Midwest-Canada Relations

Created in 1991, the Midwestern Legislative Conference Midwest-Canada Relations Committee provides a forum for state and provincial legislators to exchange information and ideas of mutual interest in both countries. Additionally, the committee ensures that the perspective of state and provincial legislators is presented to federal officials and provides a cross-border forum for dialogue and information sharing. To that end, it occasionally organizes legislative exchanges between state and provincial legislators.

The committee is made up of legislators from from the 11 Midwestern states and four Canadian provinces that are part of CSG’s Midwestern Legislative Conference. The committee’s composition changes every biennium, with appointments made by legislative appointing authorities and leaders of the MLC. The appointment process for 2025-2026 is now underway. The CSG Midwest staff liaison for the committee is Mitch Arvidson.

The MLC Midwest-Canada Relations Committee will meet in July 2025 in conjunction with the MLC Annual Meeting in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. More details on this meeting, as well as other committee activities for the 2025-2026 biennium, will be available soon.

Summary of recent work and activities

In 2023-2024, the MLC’s Midwest-Canada Relations Committee was led by Manitoba MLA Kelvin Goertzen and Michigan Rep. Amos O’Neal, co-chairs; and Ontario MPP Ernie Hardeman and North Dakota Rep. David Monson, co-vice chairs. During the 2023-2024 biennium, the committee:

• hosted an in-person policy workshop for legislators that focused on deepening their understanding of the importance of critical minerals to the region and the role of public policy;
• planned legislative exchanges of Ontario lawmakers to Lansing, Mich., and MLC leadership to Edmonton, Alberta;
• organized in-person meetings on topics such as U.S.-Canada federal relations and their importance to the Midwest and electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing and purchasing incentives in the U.S. and Canada;
• led a tour of 2023 MLC Annual Meeting attendees to see border operations in Detroit and Windsor, Ontario;
• held webinars for legislators that highlighted the work of the Alberta Ministry of Indigenous Relations and that explored Indigenous Treaty Law in the U.S. and Canada; and
• initiated MLC resolutions calling on U.S. Customs and Border Protection to expand hours of operation at several ports of entry and calling for an 18-month delay at the U.S. northern land border regarding a rule that imposed new requirements on people entering the U.S. from abroad with a dog.

Resources from 2024 committee meeting in Columbus

The MLC Midwest-Canada Relations Committee meets at least once a year as part of the MLC Annual Meeting, most recently in Columbus in 2024 and Detroit in 2023. Below are links to resources, including presentations, from the 2024 meeting in Columbus.

• “Electric Vehicle Transformation: Successes & Struggles” | Neal Osten, Executive Director, The Institute for State Policy Leaders
• “Midwest on the Move: Legislative Strategies to Boost Electric Vehicle Adaptation” | Matt Stephens-Rich, Director, Electrification Coalition
• Stateline Midwest article on “At a ‘Crossroads’: Legislators Explore Binational Push for Electric Vehicles, Potential Impact of EVs in Region”
• Agenda