Ann Rest
Encyclopedia
Ann H. Rest is a Minnesota
politician and a member of the Minnesota Senate
representing District 45, which includes portions of the western suburbs of Hennepin County
in the Twin Cities
metro area. A Democrat
, she was first elected to the Senate in 2000, and was re-elected in 2002, 2006 and 2010. Prior to the 2002 legislative redistricting
, the area was known as District 46. She served as an assistant majority leader
from 2003 to 2007.
for 16 years, being first elected in 1984, and re-elected in 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996 and 1998. She was an assistant majority leader
of the House from 1989 to 1991. She chaired the House Tax Committee from 1993 to 1997, and the House Local Government and Metropolitan Affairs Committee from 1997 to 1999.
Rest is currently a member of the Senate's Commerce and Consumer Protection, Taxes, and Transportation committees. She chaired the Senate State and Local Government Operations and Oversight Committee from 2007 to 2011. Her special legislative concerns include tax policy, education funding, and transportation.
, graduating in 1960, then went on to Northwestern University
in Evanston, Illinois
, where she received her B.A.
in Latin
and Greek
. She then attended the University of Chicago
, where she received her M.A.
in Latin and Greek. She later received an M.A. in Teaching from Harvard University
, a Masters in Business Taxation from the University of Minnesota
, and a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government
through a Bush Fellowship. She is a retired Certified Public Accountant
.
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
politician and a member of the Minnesota Senate
Minnesota Senate
The Minnesota Senate is the upper house in the Minnesota Legislature. There are 67 members, half as many as are in the Minnesota House of Representatives. In terms of membership, it is the largest upper house of any state legislature. Each Senate district in the state includes an A and B House...
representing District 45, which includes portions of the western suburbs of Hennepin County
Hennepin County, Minnesota
Hennepin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota, named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. As of 2010 the population was 1,152,425. Its county seat is Minneapolis. It is by far the most populous county in Minnesota; more than one in five Minnesotans live...
in the Twin Cities
Twin cities
Twin cities are a special case of two cities or urban centres which are founded in close geographic proximity and then grow into each other over time...
metro area. A Democrat
Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
The Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party is a major political party in the state of Minnesota and the state affiliate of the Democratic Party. It was created on April 15, 1944, with the merger of the Minnesota Democratic Party and the Farmer–Labor Party...
, she was first elected to the Senate in 2000, and was re-elected in 2002, 2006 and 2010. Prior to the 2002 legislative redistricting
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...
, the area was known as District 46. She served as an assistant majority leader
Majority leader
In U.S. politics, the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.In the federal Congress, the role differs slightly in the two houses. In the House of Representatives, which chooses its own presiding officer, the leader of the majority party is elected the Speaker of the...
from 2003 to 2007.
Leadership in the Minnesota House and Senate
Before being elected to the Senate, Rest represented District 46A in the Minnesota House of RepresentativesMinnesota House of Representatives
The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house in the Minnesota State Legislature. There are 134 members elected to two-year terms, twice the number of members in the Minnesota Senate. Each senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B...
for 16 years, being first elected in 1984, and re-elected in 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996 and 1998. She was an assistant majority leader
Majority leader
In U.S. politics, the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.In the federal Congress, the role differs slightly in the two houses. In the House of Representatives, which chooses its own presiding officer, the leader of the majority party is elected the Speaker of the...
of the House from 1989 to 1991. She chaired the House Tax Committee from 1993 to 1997, and the House Local Government and Metropolitan Affairs Committee from 1997 to 1999.
Rest is currently a member of the Senate's Commerce and Consumer Protection, Taxes, and Transportation committees. She chaired the Senate State and Local Government Operations and Oversight Committee from 2007 to 2011. Her special legislative concerns include tax policy, education funding, and transportation.
Education
Rest attended Rich Township High School in Park Forest, IllinoisPark Forest, Illinois
Park Forest is a village located south of Chicago in Cook County and Will County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 23,462...
, graduating in 1960, then went on to Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Evanston, Illinois
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
, where she received her B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
. She then attended the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, where she received her M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Latin and Greek. She later received an M.A. in Teaching from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, a Masters in Business Taxation from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
, and a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government
John F. Kennedy School of Government
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University is a public policy and public administration school, and one of Harvard's graduate and professional schools...
through a Bush Fellowship. She is a retired Certified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...
.
Community service
Rest has been active on numerous government and community boards through the years. She is a member of the 2020 Conference, of the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, and of the Committee on Economic Development, Workforce Development and Labor of the Council of State Governments. She serves on Minnesota's Legislative Audit Commission and on the Victory Memorial Drive Advisory Task Force. She was a member of the Minnesota Statehood Sesquicentennial Commission (2006–2008), and of the Minnesota Delegation to the Great Lakes Commission. She is a founding member of the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus. She was also a member of the Minnesota Academic Excellence Foundation, the Minnesota Capitol Area Architectural Planning Board, and the Minnesota Commission on the Economic Status of Women.External links
- Senator Rest Web Page
- Minnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Senator Ann Rest
- Project Vote Smart - Senator Ann Rest Profile