{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://collinpeterson.house.gov/rep-petersons-newsletter-1213", "Rep. Peterson's Newsletter 12/13", "2013-12-13", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "MN", "Collin Peterson", "P000258", "collinpeterson.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Snow in the 7th\nDear Friends,\nThis week, in the midst of negotiations with farm bill conferees, I spent some time talking to a number of farm broadcasters to keep everyone up to date on Farm Bill developments. I also met with leaders in the telecommunications, agriculture and business industries. While many members of Congress are heading home for the holiday recess, I will stay in Washington, D.C. to continue efforts to get the Farm Bill completed.\nSincerely,\nCongressman Collin C. Peterson\nMinnesota 7th District\n Farm Bill Update \nThe Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees continued to make progress on a five-year farm bill this week. The House has adjourned for the year, but we plan to keep working and it looks like we should be able to present a compromise to the farm bill conference committee in early January and bring the farm bill to a vote shortly thereafter.\n Farm Bill Negotiations Continue \nThis week I discussed the farm bill negotiations with KFGO\u2019s News & Views and MPR\u2019s The Daily Circuit. I talked about the importance of ongoing farm bill negotiations and why we need to get the job done on a comprehensive, long-term deal.\n-KFGO interview (includes questions from constituents)\n-Minnesota Public Radio interview\n MN Telecom Alliance Board Members \nVice-Chair Steve Katka (ALBANY), Chairman Jean Pauk, Mary Ehmke, Bob Olson, and President/CEO Brent J. Christensen.\nOn Wednesday I spoke with members of the Board of Directors of the Minnesota Telecom Alliance. We discussed how the FCC should adopt more balanced policies for areas served by small rural telecom providers, like the 7th District, and embrace a more transparent rulemaking process. Rural consumers disproportionately pay higher rates for their telecom services due to the high cost of operation in those areas. We also discussed broadband deployment and how 75% of Minnesota households can access broadband of speeds of at least 10 Mbps download and 6 Mbps upload.\n Cargill \nDave Roesser and Audra Wendt\nDave Roesser and Audra Wendt of Cargill came to my Washington office to talk about Cargill\u2019s FR3 vegetable oil dielectric fluid for high voltage transformers.\u00a0TFR3 fluid is made from soybeans.\u00a0Because it is a vegetable oil, the fluid is less flammable than mineral oil and is biodegradable. On Wednesday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recognized Cargill for its technological innovation in developing the FR3 transformer oil by awarding it a 2013 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award.\n Service Employees \nLibby Kanter, SEIU (St. Paul).\nLibby Kanter stopped by to discuss the impacts the federal budget and sequestration cuts have on Minnesota families and school children.\n \u00a0Military Matters \nNational Guard celebrates its 377th birthday\nPhoto courtesy of the National Guard Association of the United States\nFounded in 1636, the National Guard celebrated its 377th birthday on Friday, December 13th. The National Guard remains a community cornerstone as it provides protection to the citizens of the United States. A few members of the Minnesota National Guard stopped by to visit my Washington office including new commander of the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division Neal Loidolt, Colonel Larry Herke, and Colonel Sandy Best.\n Legislative Updates \n Flood Insurance \nI've been hearing from a number of homeowners and community leaders who have concerns about the implementation of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012. This act, coinciding with the release of new FEMA flood maps, has made for skyrocketing flood insurance premiums for some homeowners who have never flooded or have maintained flood insurance over many years. While I have signed onto a bill to delay implementation of this act, the House and Senate leadership did not take action to move this forward before the House adjourns. I am hopeful that a growing bipartisan coalition will put enough pressure on leaders to move this forward as soon as possible when we return in January.\n Reducing Regulatory Burdens on Private Pilots \nThis week I became an original cosponsor of H.R. 3708, the General Aviation Pilot Protection Act of 2013. This legislation would eliminate a burdensome regulation that requires small aircraft pilots to obtain special medical certification. Currently, general aviation is the only mode of transportation that requires a special medical exam to operate a vehicle for private and recreational use. These medical certificates can be costly and time consuming, as they can only be administered by an FAA-certified doctor, and put the decision about a pilot's medical fitness into the hands of a bureaucrat.\nH.R. 3708 would allow private pilots to operate small aircraft with a driver's license as long as they comply with any medical requirement associated with that license and maintain a low speed and altitude. This was a case of government over-regulating without properly understanding the industry it impacted, and I am hopeful we can revise this regulation and embrace a more common sense standard.\n Sportsmen\u2019s Issues \nI am an original cosponsor of the Wild Game Donation Act that was introduced on December 12th. This bill allows hunters to take part in a proposed tax credit for the processing of wild game when they donate meat to food based charities. This bipartisan bill would incentivize American hunters to contribute to needy organizations and help tackle our growing hunger problem.\nAnother bill which has seen considerable progress, and has my full support, is this year\u2019s Sportsmen\u2019s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement (SHARE) Act. The bill assists in protecting ammunition and fishing tackle from lead regulation, supports public shooting ranges, provides for electronic federal duck stamps, protects legal firearms in water resource development projects, and facilitates hunting and fishing access in Bureau of Land Management and Forestry Service lands.\n Constituents from the 7th \nTwo groups of constituents stopped by my Washington office for a U.S. Capitol tour on Friday.\nDick and Pat Krebs (APPLETON), Craig Wilkening (APPLETON), and Kerry and Paul Bonk (APPLETON)\nAdam Ulbricht (MELROSE) and fellow CPA Brad Ostendorf (Linwood)\nBruce Cottington\u2019s son (LITCHFIELD) Scott Cottington\n This Week in American History \n\u00a0\nThe International Committee of the Red Cross was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10th, 1917 for their extraordinary efforts during World War I. During the Great War, the Red Cross established the International Prisoner-of-War Agency, which helped soldiers who had been captured by the enemy still maintain contact with their families. The organization also transported thousands of soldiers to their home countries via neutral Switzerland. In recognition of their resolve to aid soldiers throughout the war, the Red Cross was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize in 1917, and would go on to win two more in 1944 and 1963.\n\u201cElements Over Time\u201d\nGrace Mathiesen (BATTLE LAKE)\n2013 Congressional Art Competition", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://collinpeterson.house.gov/rep-petersons-newsletter-1213"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8031302131712437, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}