Judy Seeberger
Name: Judy Seeberger
Email: [email protected]
Campaign Phone: 651-492-3181
Campaign Website: https://judyforsenate.com/
Twitter handle: @judyseeberger
Facebook Page: Judy For Senate
Candidate Bio
My name is Judy Seeberger, and I have had the honor of serving Senate District 41 in the State Senate since 2022. Prior to being elected as a State Senator, I was elected to Bayport City Council where I served one term until I moved to my current home in Afton. I have served on both the Bayport and Afton Planning Commissions, and was elected to serve on the School Board of the Math and Science Academy as a teacher member. I am no stranger to hard work or tough decisions, and I bring this experience and tenacity to my work in the Senate.
Outside of the capitol, I am proud to serve my community as a firefighter-paramedic with the Lower St. Croix Valley Fire Department.
I lean on my experience as a first responder at the Capitol- supporting my community when it needs help the most. When working shoulder-to-shoulder with law enforcement and my fellow firefighters and medics, political party affiliation doesn’t matter. What matters is being able to work as a team to get the job done. The same is true at the Capitol. Whether Republican or Democrat, if it’s a good idea, we should work together to get it done. I am proud of my history of working across the aisle to enact good policy, and I am committed to working with all my colleagues to continue to do good work in the Senate.
What are your top three priorities if elected, and how might they be affected by growing uncertainty around state and federal funding?
1. Lowering costs for Minnesotans- Minnesotans across our state are facing real affordability challenges, which is why:
I will continue to deliver for hard-working Minnesotans by enacting tax cuts, reigning in spending, lowering the cost of housing, and supporting small businesses.
2. Protecting our health and our environment- it is incredibly important to protect Minnesotans’ access to healthcare as federal funding cuts threaten the financial sustainability of hospitals, like HCMC, in every corner of our state and as threats like PFAS pose real dangers to Minnesotans’ health. The state can support affordable healthcare and protect our health, without increasing spending, by taking steps like:
I am proud of the work I have done over the past 4 years to support healthcare, hospitals, and EMS throughout the state, and to ban PFAS in consumer products.
3. Supporting Public Safety- as a firefighter-paramedic, I work on the front lines of public safety and have seen first-hand the benefits of strong public safety partners. In the Senate, I helped deliver $300M in public safety aid to every city, county, and Tribal Nation in the State, I passed the fighting fentanyl package to protect our communities from this deadly drug, and I bolstered police and fire pensions ensuring those who protect us are able to retire with dignity and providing incentives for our next generation of law enforcement officers and firefighters. Lastly, I was proud to lead the fight for the biggest aid package for EMS in state history, ensuring everyone in Minnesota has access to high-quality emergency medical care, no matter their zip code.
How would you characterize the business climate in the East Metro? Please elaborate on your answer.
I see the East Metro business climate as full of inspiring and wonderful success stories - from small local businesses to large employers - all providing opportunities and livelihoods to hundreds or thousands of workers. Our East Metro entrepreneurs and business leaders have found success because of years and decades of hard work and community leadership.
I also see an East Metro business climate that has struggled in the face of over-regulation and an inequitable tax burden. As a small-business owner for 12 years, I know that we should be making it easier to run a business in Minnesota, not harder. We need to listen to our business owners and take their needs seriously. And I am committed to doing just that – even if it means pushing against my own party.
Please characterize your perspective on the ideal collaboration between government and the business community when it comes to tackling challenges such as education, housing, workforce development, or other priority areas.
Businesses must have a seat at the table and government must listen to the needs of the business community. Ideal collaboration includes fair rules which support competition and foster the free market, while stopping bad actors from undermining the businesses which play by the rules and drive our economy forward.
Government absolutely can find ways to listen to and partner with the business community to tackle challenges in education, housing, and workforce development. I know this because I have worked to expand access to apprenticeships that prepare tomorrow’s trades workers, supported property tax relief to lower the cost of housing, funded the family homelessness prevention program to keep vulnerable Minnesotans in their homes, and fought to ensure all Minnesota students thrive. I have done all this, not by focusing on only one side of the equation, but by engaging in conversations with all stakeholders – including members of the business community – to ensure the policies we enact at the legislature are fair, balanced, and work for everyone. And for those that don’t, I’m committed to working to balance the scales so that everyone – business and worker alike – have a fair shake.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address our state’s critical labor shortage?
I support lowering the cost of a college education to keep more of our own students in state and to attract young people from other states. I also support lowering the cost of housing so that young workers and families can live and thrive in Minnesota. Moreover, Minnesota’s nation-leading child tax credit can help young families afford their lives and prioritize what is most important to them, while filling gaps in our state’s workforce. Finally, we must allow businesses the freedom and flexibility to offer wage and benefit packages that attract workers to Minnesota.
The Legislature enacted several new workplace mandates in recent years, including Paid Family and Medical Leave, Earned Safe and Sick Time, and Worker Misclassification standards. If elected, how would you evaluate the impact of these policies on the East Metro economy and workforce, and what principles would guide any changes you'd seek to make?
While I support workers and know how valuable it is to be able to take leave for a new child or take a day off when you are sick, I also heard from business leaders across the East Metro that some aspects of these policies are not working. I listened to my community and pushed back against my own party to make changes that ensure Earned Sick and Safe Time works for both employers and employees. While I did not get everything I had hoped for, I passed changes to documentation standards to help employers ensure ESST is being used the right way and I helped clarify rules on seeking replacement workers and pro-rating benefits for new hires.
The same principles would guide any future changes I would seek - supporting workers being able to take time off when needed without having to worry about paying rent or going to work sick, while knowing that these policies need to work for business as well. Balancing both perspectives is needed in order to keep Minnesota a leader in quality of life and keep household costs down.
What are your strategies to address public safety challenges in your district and the state?
Every day, I am honored to serve my community and work side by side with officers and other first responders. My work as a paramedic and firefighter has given me first-hand insight into the challenges our agencies face. That’s why I found it so important to fight for increased funding for law enforcement, fire, and EMS; I worked to strengthen their pensions, counter harmful anti-police rhetoric, and increase penalties for violent offenders. I have also worked with community members and advocates to strengthen penalties on fentanyl crimes and to make Narcan more available to help prevent overdose deaths.
I will continue to work with public safety officials in my district to support their needs and ensure their voices are listened to. I am proud to say my door is always open to local law enforcement and the Sheriffs, and we have established an excellent working relationship to advance their priorities.
How would you work to improve transportation options in the district/state, including improved safety for transit riders, pedestrian/bike, and drivers alike?
Minnesota has made important investments in transportation infrastructure in recent years to maintain our roads and bridges, strengthen transit safety and availability, and help our communities grow.
I am proud that the Senate passed a package of ideas to combat a major pedestrian and bike safety issue in the East Metro, which is the rapid spread of illegal, high-speed e-bikes, often ridden by our youth in ways that pose real danger to themselves and others. Unfortunately, the House did not pass the bill, but I plan to be back at the table fighting for e-bike safety and cracking down on illegal “e-motos” next year.
We have also seen an important improvement in transit safety after we made investments to increase safety and security personnel and fare enforcement on Metro Transit. We need to continue that work so that transit riders have safe and efficient options to get to work and go about their lives.
What ideas do you have to address housing shortages and affordability?
While I strongly support local control and believe cities, residents, and communities must have a say in what their future looks like, I also support the idea of working with cities to set consistent deadlines for housing permit applications. That way, each application gets a decision quickly instead of sitting for long periods of time, reducing the uncertainty and cost for home builders. Similarly, the state should lead the creation of a standardized permitting form so cities and builders can reduce paperwork without reducing local control.
I also support increasing access to high quality manufactured housing. We need to ensure that manufactured housing residents have a real opportunity to purchase the land under their own homes and are protected from deceptive, hidden charges and poor maintenance.
Minnesota's current two-year budget shows a surplus, but state forecasters project a significant structural imbalance beginning in the 2028-2029 biennium. What steps would you take to address this long-term challenge? Please include specific ideas for reducing spending, increasing revenue, or reforming state programs.
The structural imbalance has been at the forefront of budget discussions for years at the legislature and has undoubtedly been made worse by cuts at the federal level. In establishing future policies to align long-term spending with available revenues, we must focus on actions that can help grow the economy. For example, we must continue to foster robust incentives to attract and keep businesses here in Minnesota. It is imperative that we listen to our business community when passing new policy and modifying existing rules to best support them and attract new businesses to our state. Our strong economy has led to the surplus we now have and has ensured the health of our robust rainy-day fund. Keeping economic growth strong by promoting business development will help eliminate the structural imbalance and prevent relying on taxpayers to solve the problem.
I also support strong legislative oversight to guarantee programs stay on budget and to combat wasteful spending. Government must prioritize core services like public safety, education, access to affordable healthcare, and clean water with sufficient oversight to ensure the responsible use of taxpayer dollars.
Minnesota has faced several high-profile fraud cases involving public programs in recent years. The Legislature recently passed a new Office of the Inspector General on a bipartisan basis. Beyond this new office, what additional steps would you support to strengthen fraud prevention and rebuild public trust in how the state manages taxpayer-funded programs?
Fraud against taxpayer funded programs is unacceptable and must be prevented and prosecuted. That’s why I championed the independent Office of the Inspector General alongside the chief author of the bill, Senator Gustafson. In fact, I believed so strongly in this legislation that I carried a clone bill of it to ensure it passed.
In addition to the Office of Inspector General, I also worked to pass legislation that requires electronic visit verification for human services providers, modernizes the outdated IT systems to improve efficiency and the verification process, withholds payment authorization when there is a credible allegation of fraud, and implements stronger oversight of grants provided to non-profits and other entities. We must never again allow another fraud on the scale of Feeding Our Future to happen.
Legislators need to hold government accountable for implementing these policies effectively and need to continue to look for ways to strengthen oversight and accountability of public dollars. One area that Minnesota should closely examine is the use of third parties to help oversee state funding recipients. I am committed to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and in both chambers, to ensure the responsible use of taxpayer dollars.
Email: [email protected]
Campaign Phone: 651-492-3181
Campaign Website: https://judyforsenate.com/
Twitter handle: @judyseeberger
Facebook Page: Judy For Senate
Candidate Bio
My name is Judy Seeberger, and I have had the honor of serving Senate District 41 in the State Senate since 2022. Prior to being elected as a State Senator, I was elected to Bayport City Council where I served one term until I moved to my current home in Afton. I have served on both the Bayport and Afton Planning Commissions, and was elected to serve on the School Board of the Math and Science Academy as a teacher member. I am no stranger to hard work or tough decisions, and I bring this experience and tenacity to my work in the Senate.
Outside of the capitol, I am proud to serve my community as a firefighter-paramedic with the Lower St. Croix Valley Fire Department.
I lean on my experience as a first responder at the Capitol- supporting my community when it needs help the most. When working shoulder-to-shoulder with law enforcement and my fellow firefighters and medics, political party affiliation doesn’t matter. What matters is being able to work as a team to get the job done. The same is true at the Capitol. Whether Republican or Democrat, if it’s a good idea, we should work together to get it done. I am proud of my history of working across the aisle to enact good policy, and I am committed to working with all my colleagues to continue to do good work in the Senate.
What are your top three priorities if elected, and how might they be affected by growing uncertainty around state and federal funding?
1. Lowering costs for Minnesotans- Minnesotans across our state are facing real affordability challenges, which is why:
- I eliminated social security taxes for most Minnesota Seniors;
- I passed the largest tax cut in state history;
- I provided more than $125M in property tax relief;
- I reduced vehicle tab fees, saving Minnesotans $254M, and
- I passed legislation providing $40M in family homelessness prevention.
I will continue to deliver for hard-working Minnesotans by enacting tax cuts, reigning in spending, lowering the cost of housing, and supporting small businesses.
2. Protecting our health and our environment- it is incredibly important to protect Minnesotans’ access to healthcare as federal funding cuts threaten the financial sustainability of hospitals, like HCMC, in every corner of our state and as threats like PFAS pose real dangers to Minnesotans’ health. The state can support affordable healthcare and protect our health, without increasing spending, by taking steps like:
- Reallocating resources away from Big Pharma, who are making record profits; and
- Banning toxic, cancer-causing chemicals like PFAS that cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars to remove from our water system.
I am proud of the work I have done over the past 4 years to support healthcare, hospitals, and EMS throughout the state, and to ban PFAS in consumer products.
3. Supporting Public Safety- as a firefighter-paramedic, I work on the front lines of public safety and have seen first-hand the benefits of strong public safety partners. In the Senate, I helped deliver $300M in public safety aid to every city, county, and Tribal Nation in the State, I passed the fighting fentanyl package to protect our communities from this deadly drug, and I bolstered police and fire pensions ensuring those who protect us are able to retire with dignity and providing incentives for our next generation of law enforcement officers and firefighters. Lastly, I was proud to lead the fight for the biggest aid package for EMS in state history, ensuring everyone in Minnesota has access to high-quality emergency medical care, no matter their zip code.
How would you characterize the business climate in the East Metro? Please elaborate on your answer.
I see the East Metro business climate as full of inspiring and wonderful success stories - from small local businesses to large employers - all providing opportunities and livelihoods to hundreds or thousands of workers. Our East Metro entrepreneurs and business leaders have found success because of years and decades of hard work and community leadership.
I also see an East Metro business climate that has struggled in the face of over-regulation and an inequitable tax burden. As a small-business owner for 12 years, I know that we should be making it easier to run a business in Minnesota, not harder. We need to listen to our business owners and take their needs seriously. And I am committed to doing just that – even if it means pushing against my own party.
Please characterize your perspective on the ideal collaboration between government and the business community when it comes to tackling challenges such as education, housing, workforce development, or other priority areas.
Businesses must have a seat at the table and government must listen to the needs of the business community. Ideal collaboration includes fair rules which support competition and foster the free market, while stopping bad actors from undermining the businesses which play by the rules and drive our economy forward.
Government absolutely can find ways to listen to and partner with the business community to tackle challenges in education, housing, and workforce development. I know this because I have worked to expand access to apprenticeships that prepare tomorrow’s trades workers, supported property tax relief to lower the cost of housing, funded the family homelessness prevention program to keep vulnerable Minnesotans in their homes, and fought to ensure all Minnesota students thrive. I have done all this, not by focusing on only one side of the equation, but by engaging in conversations with all stakeholders – including members of the business community – to ensure the policies we enact at the legislature are fair, balanced, and work for everyone. And for those that don’t, I’m committed to working to balance the scales so that everyone – business and worker alike – have a fair shake.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address our state’s critical labor shortage?
I support lowering the cost of a college education to keep more of our own students in state and to attract young people from other states. I also support lowering the cost of housing so that young workers and families can live and thrive in Minnesota. Moreover, Minnesota’s nation-leading child tax credit can help young families afford their lives and prioritize what is most important to them, while filling gaps in our state’s workforce. Finally, we must allow businesses the freedom and flexibility to offer wage and benefit packages that attract workers to Minnesota.
The Legislature enacted several new workplace mandates in recent years, including Paid Family and Medical Leave, Earned Safe and Sick Time, and Worker Misclassification standards. If elected, how would you evaluate the impact of these policies on the East Metro economy and workforce, and what principles would guide any changes you'd seek to make?
While I support workers and know how valuable it is to be able to take leave for a new child or take a day off when you are sick, I also heard from business leaders across the East Metro that some aspects of these policies are not working. I listened to my community and pushed back against my own party to make changes that ensure Earned Sick and Safe Time works for both employers and employees. While I did not get everything I had hoped for, I passed changes to documentation standards to help employers ensure ESST is being used the right way and I helped clarify rules on seeking replacement workers and pro-rating benefits for new hires.
The same principles would guide any future changes I would seek - supporting workers being able to take time off when needed without having to worry about paying rent or going to work sick, while knowing that these policies need to work for business as well. Balancing both perspectives is needed in order to keep Minnesota a leader in quality of life and keep household costs down.
What are your strategies to address public safety challenges in your district and the state?
Every day, I am honored to serve my community and work side by side with officers and other first responders. My work as a paramedic and firefighter has given me first-hand insight into the challenges our agencies face. That’s why I found it so important to fight for increased funding for law enforcement, fire, and EMS; I worked to strengthen their pensions, counter harmful anti-police rhetoric, and increase penalties for violent offenders. I have also worked with community members and advocates to strengthen penalties on fentanyl crimes and to make Narcan more available to help prevent overdose deaths.
I will continue to work with public safety officials in my district to support their needs and ensure their voices are listened to. I am proud to say my door is always open to local law enforcement and the Sheriffs, and we have established an excellent working relationship to advance their priorities.
How would you work to improve transportation options in the district/state, including improved safety for transit riders, pedestrian/bike, and drivers alike?
Minnesota has made important investments in transportation infrastructure in recent years to maintain our roads and bridges, strengthen transit safety and availability, and help our communities grow.
I am proud that the Senate passed a package of ideas to combat a major pedestrian and bike safety issue in the East Metro, which is the rapid spread of illegal, high-speed e-bikes, often ridden by our youth in ways that pose real danger to themselves and others. Unfortunately, the House did not pass the bill, but I plan to be back at the table fighting for e-bike safety and cracking down on illegal “e-motos” next year.
We have also seen an important improvement in transit safety after we made investments to increase safety and security personnel and fare enforcement on Metro Transit. We need to continue that work so that transit riders have safe and efficient options to get to work and go about their lives.
What ideas do you have to address housing shortages and affordability?
While I strongly support local control and believe cities, residents, and communities must have a say in what their future looks like, I also support the idea of working with cities to set consistent deadlines for housing permit applications. That way, each application gets a decision quickly instead of sitting for long periods of time, reducing the uncertainty and cost for home builders. Similarly, the state should lead the creation of a standardized permitting form so cities and builders can reduce paperwork without reducing local control.
I also support increasing access to high quality manufactured housing. We need to ensure that manufactured housing residents have a real opportunity to purchase the land under their own homes and are protected from deceptive, hidden charges and poor maintenance.
Minnesota's current two-year budget shows a surplus, but state forecasters project a significant structural imbalance beginning in the 2028-2029 biennium. What steps would you take to address this long-term challenge? Please include specific ideas for reducing spending, increasing revenue, or reforming state programs.
The structural imbalance has been at the forefront of budget discussions for years at the legislature and has undoubtedly been made worse by cuts at the federal level. In establishing future policies to align long-term spending with available revenues, we must focus on actions that can help grow the economy. For example, we must continue to foster robust incentives to attract and keep businesses here in Minnesota. It is imperative that we listen to our business community when passing new policy and modifying existing rules to best support them and attract new businesses to our state. Our strong economy has led to the surplus we now have and has ensured the health of our robust rainy-day fund. Keeping economic growth strong by promoting business development will help eliminate the structural imbalance and prevent relying on taxpayers to solve the problem.
I also support strong legislative oversight to guarantee programs stay on budget and to combat wasteful spending. Government must prioritize core services like public safety, education, access to affordable healthcare, and clean water with sufficient oversight to ensure the responsible use of taxpayer dollars.
Minnesota has faced several high-profile fraud cases involving public programs in recent years. The Legislature recently passed a new Office of the Inspector General on a bipartisan basis. Beyond this new office, what additional steps would you support to strengthen fraud prevention and rebuild public trust in how the state manages taxpayer-funded programs?
Fraud against taxpayer funded programs is unacceptable and must be prevented and prosecuted. That’s why I championed the independent Office of the Inspector General alongside the chief author of the bill, Senator Gustafson. In fact, I believed so strongly in this legislation that I carried a clone bill of it to ensure it passed.
In addition to the Office of Inspector General, I also worked to pass legislation that requires electronic visit verification for human services providers, modernizes the outdated IT systems to improve efficiency and the verification process, withholds payment authorization when there is a credible allegation of fraud, and implements stronger oversight of grants provided to non-profits and other entities. We must never again allow another fraud on the scale of Feeding Our Future to happen.
Legislators need to hold government accountable for implementing these policies effectively and need to continue to look for ways to strengthen oversight and accountability of public dollars. One area that Minnesota should closely examine is the use of third parties to help oversee state funding recipients. I am committed to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and in both chambers, to ensure the responsible use of taxpayer dollars.