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Agriculture and Rural Communities
Our state must work to improve the vitality of rural communities. JRLC endorses programs to assist beginning farmers, to support sustainable agriculture, to build infrastructure of local agricultural markets, and to ensure that rural communities have full access to education, transportation, and telecommunication resources. (See JRLC’s Gifts of the Earth, 2000.)
Criminal Justice
We support restoration of funding for the court system, including public defenders, to ensure equal justice under the law. We endorse more favorable employment policies for ex-offenders. The right to vote should be restored to persons with felony convictions upon release from prison or jail. JRLC opposes capital punishment in Minnesota. (See JRLC’s Felon Voting Rights, 2008 and Crime and Justice in Minnesota, 1992.)
Early Care and Education
Minnesota should fully fund childcare assistance programs to support employment and to provide options for families so more children spend their earliest years in stimulating, nurturing environments where they learn, thrive, and prepare for success in school and life. (See JRLC’s Childcare Assistance, 2005.)
Eliminating Poverty
JRLC supports the Family Economic Security Act, a leading effort to reduce poverty by 27% by increasing the minimum wage, increasing childcare funding, and boosting refundable tax credits for poor households. We support increased income benefits for people using public benefit programs.
We also support a community-based, comprehensive public benefit outreach and enrollment system. We support the removal of most asset-tests and urge restoration of asset development accounts. Minnesota should also adopt a realistic household poverty measure and a clear set of benchmarks by which we can measure progress toward ending poverty.(See JRLC’s Minimum Wage, 2005 and Taxes and Justice in Minnesota, 1992 and No Poor Among You…, 2010.)
Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability
We must protect the integrity of creation and our public health by ensuring the quality of the natural environment and food sources. We must continue to invest in sustainability — in clean, renewable energy, and we must reduce emission of greenhouse gases.(See JRLC’s Ecology Positions, 1997.)
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Health Care
Minnesota must continue progress toward a common, universal coverage system by expanding public and private programs, mandating comprehensive insurance coverage (including mental health and dental), and adopting risk pooling and publicly sponsored financing to make sure every Minnesotan receives the health care they need. (See JRLC’s Health Care and Justice in Minnesota, 2008.)
Housing and Healthy Neighborhoods
We support appropriations and bonding authority promoted in the Homes for All Campaign to to support family stability and prevent homelessness. (See JRLC’s The Faithful City, 1999.)
We support legislation that protects consumers from predatory lending practices, especially by payday lenders. (Pending passage of Payday Lending issue paper)
Human Trafficking
JRLC supports funds for services to address the needs of trafficking victims. Minnesota should expand innovative pilot programs and safe housing opportunities for victims and restore funding for a statewide human trafficking hotline. (See JRLC’s Human Trafficking in Minnesota: A Violation of Human Dignity, 2011.)
Hunger
We must ensure that SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly Food Stamps) benefits and WIC programs are accessible to all who need them. We support programs that provide easier access to healthy foods and nutrition programs for children and their families. (See JRLC’s Justice for All: Confronting Hunger in Minnesota, 1997.)
Impartial Judiciary
JRLC recommends amending the state’s constitution to: select judges by gubernatorial appointment from a list of candidates prepared by a public merit selection commission; provide the public with performance evaluations by a public evaluation commission; and retention elections by the public at the end of each term. (See JRLC’s Selecting Impartial Judges, 2008.)
Tax Policy
The solution to our state’s ongoing structural deficit must include raising sufficient revenue to fund social infrastructure, education, and basic human needs. Tax justice means that our state-local revenue system is progressive — meaning based upon ability to pay, and that revenues are sufficient to build the common good. (See JRLC’s Taxes and Justice in Minnesota, 1992.)
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