Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: Senate Republicans outlined a tax bill they said would provide permanent, ongoing relief in response to a roughly $9 billion state surplus. The main provisions described were eliminating state income tax on Social Security benefits, cutting the first-tier income tax rate from 5.35% to 2.8%, conforming Minnesota tax law to several recent federal changes, and adding estate tax portability for surviving spouses. They said the bill would begin with tax year 2022, would be easy to administer, and would affect more than 2.4 million filers, including about 407,000 filers who would benefit from the Social Security exemption. The senators argued the proposal was needed because Minnesotans are facing inflation and higher costs for gas, groceries, utilities, and other necessities, and they said the state has over-collected from taxpayers. They cited a Department of Revenue tax incidence study to argue the current system is progressive and that the bill would still provide relief across income levels, while maintaining refundable credits for lower-income taxpayers. They also said the federal conformity section would not raise tax liability and would include items such as shuttered venue grants, idle grants, student loan provisions, and treatment of short sales and foreclosures. In response to questions, they said the bill’s total cost was about $8.8 billion over three years and that it fit within current and future budget projections. They contrasted the proposal with one-time rebate checks, saying they preferred permanent rate reductions. They also noted that the Senate tax bill on the floor that day was narrowly focused on four areas and did not include property tax aids and credits, local option sales taxes, or other local tax provisions, and they indicated a second tax bill would come later in the session. No votes were taken in the transcript, which was presented as a press availability and question-and-answer session.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Senate debated and then passed the omnibus tax bill, Senate File 3692, by a vote of 42 to 24. Supporters argued that Minnesota’s more than $9.25 billion surplus and full reserves meant the state had overcollected from taxpayers and should return money through permanent tax relief, including lowering the first-tier income tax rate from 5.35 percent to 2.8 percent and eliminating taxes on Social Security income. They also framed the bill as a way to provide ongoing relief rather than a one-time rebate. Opponents said the proposal would disproportionately benefit higher-income Minnesotans while leaving out more than 540,000 lower-income taxpayers. They argued the surplus should instead be used to address other priorities such as school funding, special education, teacher shortages, and infrastructure needs. Several speakers emphasized that the bill did not help working families, frontline workers, or people at the lower end of the income scale. The discussion repeatedly returned to the size of the surplus, the state’s reserve levels, and whether the money should be returned to taxpayers or reserved for future budget needs. After debate, the Senate approved the bill and agreed to the title.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a quorum call, then approved the previous day’s journal and adopted standing committee reports. Several House files were read for second reading, and a batch of new House files was introduced. The chamber then took up a Senate message asking the House to suspend the 12-hour rule so it could immediately consider House File 3217, which passed on a voice vote after members agreed it was urgent. House File 3217, originally described as a rule helpline privacy bill, was amended by the Senate to provide emergency funding for highly pathogenic avian influenza response. Members supporting concurrence said the outbreak was affecting poultry farms, backyard flocks, and related agricultural operations, and that the $1 million appropriation to the Department of Agriculture and Board of Animal Health was needed quickly for testing, equipment, workforce support, and humane depopulation efforts. Several members, including a former turkey grower, emphasized the urgency before Easter recess; one member also noted the disease does not affect humans. The House concurred in the Senate amendments and then passed the bill as amended by a roll call vote of 129-1. The House also received Senate amendments to House File 3420, the drought relief bill. Representative Sandeen moved to refuse concurrence and send the bill to conference, while others urged immediate concurrence so aid could reach farmers and livestock producers sooner. Debate centered on the distribution formula for the $10 million in drought aid, with Sandeen explaining the House version was more prescriptive and used tiered grants and a short application window, while supporters of concurrence argued the Senate version would get money out faster to the hardest-hit areas. Opponents of the House motion said farmers were already suffering losses and that the bill had been delayed too long; one member objected that the House version devoted substantial funding to DNR-related items rather than direct farm relief. The transcript ends during continued debate and before the roll call result on the motion to refuse concurrence.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House first suspended the 12-hour rule so it could immediately take up a Senate message on House File 3217. Members described the bill as an urgent response to highly pathogenic avian influenza affecting Minnesota poultry, with supporters noting the need to act before recess and emphasizing the impact on turkey farms, layer facilities, backyard flocks, and related industries. Several members said the virus posed a serious operational challenge because of changing outbreak patterns, cold weather affecting equipment, and worker shortages. The author explained that the Senate amendment shifted the bill to provide $1 million to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and the Board of Animal Health for emergency response work, including testing materials, equipment, and local workforce support. Members also noted that farmers were using biosecurity measures and working with veterinarians, and one member clarified for the public that avian flu does not affect humans or food safety for poultry products. The House concurred in the Senate amendments, gave the bill its third reading, and then passed House File 3217 as amended by the Senate. The final roll call was 129 ayes and 1 no, and the bill’s title was agreed to.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum present, adopted the committee reports and author’s motions, and moved into special orders. House File 3620, a labor and industry bill on manufactured housing, was presented by Senator Rarick as a way to address housing needs by allowing more residential contractors to become certified to install used manufactured homes and by permitting a data plate to identify a mobile home if the exterior label is missing. After brief discussion, the bill passed 66-0 and its title was agreed to. House File 3217, an agriculture bill, was described by Senator Matthews as protecting the privacy of data collected from people seeking mental or behavioral health help through the Minnesota Farm and Rural Helpline. Senator Westrom offered the A2 amendment to add $1 million for avian influenza response funding for the Department of Agriculture and Board of Animal Health; the amendment was accepted as friendly, adopted, and the bill then passed 66-0 as amended. The final special order was Senate File 3692, the early first omnibus tax bill. Senator Nelson outlined broad tax relief, including income tax reductions, elimination of state taxation of Social Security benefits, estate tax portability changes, and federal tax conformity items. Senators Klein and Rest criticized the bill as unfair or fiscally unrealistic, arguing it favored higher-income taxpayers and did not prioritize other needs; Rest offered the A16 amendment to replace part of the bill with direct payments, but the debate continued in the transcript before a final vote on the amendment or bill was shown.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee met remotely on April 7, 2022, and approved the April 5 minutes. Members then took up House File 4492, the Environment and Natural Resources omnibus finance and policy bill, and moved the DE4 amendment and the bill for consideration as a committee bill to be re-referred to Ways and Means. Testimony on the bill was largely supportive from agency and advocacy witnesses, with some requests for additional funding or policy changes. MPCA Commissioner Katrina Kessler praised inclusion of climate adaptation grants, waste prevention/recycling/composting grants, PFAS-related provisions, wastewater discharge notification language, a PFAS report deadline change, restrictions on lead and cadmium in children’s products, a revolving fund for contaminated property cleanup, operating support, Saint Louis River mercury TMDL funding, railroad safety preparedness, and community-based brownfield programs. She also asked the committee to add items not included, such as peat moss pollution study funding, smart salting funding, small business environmental assistance updates, wastewater treatment plant technical assistance, and expanded recycling/compost grants, and said the agency would continue working on language details. DNR Commissioner Sarah Strohman said the bill included many of the department’s budget requests, including public water access, fish hatchery improvements, native plant restoration, grassland and wetland restoration for carbon capture, aggregate maps, and No Child Left Inside funding. She said the bill did not address a $1.73 million enforcement division budget deficiency and highlighted policy items the agency wanted to continue discussing, including tribal ID for hunting and fishing licenses and blaze orange requirements on ground blinds. Board of Water and Soil Resources Director John Jaske supported water storage and soil health provisions, the tribal liaison requirement, and COVID-response funding, while asking for more stakeholder process and flexibility on soil health funding duration. The Board of Animal Health said it was available for questions on pharmaceutical statute changes. Public testimony split between support and opposition. The Minnesota 100 Campaign and Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy supported the bill’s climate resilience, environmental justice, soil health, zero-waste, and PFAS provisions, urging continued consultation with affected communities. The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and related industry groups opposed parts of the bill, arguing that increased penalties, oversight changes, and permitting requirements would add cost, uncertainty, and delay to environmental review and could hurt economic development. No final vote on the bill is reflected in the transcript excerpt beyond moving the DE4 amendment and advancing HF 4492 to Ways and Means.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee met virtually on April 7, 2022, and first approved the April 6 minutes. Members then resumed work on House File 4293, the omnibus bill, beginning with adoption of the A13 amendment. The A13 was described as making technical changes, moving provisions around, adding an appropriation from MMB for technical assistance, and clarifying a $93,000 integrated appropriation. Representative Drazkowski asked about a $314,000 appropriation for technical assistance to communities and nonprofits; Chair Nelson said it was intended to help underrepresented groups, including disadvantaged business enterprises, veterans, and small businesses, participate in the state capital budgeting process. The committee then debated the A6 amendment offered by Representative Nash, which would allow civic organizations to conduct raffle ticket sales by phone. Nash argued it was a previously supported pandemic-era provision and that it involved consumers calling organizations, not outbound solicitation. Chair Nelson said he was not in favor of advancing it this year because the pandemic was winding down and the gambling board had raised concerns. After roll call, the A6 amendment failed, 5-8. Next, Representative Kosnick offered the A7 amendment, a broad elections package including voter ID, provisional balloting, restrictions on third-party ballot collection, limits on pop-up voting sites, prohibitions on corporate or nonprofit donations to election administration, increased penalties for voter fraud, and stricter citizenship eligibility enforcement. Kosnick said the changes were needed to restore confidence and integrity in elections. Chair Nelson opposed it, noting voters had previously rejected voter ID. After questions and debate, the A7 amendment also failed, 5-8. The committee then moved to the A8 amendment, offered by Representative Nash, which he said would require public in-person access before the legislature could vote on legislation; discussion began, but the transcript cuts off before any vote on A8.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The meeting was a walkthrough of a large health omnibus bill, with staff explaining how the delete-all amendment is assembled from many separate House Files and governor’s proposals. Article 1 covered Department of Health finance items, including No Surprises Act compliance, all-payer claims database changes, water supply advisory council reestablishment, hospital licensing fees for trauma designations, and a broad set of workforce and public health initiatives such as loan forgiveness, nursing staffing committees, overdose prevention, lead poisoning prevention, climate resiliency, long COVID, suicide prevention lifeline centers, home visiting, school health centers, community health workers, infant mortality prevention, and long-term care facility grants. It also included medical cannabis changes, a study of a statewide POLST registry, and a University of Minnesota contract for a universal health care financing analysis. Article 2 was the Department of Health policy article and included nursing home assessment changes, radioactive materials definitions, advisory council and health equity council changes, hospital moratorium exceptions, charity-care screening before discharge, assisted living and electronic monitoring provisions, pregnancy support-person rights, cancer reporting updates, lead work licensing changes, nursing home ownership changes, palliative care definitions, body art technician application timing, and medical cannabis database and transportation changes. Article 3 focused on health care financing and public programs, including creation of a health care affordability board, elimination of cost sharing in MA and MinnesotaCare, expanded tobacco cessation coverage, MA eligibility and benefit changes, continuous eligibility for children, doula reimbursement, tribal FQHC payment methods, seizure detection devices, managed care opt-out, a MinnesotaCare public option, a dental home pilot, and a report comparing MA and MinnesotaCare payment models. Article 4 was a short DHS health care policy article on program administration, managed care ombudsperson issues, foster care, telehealth, and MH trust/annuity language. Article 5 covered health-related licensing boards, including remote supervision for certain mental health and social work professions, dentistry licensure and fees, pharmacist administration authority, podiatry licensure timing, and temporary ambulance/EMS requirements. Article 6 addressed prescription drugs, including formulary filing and notice requirements, expanded drug reporting, excessive price increase prohibitions, a prescription drug affordability board, PrEP/PEP coverage and pharmacist prescribing, diabetes drug cost-sharing limits, biological product and white-bagging restrictions, mail-order pharmacy temperature-monitoring devices, medication repository funding, and controlled-substance prescribing for intractable pain. Article 7 covered insurance mandates for ectodermal dysplasias, lymphedema, post-mammogram diagnostic services, and rare disease treatment location choice. Article 8 included cannabinoid product rules, moving the Rare Disease Advisory Council, rescheduling marijuana and THC, and an anti-discrimination provision for anatomical gifts. The chair noted that no member questions were raised during the walkthrough, and the meeting then moved through the remaining articles without votes or amendments being taken in the portion provided.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee met in hybrid format, adopted the April 5 minutes, and then took up House File 4608 as amended for markup, with the chair noting the goal of finishing the bill that day and, if needed, reconvening the next morning. Testimony focused on several parts of the omnibus public safety/youth justice bill, including youth violence prevention, youth intervention funding, community safety innovation grants, local emergency management grants, and the Justice Reinvestment Initiative for community supervision and corrections funding. Hennepin County described its $10 million violence-prevention effort, including grants to 51 organizations, mentoring, victim services, street outreach, mental health and substance-use programming, and support for youth at high risk of gun violence. Sarah Davis of the Legal Rights Center strongly supported the bill’s youth justice provisions, especially ending disciplinary room time, and also backed broader changes such as a youth justice and wellness task force, risk assessment requirements, limits on detention for younger children, expanded expungement, and ending visual strip searches. YIPA and county representatives also supported youth intervention funding and local emergency management grants, saying the programs are needed statewide and especially in greater Minnesota. Several county officials and associations testified in support of the Justice Reinvestment Initiative provisions, saying community supervision is underfunded and that the bill’s policy and funding changes would help stabilize probation and corrections funding, reduce recidivism, and support reentry. SEIU Local 26 supported the community safety innovation grants, citing a North Minneapolis community safety specialist pilot as an example of community-based safety work. A public testifier, Lisa Walker, urged stronger consequences for repeat offenders and described the impact of violent crime on her family, arguing that incarceration and supervision failures have left victims unsafe. No votes on amendments or final bill passage were described in the excerpt, but the committee moved through testimony and continued markup of the bill.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House took up Senate amendments to House File 3420, the drought relief bill. Representative Sundin moved that the House refuse to concur in the Senate amendments and instead send the bill to a conference committee to resolve differences. Sundin explained that the main differences involved how prescriptive the bill should be in distributing $10 million in drought aid, including whether grants should be targeted first to the hardest-hit areas and how the application process should work. Supporters of the motion argued the bill was overdue and needed further negotiation, while opponents said farmers needed the aid immediately and urged concurrence so the money could be sent out without delay. Several members spoke in favor of moving the bill forward quickly, emphasizing the urgency for livestock producers and other farmers affected by drought. Others argued the bill had been delayed too long and criticized the inclusion of funding for DNR-related items, saying the measure should focus on direct drought relief for farmers. Representative Keel, Representative Lewick, and Representative Backer all urged members to refuse to concur, saying agriculture could not wait and that the bill should go to the governor sooner rather than later. Representative Anderson and Representative Dought argued for immediate action and concurrence, saying the relief was needed and overdue. After debate, the House held a roll call vote on the motion to refuse to concur in the Senate amendments. The motion prevailed by a vote of 68 yeas to 63 nays, meaning the House rejected the Senate amendments and moved toward a conference committee process.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee met virtually, approved the April 6 minutes, and then took up two capital investment-related child care facility proposals informationally. Assistant Commissioner Tiki Brown from DHS presented the administration’s proposal for $10.375 million in statewide grants to renovate or build early learning facilities, available to political subdivisions, nonprofits, and tribal governments through a competitive process with a 50 percent nonstate match. Members asked about the existing $500,000-per-program and $2 million-per-facility limits, and DHS confirmed those caps are already in law. DHS also clarified that the child care revitalization grants funded last session opened March 29 and are being issued in three-month rounds through spring 2024. Chair Pinto noted the limits may not fit some larger local projects and encouraged members to share input with the capital investment committee. The committee also heard informationally on House File 2369, which Chair Pinto described as another approach to the same child care facilities fund, but with a blank appropriation, only general obligation bonds, and no geographic restriction. He said it would be similar in purpose but would not include the general fund flexibility for nonprofits and others. Members did not take action on either capital investment bill beyond discussion. The main action item was House File 4735, the committee’s early childhood omnibus bill. Annie Mock and fiscal staff walked through the A4 amendment and updated spreadsheet, describing mostly technical cleanup plus several substantive changes: the Brain Builders Bonus Program was narrowed to infants only and tied to CCAP or early learning scholarship eligibility; early learning scholarship eligibility was expanded from 185 percent to 200 percent of the federal poverty level, with families at or below 185 percent designated a priority group; the Head Start appropriation was clarified to support Early Head Start; and a $255,000 DEED workforce study was added. Staff also noted increased funding for the early childhood family education office, and later corrected the record to add that early learning scholarships were funded at $150 million in fiscal year 2023 and $45 million in each tail year. The committee adopted the A4 amendment and then adopted the DE2 amendment as amended, moving the bill to its final form before a future rule-called vote. During discussion, Representative Bolden gave an extended statement in support of the bill, emphasizing the importance of early childhood investment, the high cost of child care for families, and low wages for providers.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on three bills—Senate Files 4455, 4077, and 3694—that would reduce or repeal Minnesota’s statewide general levy on commercial-industrial property, with SF 3694 also addressing seasonal recreational property. The bill authors argued the levy is an added state-level tax on top of local property taxes, said it raises business costs and rents for tenants, and described it as outdated since it was enacted in 2001. A Department of Revenue representative explained the levy’s history: it replaced an earlier general education levy, was imposed beginning with taxes payable in 2002, was indexed for inflation, and its revenue has gone to the general fund since 2002 after the education reserve account was repealed. Business groups and owners testified in support. The Minnesota Chamber, NFIB, NAIOP, the Minnesota Shopping Center Association, and individual business owners said the levy is a fixed cost that makes Minnesota less competitive, especially for small businesses and brick-and-mortar retailers. Witnesses cited examples of high effective tax burdens in Minnesota compared with neighboring states and said the tax is passed through to tenants through CAM charges and rents. Several speakers tied the issue to pandemic-related strain, e-commerce competition, workforce shortages, and the need for relief during a period of state budget surplus. One committee member supported revisiting the levy’s original purpose but raised concerns about the size of the revenue loss and the lack of comparable relief for residential property taxpayers, noting prior reductions to the levy and market value exclusion in recent years. After testimony and questions, the committee laid over Senate Files 4455, 4077, and 3694 for possible inclusion. The committee then took up Senate File 1476, relating to Class 1C resort property, adopted an author’s delete-all amendment, and began hearing testimony from resort representatives about rising resort property values and the need to adjust tiered rates.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Energy and Utilities Finance and Policy Committee heard a presentation from the Department of Commerce on the governor’s energy budget proposals tied to Senate File 4392. Commissioner Grace Arnold and Deputy Commissioner Kevin Lee outlined seven items totaling a $168.5 million general fund request, plus Renewable Development Account funding, aimed at improving reliability, affordability, and in-state energy generation. The proposals included a State Competitiveness Fund to help Minnesota match federal infrastructure dollars, $58.5 million for weatherization assistance, $18 million for water and wastewater utility resilience, $3 million for solar on schools, a $35 million decarbonization technology investment fund, a grid grants program funded through the RDA, and a green innovation finance fund to support projects facing financing gaps. Lee explained that the competitiveness fund would help Minnesota pursue federal Department of Energy opportunities, especially for rural and economically disadvantaged communities, and that the $20 million match request discussed later was based on two DOE programs: grid hardening and grid resilience. He said the weatherization money would help about 15,000 income-eligible households, with an average cost per home estimated at about $9,500 because the proposal would address tougher pre-weatherization problems such as asbestos, mold, roof issues, and vermiculite removal. The water utilities resilience fund would support feasibility studies and demonstration projects for energy-intensive water and wastewater systems, while the solar-for-schools program was described as highly successful and nearing full subscription, with the new funding intended to serve additional districts. Testimony generally supported the weatherization, utility resilience, and federal matching proposals. Bill Grant of the Minnesota Community Action Partnership said flexible state weatherization dollars would help overcome federal restrictions and speed up repairs needed before homes can be weatherized. Ken Sulem of the Minnesota Municipal Utilities Association and Elizabeth Buffel of Missouri River Energy Services supported the weatherization and matching-funds proposals, though Buffel raised concerns that the green innovation finance fund might duplicate existing nonprofit and utility efforts. Senator Mathews strongly opposed the green bank proposal, calling it a bad idea and warning against state involvement in a fund focused on specific project types. Senator Senjem asked for more detail on the federal match needs and said legislators would want a deeper review of the possible funding obligations. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The Human Services Finance and Policy Committee met to approve the March 31 minutes and then began a detailed walkthrough of the large House File 4579 delete-all amendment, with nonpartisan staff summarizing each article. The chair emphasized the bill’s size and scope, describing it as a major human services package focused on services for older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers, and other vulnerable Minnesotans. Members were asked to hold substantive questions until later, and the committee set a short technical-question format for the walkthrough because of a noon floor-session deadline. Staff reviewed Article 2 on community supports, which combines provisions on shared services, service termination protections, workforce revitalization, home care coordination, PCA transportation reimbursement, family-provided services, disability waiver rate updates, housing support bed moratorium exceptions, a direct care pilot, life sharing recommendations, accessibility task force and pilot projects, and a study of MA payment rates for ICF/DD. Article 3 on behavioral health assembled many governor’s budget provisions and bills on substance use, children’s mental health, residential treatment, crisis stabilization, opioid treatment, behavioral health homes, mobile crisis, and related rate and licensing changes. Articles 4 through 13 covered continuing care for older adults, child and vulnerable adult protection, child protection, economic assistance, direct care and treatment, preventing homelessness, licensing and operations, and opioid settlement provisions, including nursing home workforce standards, elderly waiver rate changes, foster care transition support, SNAP and public assistance changes, homelessness prevention measures, and settlement allocation rules. Article 14 contained forecast adjustments to DHS appropriations. Members asked a technical question about locating disability waiver rate system changes on the spreadsheet, which was deferred until the next meeting when fiscal staff would be present. The chair and members thanked nonpartisan and partisan staff for their work, and the chair announced that the next meeting would include fiscal questions, a posted author’s amendment, and public testimony.