Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House and Senate Tax Conference Committee was called to order, the roll was taken, and all 10 members were present. Chairs Marquart and Nelson opened the meeting by emphasizing the opportunity to combine two strong tax bills into one agreement, noting the large state surplus, the short timeline, and the goal of producing a bill that provides meaningful relief while supporting economic growth. Members and staff from both chambers introduced themselves, along with Department of Revenue Commissioner Robert Doty and his staff. Commissioner Doty outlined the administration’s broad support for provisions that provide relief to middle-class and working families, students, farmers, small businesses, and local governments, and he stressed the importance of federal tax conformity to reduce complexity and compliance costs. He also highlighted areas of concern, including the Senate’s broader Social Security subtraction, the pass-through entity tax changes, the new Senate New Markets Tax Credit, the Senate’s 529 and K-12 subtraction provisions, the estate tax exemption increase, and the state general levy phase-out. He said the department would work with the committee on administrability and asked that any final bill include resources needed to implement the changes. The commissioner also described areas where the House, Senate, and governor’s proposals overlap, including dependent care credit expansion, K-12 education credit changes, angel tax credit funding, and various local aid and property tax provisions. He noted the House’s renter’s credit conversion to an income tax credit, the House’s local government aid formula update, and the Senate’s transitional aid proposals. After his remarks, the committee moved into a spreadsheet walkthrough of the fiscal impacts of the House and Senate bills, with staff beginning the review section by section and members asking about timing and cost issues, including the renter’s credit.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: Minnesota leaders announced a broad budget agreement reached by Governor Walz, Senate Majority Leader Miller, Speaker Hortman, and House DFL and Senate Republican negotiators. They described it as a compromise shaped by divided government and historic budget surpluses, with the goal of returning money to Minnesotans while also making targeted investments. The leaders said the framework was set, but many details would still be worked out in conference committees over the next few days. The main topics discussed were tax relief, education, health and human services, public safety, child care, housing, transportation, and support for nursing homes, long-term care providers, and disability service providers. Republicans emphasized permanent, ongoing tax cuts and relief for families facing inflation, while Democrats stressed limiting the size of tax cuts, preserving money on the bottom line, and investing in education, health care, and other services. Education was a major focus, especially literacy and the special education cross-subsidy, and HHS was highlighted as an area needing quick action because of the time required to draft the bill. Leaders repeatedly said the conference committees should handle the remaining details, with the governor’s administration involved, and that there were no final decisions yet on the exact breakdown of tax cuts or spending. They said the agreement included about $4 billion in the framework, with $1.6 billion in the first year and $2.4 billion in the second, and that some money would be left on the bottom line to guard against future economic uncertainty. No formal votes were taken in the transcript, but the leaders said the bills needed to be finished, passed by the House and Senate, and sent to the governor’s desk within days.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: House File 4030, a commerce-related bill on bullion regulation, was presented by Representative Gomez as a response to a lawsuit involving the Minnesota Department of Commerce. Gomez said the bill narrows the state’s regulation to Minnesota consumers and sellers of gold bullion within the state. During debate, members discussed the bill’s impact on coin collecting, precious metals transactions, trade shows, and the dormant commerce clause, with several humorous exchanges about “big bullion,” pirates, and related hobbies. Representative O’Driscoll offered the A2 amendment to preserve an exemption for trade shows, arguing that trade shows are important for introducing people to numismatics and for bringing in out-of-state dealers. Representative Olson and others supported the amendment, saying the exemption was necessary to keep the hobby and small businesses viable. Gomez accepted the amendment, saying it addressed a major concern raised in committee and would help protect coin hobbyists and smaller operators. The amendment was adopted. On final debate, some members raised concerns about the bill’s definitions and possible unintended effects on collectors and small dealers, while Gomez responded that those concerns were not covered by the bill and urged support. The House then took a roll call vote and passed House File 4030, as amended, by a vote of 70 yeas to 61 nays, with the title agreed to.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The Committee on Rules and Legislative Administration met with a quorum present and first approved the minutes from May 13, 2022. The committee then took up the calendar for the day for May 18, 2022, moving to adopt it under Rules 1.21 and 3.33. The adopted calendar included House File 3955, relating to private detectives; House File 3255, concerning Department of Commerce technical provisions; House File 3400, addressing fraudulent business filings; and Senate File 3288, dealing with continuing education requirements. No testimony or substantive debate on the bills was recorded in this meeting. The motion to adopt the calendar prevailed, and with no further business before the committee, the meeting adjourned.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Education Finance Conference Committee met on May 16, 2022, and began by noting that legislative leaders and the governor had reached a framework to end the session on time, including a $1 billion K-12 target over three years. The chairs said both bodies would bring offers aligned to those targets and exchange them at the end of the meeting, though the House chair noted the House had not yet finished its proposal. Members also discussed the need to move quickly because the session was nearing its end. A major portion of the meeting focused on English learner (EL) funding and literacy. Representative Kaela Berg testified that EL enrollment has grown rapidly while funding has not kept pace, leaving districts with large cross-subsidy shortfalls and staffing and service gaps. She urged lawmakers to increase the EL per-pupil amount and eliminate the cross-subsidy, citing achievement gaps, federal accountability expectations, and the importance of EL students to Minnesota’s future workforce. Representative Hassan and others shared personal experiences as former EL students and supported full EL funding and cross-subsidy relief. District administrators Christina Robertson of Roseville and Sam Oak of Prior Lake-Savage described underfunded programs, high student needs, and the need for paraprofessionals, cultural liaisons, social workers, bilingual resources, and other supports; Oak emphasized that language access is a civil right and that many EL students need years of support to reach proficiency. Members then turned to early childhood investments, hearing from Dakota County Sheriff Tim Leslie, who argued that quality preschool is an upstream investment that can reduce future incarceration and improve graduation rates. He described the costs of operating the county jail and said law enforcement supports early childhood funding. The committee also heard from parent Tanya Drawn, who urged support for non-exclusionary discipline and banning suspensions for the youngest students, arguing that children cannot learn if they are removed from class and should feel valued and included in school.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House first took up Senate amendments to House File 3845, an act relating to children’s and families. Representative Hanson said the changes were only drafting differences and that the bill was otherwise the same as what the House had already passed. The House concurred, and on third reading the bill was repassed as amended by the Senate by a roll call vote of 127 ayes and 4 nays. The chamber then considered House File 3768 on civil law, described as a structured settlements bill. Representative Cagle said the Senate changes were mainly stylistic. The House concurred and repassed the bill as amended by the Senate, with a roll call vote of 126 ayes and 5 nays. The House also received Senate File 961 on labor; Representative Ecklund moved not to concur in the Senate amendments and to send the bill to conference because the Senate had removed some language. That motion prevailed. The Senate also agreed to a conference committee on House File 3669, a taxation bill, and appointed Senators Nelson, Weber, Bach, Gazelka, and Rest. The House then received several Senate files and referred them to committees or comparison, including education finance, occupational licensing, education, commerce, and commerce finance and policy. The Rules and Legislative Administration report placed several bills on the calendar and set a prefiling requirement for amendments. The main floor bill was Senate File 3540, the annual technical retirement bill. Representative Nelson explained its provisions on military service credit purchases, correctional plan coverage, annuity calculations, a spouse’s ability to purchase a month of pension credit, PERA-related changes for the Duluth Transit Authority, teacher retirement earnings limits, volunteer firefighter plan changes, disability review by advanced practice registered nurses, State Board of Investment classification updates, a police disability benefits study, and technical corrections. The House adopted amendments including a one-time appropriation for the police disability study and a delay in implementation of a 403(b) reporting requirement until July 1, 2024, as well as an amendment allowing out-of-state teachers to buy back retirement credit. The bill then passed as amended by a vote of 124 ayes and 6 nays. Finally, the House took up House File 4030 on commerce, a bill regulating bullion in Minnesota in response to a lawsuit against the Department of Commerce. Representative Gomez said it would limit regulation to Minnesota consumers and sellers of gold bullion. The House adopted amendments, including one to preserve an exemption for trade shows and another clarifying the bill’s scope; members discussed coin collecting, gold panning, and the definition of bullion in a lighthearted exchange. After third reading, the bill continued under debate with additional questions from members about its scope and effects.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The conference committee debated whether to consider individual proposals or a broader “global offer” from Senate Republicans. Senate members said they were not comfortable voting on single items and distributed a comprehensive offer for review, saying it would be posted publicly and discussed further the next morning. House members responded that there was a quorum and that they still wanted to proceed with provisions that had already been shared with the other body for several days. Representative Becker-Finn moved two items she said matched both chambers’ positions: funding public defenders at $50 million per year and eliminating fees for uncertified court documents. The Senate side objected to voting on a singular proposal and said it might be included in the global offer. The roll call on that motion received four House votes and two Senate votes, so it did not prevail. A second motion was then offered to adopt Senate bill provisions prohibiting retaliation against peace officers who report or intervene in cases of excessive force, framed as protection for officers acting under whistleblower-like circumstances. Supporters said the measure was important in light of the Minnesota Department of Human Rights’ review of the Minneapolis Police Department and related concerns about officer intervention and retaliation. That motion also received four House votes and two Senate votes and failed for lack of one additional Senate vote. After the failed votes, the House chair said there were still additional provisions already shared with the Senate, but that it no longer made sense to keep voting while the Senate majority declined to participate. The committee then recessed until the call of the chair so the Senate members could return and continue work on the conference committee bill.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Senate first took up Senate File 3107, which would raise the annual compensation cap for school board members who are also employed by their district from $8,000 to $20,000. Supporters said the change would help districts address staffing shortages by allowing board members to continue working as bus drivers, cafeteria workers, or substitute teachers, while still limiting conflicts of interest. The bill received supportive remarks from several senators and passed on a 30-0 roll call. The chamber then considered Senate File 2011, a Burnsville-specific school finance bill allowing the district to use proceeds from selling a middle school for debt repayment and, if any funds remain, for student programs such as literacy and mental health. An amendment was offered to make the flexibility statewide, but the sponsor preferred to keep the bill focused on Burnsville, and the amendment was withdrawn. Senators supporting the bill said the district needed local control to address changing enrollment and facility needs. The bill passed 66-0. Next, House File 3285 authorized counties to use an online process to sell county-owned fee land, similar to existing procedures for tax-forfeited land. The sponsor said it would make infrequent surplus land sales easier and more efficient, especially when counties acquire property for road or trail projects and later need to dispose of unused parcels. A question was raised about whether online sales could benefit outside investors, but the sponsor said the sales are rare and limited. The bill passed 65-0. The Senate also passed House File 961, which adds a law enforcement supervisors bargaining unit to the list of units allowed under state labor law. Supporters said it would let about 120 supervisors from agencies such as State Patrol, BCA, Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement, and Commerce organize in a common unit if they choose. One senator said he had wanted to offer a Minneapolis-focused amendment tied to police supervision and public safety, but could not reach agreement and said he would keep working on the issue. The bill passed 66-0. The chamber then began Senate File 3071, which expands temporary licensure periods for physicians, physician assistants, respiratory therapists, and nurses to help speed health care workforce entry; supporters said it was a post-COVID workforce fix and the bill passed 65-0 after sponsors thanked the licensing boards for their work. Finally, Senate File 4108, updating annuity suitability rules and consumer protections, was amended with a technical A2 amendment and advanced with support from senators and the Department of Commerce, which said the measure preserves senior protections while aligning Minnesota with other states.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The meeting opened with a prayer by the chaplain, Reverend Austin Wartner of Metropolitan Baptist Church in Bloomington, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. The clerk then conducted a quorum call and roll call, with a quorum ultimately declared present. The House approved the previous day’s journal as corrected and adopted the standing committee and division reports without objection. The chamber then moved to second reading of Senate File 3257 and Senate File 3288, and the chief clerk reported House Files 4880 through 4885 for first reading. A Rules and Legislative Administration report, presented by Representative Winkler, placed several bills on the calendar for Tuesday, May 17, 2022, and required pre-filing of amendments for House File 2354, House File 2665, Senate File 3850, House File 1829, and Senate Files 1391 and 2922. The Speaker announced receipt of a message from the Senate requesting House concurrence with Senate amendments to House File 2353. Leader Winkler then moved a recess to the call of the chair, noting members would receive at least 30 minutes’ notice before reconvening. The House agreed, and the chamber recessed after a brief announcement from the minority leader about caucus and committee activity.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The House and Senate Public Safety and Judiciary conference committee met to hear agency and local-government testimony on the omnibus bill, with both chairs emphasizing that the chambers were close to finalizing a compromise but still far apart on the overall budget framework. Chair Lim said the agreed spending target for this area was $200 million this year and $250 million next biennium, and urged the committee to focus on the larger budget issue rather than only smaller policy items. Members also discussed timing around floor sessions and asked testifiers to keep remarks brief so the committee could continue its work. Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero outlined the agency’s core duties—investigating discrimination, overseeing state contractors, and education/outreach—and requested additional investigator capacity, a one-time data/technology investment for contractor compliance work, and funding for bias-and-hate data collection and community response efforts. She highlighted cases involving age discrimination and sexual harassment/assault, argued that the Crown Act should be included to clarify that hair discrimination is race discrimination, and said better data is needed to address bias and hate incidents before they escalate. She also noted the department’s work with state contractors on pay equity and workforce participation. Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell and Faribault correctional captain Chris Mitchell testified in support of several DOC requests, including a county reimbursement fund for interstate compact transportation costs, body-worn cameras for correctional staff, a grants management system, higher property insurance funding, and a major public-safety data modernization effort. They said outdated systems force staff to rely on fax machines and manual record review, making it difficult to track security incidents, discipline, releases, and case planning, and argued that modern technology would improve safety, accountability, and information sharing. Mitchell said the current systems are too fragmented to support 21st-century corrections work. The committee then moved to county corrections provisions, beginning with testimony from Roseau County Commissioner Jack Swanson, who said Roseau is one of about 30 DOC counties and that northern agents cover a very large area. He supported the proposed supervision funding increase and stressed that the funding formula matters for local counties, because a better formula would improve local capacity and service delivery. No votes or final actions were taken during this portion of the meeting.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: Governor Walz and legislative leaders announced a framework agreement on supplemental spending as the Legislature heads toward adjournment. They said the deal includes about $4 billion in tax relief and $4 billion in spending for education, health and human services, public safety, and related priorities, along with a $1.4 billion bonding bill. The leaders described the agreement as a compromise reached after negotiations involving the governor, House and Senate leaders, and nonpartisan budget staff. In their remarks, Walz, Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller, and House DFL leaders said the framework is intended to put money back in Minnesotans’ pockets while also making targeted investments in schools, public safety, health care, nursing homes, child care, and transportation. Miller emphasized permanent, ongoing tax relief, especially for middle-class families, while House Democrats stressed education, health care, and leaving enough money on the bottom line to avoid future deficits. Walz said the compromise reflected mature legislating and restraint given economic uncertainty. Leaders said many details were still unresolved and would be worked out in conference committees over the next few days. They noted that the committees would handle specifics such as the mix of permanent versus targeted tax cuts, education funding priorities, and support for nursing homes and disability services. No formal votes were taken at the press conference, but leaders said the framework sets parameters for final bills and that conference committees should finish work quickly so the measures can pass both chambers and go to the governor’s desk before adjournment.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee met on May 16 to review the side-by-side comparison of Senate File 3008, the omnibus liquor bill, with presentations from House Research and Senate staff. The House bill’s Article 1 included a range of liquor regulation changes: allowing certain distilled spirits manufacturers and microdistilleries to operate cocktail rooms and expand off-sale container sizes, raising the growler-sales threshold for breweries, creating new off-sale packaging rules for small brewers, allowing limited self-distribution of apple cider by wineries, and making Coleman Act changes to apply open wholesaling rules to in-state distilled spirits manufacturers in response to Commerce Clause concerns. It also proposed special local licenses and other changes, including resort and town ball licenses, county fair temporary licenses, exclusive liquor store sales of citrus and glassware, World Cup extended hours, a new liquor regulation advisory council, a temporary allowance for 17-year-olds to serve alcohol without tending bar, and a $250,000 appropriation for two additional alcohol and gambling enforcement positions. Article 2 focused on direct-shipped wine. The proposal would increase the annual shipping limit from two cases to 12 cases per Minnesota resident, require direct ship wineries to collect and remit the alcohol gross receipts tax, sales and use tax, and wine excise tax, and subject them to licensing, reporting, suspension/revocation, and penalty provisions. Common carriers would also have monthly reporting and record-retention requirements, with a $500 penalty for violations. The article included appropriations to the Department of Public Safety and Department of Revenue to administer and enforce the new system. Article 3 covered special local liquor laws, including licenses for Willmar, Sauk Rapids, St. Paul, St. Cloud, Rochester, and Alexandria, plus a new social district license for Anoka with signage, contiguity, labeling, and consumption restrictions. Members did not take final action on the bill at this meeting; after questions and an explanation from Chair Stevenson about the enforcement appropriation, the committee concluded the business for the evening and adjourned.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House took up Senate File 3540, a technical pension bill from the Legislative Commission on Pensions and Retirement. Representative Nelson described provisions covering military service credit purchases, correctional plan coverage for certain positions, annuity calculations for the unclassified plan, a widow’s ability to purchase one month of service to vest a pension, a correction for a misreported Department of Corrections employee, PERA-related changes for the Duluth Transit Authority, a temporary return-to-work allowance for retired teachers to help address shortages, statewide volunteer firefighter retirement changes, disability-review language for advanced practice registered nurses, State Board of Investment classification updates, a police disability benefits adequacy study, and technical corrections. Members adopted three amendments. One clarified that funding for the police disability benefits adequacy study is a one-time appropriation. Another delayed implementation of a 2020 pension-related reporting requirement for certain 403(b) plans until July 1, 2024, to allow further cleanup of the statute and avoid inadvertent violations. A third, offered by Representative Sandstede, allowed out-of-state teachers to buy back retirement credit, with supporters saying it would be cost-neutral, aid recruitment and retention, and align Minnesota with neighboring states; Representative Nelson said the employee would pay the full actuarial cost and supported the amendment. After third reading, Nelson urged a green vote on the bill as the annual technical pension package. The House passed Senate File 3540, as amended, by a roll call vote of 124 yeas and 6 nays, and the title was agreed to.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: State leaders announced a bipartisan budget framework in Minnesota and described it as a compromise that balances tax relief with targeted spending. Governor Walz, Senate Majority Leader Miller, and House DFL Leader Winkler said the agreement is intended to help Minnesotans with the cost of living, child care, housing, public safety, education, health care, and transportation, while also leaving money on the bottom line to guard against future deficits. Republicans emphasized permanent, ongoing tax relief and relief from inflation; Democrats emphasized investments in families, workers, education, and health care. Several specific priorities were highlighted. The Senate said it is focused on literacy and special education cross-subsidy issues in education, and on addressing the crisis facing nursing homes, long-term care providers, and disability services. The leaders also pointed to public safety, paid family and medical leave, earned sick and safe time, unemployment insurance, COVID-related issues, veterans issues, and a major transportation package tied to federal infrastructure dollars. The transportation plan was described as the largest single transportation investment in half a century. Most of the detailed decisions were left to conference committees, with leaders saying the framework set broad parameters but not final allocations. They said committee members from the House, Senate, and governor’s administration would work through the remaining differences, with some bills—especially health and human services—needing to be finished quickly, possibly by the next day or Wednesday morning. No final votes were taken in the exchange, but leaders said the agreement was a significant breakthrough and expected the bills to move to the governor for signature once conference committees finish their work.