Minnesota Votes for Housing 2020
Candidate responses in italics.
Name: Jessica Hanson
City/Town: Burnsville
Legislative District: 56A
Party: DFL
1: A national poll in May 2020 found that 78% of the public believes our elected leaders are not putting enough attention on people’s need for help to pay for their housing during the coronavirus outbreak. What do you believe is the role of government in ensuring everyone has access to housing?
I believe it is a core government responsibility to ensure everyone has access to housing. My undergraduate degree is in social work, and I prescribe to the belief that housing must be the first and most important need we help Minnesotans meet.
2: In Minnesota, 80 of 87 counties do not have the capacity to provide sufficient shelter or temporary housing to those who are homeless. Nationally, a study of US cities found that 25 percent of all requests for emergency shelter went unmet. What will you do to end homelessness?
Housing first has to be a priority. People who are living unsheltered and/or experiencing homelessness are often experiencing intersectional barriers, so we must first enter this discussion with the intention to help people get housing so that they can address other barriers.
3: According to the Census Bureau's July 22 Household Pulse Survey for Minnesota, and Stout’s analysis of this data, there are 132,000 potential eviction filings over the next 4 months in Minnesota. Over 90% of evictions in Minnesota are for non-payment of rent. What will you do to prevent evictions?
During covid, all evictions must be on a moratorium. Additionally, I think there should be increased requirements for landlords to abide by before an eviction can come to fruition. I also support deterrents that discourage landlords from evicting tenants for biased or discriminatory practices. I also believe we need to increase the number of eviction support services for people who have been evicted and/or are facing eviction.
I believe the solutions to problems facing a community are often among the minds of those experiencing them. I will always listen to people who are directly impacted by an issue to ensure their voice is empowered from my office or in the halls of the capital to the committee tables and house floor. I believe it is my job to amplify the voices of my community and those on the frontline of systemic problems, so I will always listen and be guided by them above all else.