Policy Deadlines Fast Approaching

Self-imposed policy bill deadlines loom large and land next Friday, March 27 at 5pm. The week of March 23 will be a flurry of activity in the many policy committees as legislators make last minute attempts to advance their individual policy proposals. With the tie in each State House committee, bipartisanship is the name of the game in order to advance in the House process. The Senate DFL has a majority, but it will be interesting to see what they decide to roll out in an omnibus education policy bill that will be initially reviewed on Monday the 23rd.

A proposal (SF3750) to repeal an onerous storm shelter requirement in the state’s building code for southern MN schools has advanced in the Senate. However, it appears the American Institute of Architects continues to object to repealing this mandate and will be the cause of further delay and lack of advancement in the legislative process.

Legislative Update – 2026 Session is underway

The Legislature returned for the 2026 session on Tuesday, February 17th. It was a somber day of honoring Former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman, including moving speeches by Governor Walz; Senate Majority Leader, Erin Murphy; House Speaker, Lisa Demuth, and House DFL Leader, Zach Stephenson.

Special Session Outcome-Following adjournment of the regular session on May 19, 2025, the Legislature reconvened in a special session in early June 2025 to complete unfinished budget work, including the E-12 education finance and policy bill.

Yesterday, May 15, 2025 legislative leaders and Governor Walz announced the high level details of a global budget deal. The 2025 regular legislative session is set to adjourn on May 19, 2025 but a special session will likely follow to wrap up a few major budget bills, including the E-12 budget bill. The plan will keep E-12 funding at its forecasted levels for FY 26-27, but reduces E-12 spending by $420M in the “tails” budget or FY 28-29.

The tails reduction will likely result from reductions in either or both the forecasted increases on the basic formula or in special education cross-subsidy aid. GOP leaders said there won’t be cuts to nonpublic school aids, and DFL leaders said a plan to sunset Unemployment Insurance benefits won’t be a part of the final bill. These and all other E-12 changes will be hammered out over this coming weekend and into early next week.

2 Weeks Remaining in Session

The legislature must adjourn two weeks from today, and the race is on to see if they will complete the state’s budget in time. A special session is not out of the question, but some legislators remain hopeful that they’ll finish on May 19. Legislative leaders are committed to on-going budget negotiations with hopes of reaching a comprehensive agreement soon. Following several in-depth meetings last week, Governor Tim Walz indicated that the group is working productively toward the final budget framework. Still, House Speaker Lisa Demuth warned that a finalized deal may take longer to come together. Once finalized, the budget targets will serve as a roadmap for conference committees to craft legislation on major issues including education, health care, transportation, and public safety.