What identifies us most as Minnesotans? Is it our willingness to cheer on our Vikings, Twins and Timberwolves? Is it when we boast about our Minnesota Lynx and Golden Gophers? Is it when we brave the cold and snow to walk our dogs or to the end of the driveway to get our mail, and then brag about accomplishing such a feat in negative 30 degree weather?

I’m not sure it is our shared love for our sometimes hapless sports teams that shows best who we are as Minnesotans. I do think when we share certain experiences we recognize we have more in common than we do differences. Not everyone in the neighborhood wants the Vikings to play well; there are plenty of green and gold supporters in our midst. As much as we want to hold a grudge from this football rivalry, if one of our G and G neighbors had a house fire or lost a child to cancer, wouldn’t we want to be among those who donate money, clothing, a hotdish or friendship? Minnesotans identify themselves as caring, honest, hard-working, thankful souls who want to share blessings and ease burdens.

Last week I stood with a number of my rural colleagues to announce our “Greater Minnesota for All” agenda for the 2016 legislative session. MN DFL House members want the 2016 legislative session used to re-capture the momentum we began when the DFL held the majority in the MN House in 2013-2014. Much like when we as individuals step up when our neighbor has suffered a loss, we expect the State to step up and do what can be done to help people throughout Minnesota.

The “Greater Minnesota for All” agenda takes a four part approach: creating jobs, encouraging education and workforce training, providing property tax relief and tax equity, and supporting rural seniors and families.

In some pockets of the state there are more jobs than places to live. When lack of housing is a pivotal decision for a company considering relocating or expanding, our economic growth is at risk. We need safe roads, strong bridges, and reduced traffic congestion; every corner of the state can feel the impact when we don’t support our transportation infrastructure.

We owe it to our youth to enhance career training opportunities in high demand areas and support careers requiring technical education.

For years, rural cities and counties watched as they received less and less support from the State and were forced to raise property taxes to provide basic services. Our proposal will restore local government aid to its 2002 levels. With a $1.2 billion projected surplus, funding our cities/towns at a level not seen for 14 years is certainly a step in the right direction. We also need to fix tax policies that have forced farmers to shoulder a disproportionate and unfair amount of the school bonding burden.

One of life’s most difficult experiences is transitioning from an independent life to needing more care or supervision for day-to-day activities. Many spouses become primary caregivers for their loved ones, especially when one out of six seniors experience dementia. Providing access to respite care will relieve these caregivers of their responsibility for a short period of time. During the short 2016 legislative session we can make progress by moving our “Greater Minnesota for All” agenda forward.

While the 2015 legislative session was declared the greatest flop for greater Minnesota initiatives, the 2016 session cannot be a repeat. We have no time to lose in recapturing the momentum.

The “Greater Minnesota for All” agenda will give Minnesotans in every corner of the state a fair chance to succeed. We owe it to our neighbors, even if they sometimes root for the green and gold team instead of the purple one.