buttocks bill" closes a legal loophole that excluded certain sexual assaults from sexual harassment law, and our bill to fix it goes into effect August 1st.
- Our pharmacy benefit manager bill will bring transparency to prescription drug prices, which have skyrocketed in recent years. Pharmacy benefit managers are a powerful but little-known middle man that drive up prescription drug costs.
- There are employers in Minnesota who refuse to pay for overtime hours or skim money off the top of workers' paychecks, that's wage theft! Minnesotans deserve every dollar they've earned, and our bill to crack down on enforcement of wage theft will take effect at the beginning of the month.
We have a comprehensive list of policies that will go into effect on August 1st here
(https://www.house.mn/hinfo/leginfo/0819nlrelease.pdf). If you have questions about any of them, please feel free to call or email me. Or, you can come to our town hall meeting from 1-2pm at Culver's on Old Hudson Road on the 28th! More details below.
I hope you're having a great summer, and please reach out with any questions or comments!

Sincerely,
Rep. Jay Xiong
Vice Chair, Military & Veteran Affairs Division