A local senator has initiated several bills he hopes will pass in this year’s legislative session.

District 27 Sen. Dan Sparks, DFL-Austin, has made changes to a tax credit bill he initiated in the 2015 legislative session.

He said the update will help more Greater Minnesota cities secure workforce housing, an issue he cited as a critical component of filling Albert Lea’s workforce shortage.

The bill would incentivize investors and developers to build middle-income housing in Greater Minnesota communities where there is a shortage, he said.

Under the proposal, investors would receive a 40 percent state tax credit for contributions made toward eligible workforce rental housing.

Sparks said the bill helps investors gain a return on their investment.

“I’m hopeful we’ll be able to get this passed this legislative session,” he said.

Bonding requests

Sparks said he continues to work on local bonding requests.

In Austin, bonding requests are largely focused around the waterways. The city of Austin is seeking $600,000 for the Fourth Avenue Northeast Dam area for flood control retaining walls, restoring the former mill site, for stream bank restorations and to study dam conditions. And it’s seeking $3 million in state bonding dollars for the Ramsey Dam area and Ramsey Mill Pond near The Old Mill Restaurant to acquire more land, build two miles of trail, restore a railroad bridge, improve the dam and build public amenities to improve the area.

Water quality projects are also continuing as leaders are seeking $1.6 million for the Accelerated Results Plan, which will complete 25 water retention and water quality projects in the district. The CRWD already has half the money for the $8.4 million project. The district is providing $1.2 million, the Hormel Foundation is providing $3.2 million, and the district is looking for the state to match those funds.

The Ramsey Dam hit a bit of a roadblock in March when city officials learned it’d need to be publicly owned before it received bonding dollars, though local officials have said a tentative plan for Hormel Foods Corp. to transfer ownership of the dam to the city of Austin could occur in time to receive funding. Sparks said the dams projects could be a bit fought, but he was optimistic the waterways projects would move ahead.

Riverland Community College has requested $7.43 million to renovate outdated space to relocate truck driving and collision programs from Austin to Albert Lea and to integrate the programs into shared spaces with auto service and diesel programs.

Sparks, a member of the Capital Investment Committee, said the Senate could submit a bonding bill by about the end of the month.

Plans for business and broadband

Sparks has initiated a bill, called the Minnesota Initiative Plan, that would call for $5 million statewide to help women and minorities start businesses. It takes a program used in the metro area and expands it to the rest of the state.

He said the bill was formed after talking with Abby Murray and Mariah Lynne of The Marketing Plant in Albert Lea, along with a few other business owners.

Gov. Mark Dayton has a similar program he has requested that would put in $6 million in funding statewide.

The senator has also authored a bill that would establish voluntary solar site management practices for owners of ground-mounted solar sites with a generating capacity of more than 40 kilowatts.

Sparks introduced a bill late last week that would make sure cities like Austin and Albert Lea are eligible to receive current and proposed broadband funds after many existing grants and some initial bills this session limited the cities that would qualify.

At issue is the state’s Border-to-Border broadband grants and some state statutes in regards to access to broadband funding across the state.

Currently, many of the funding sources target unserved communities but not underserved communities.