Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The Judiciary Finance and Civil Law Committee met in hybrid format on April 7, 2022, approved the April 5 minutes, and then took up House File 3920, the committee’s finance omnibus bill. Chair Becker-Finn explained that the A1 author’s amendment made several updates, including prioritizing staff pay increases in judicial line items, revising Department of Human Rights language and spending timelines, and adding back House File 833 (post-conviction relief) and House File 2257 (Ramsey County fine revenue). The A1 amendment was adopted on a 15-1 roll call. Representative Scott offered the A2 amendment to shift funding for two items—court code response and electronic file storage/remote hearing access—from the general fund to remaining federal COVID ARP funds. She argued the legislature should use those dollars before they revert to the governor’s control. Opponents said general fund dollars were available and cautioned against diverting funds needed elsewhere. The A2 amendment failed on a 7-9 vote. The committee then adopted the DE2 amendment, which framed the bill as necessary to adequately fund the judicial branch, public defense, and civil legal services. Supporters emphasized that the bill was not a “Cadillac” or windfall proposal but a basic-functionality funding measure, citing public defense caseload pressures and the fact that civil legal services turn away many clients, including people facing domestic violence, disability, and other crises. Some members noted parts of the bill they did not support and hoped for changes in conference. The DE2 amendment and then House File 3920 as amended were both approved 10-7 and referred to the Ways and Means Committee. The meeting ended with members thanking staff and each other, and the chair noted it was the committee’s last regular hearing of the biennium.

Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1183, house

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Education Finance and Policy Committee held a hearing focused on the Minnesota Department of Education’s internal handling of the federal nutrition services programs, including CACFP and the Summer Food Service Program, in the wake of the large fraud investigation. The chair emphasized that the committee was examining MDE’s processes and safeguards, not accusing department staff of wrongdoing. Denise Anderson, MDE’s chief financial officer, testified and said the department’s monitoring efforts, including denying applications, stopping payments twice, and reporting concerns to federal partners, were the reason the issue came to light. She also provided background on her role and said she was qualified for the position. A major topic was an Office of the Legislative Auditor finding about MDE’s review of audited financial statements for subrecipients. Anderson explained that MDE reviewed only the subrecipients for which it was the cognizant agency and deferred review for others assigned to different state agencies. She said the OLA later informed MDE that it needed to review audited financial statements for all subrecipients receiving federal funding through MDE, and that the department has since updated its policies and procedures to comply. Members then questioned Anderson about risk management during the pandemic, when federal funding increased sharply and applications surged. Anderson said MDE had continuity-of-operations planning, regular internal and school-district meetings, and ongoing monitoring, and that program staff were the subject-matter experts while finance supported them. She acknowledged that staff raised concerns early and communicated with federal partners, but said she was not involved in some program-specific leadership discussions and did not know who made the decision to waive site visits. On site visits, she said they are one tool among many for oversight, and that MDE also used training, documentation review, and other verification methods. No votes were taken, and the hearing ended without formal action.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee first took up Senate File 4131, a constitutional amendment to renew and expand the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund. The author and counsel explained a technical A5 amendment, with an oral correction, that preserved the single ballot question while consolidating the constitutional changes into one section. Senator Rood said the proposal would put the reauthorization question on the 2024 ballot, raise the lottery dedication to the fund from 40 percent to 50 percent, and add unclaimed prize money, while also creating a placeholder for a water improvement fund. Several members raised concerns about constitutionally dedicating roughly $81 million annually and reducing future legislative flexibility. After the technical amendment was adopted, Senator Bach moved to lay the bill on the table, and the motion prevailed. The committee then considered three late bills under Joint Rule 2.03 and suspended the rule for each. Senate File 3881, from the Jobs Committee and related to the Department of Labor, was late because it arrived too close to the deadline to complete hearings and markup; the committee adopted the prior committee report and sent it to Finance. Senate File 3249, a Health and Human Services package combining multiple mental health concepts, was described as a bipartisan effort that took longer than expected to assemble; it was also advanced to Finance. Senate File 4045, another Health and Human Services bill, had already moved through Higher Education and HHS and still had a stop in State Government; it was advanced to the State Government Finance and Policy and Elections Committee. At the end of the meeting, Senator Franson introduced a resolution concerning the Senate’s non-discrimination and anti-harassment policy working group. She said the Senate should set a deadline for the group’s work to show urgency and support staff morale, and the resolution proposed a June 24, 2022 report deadline with committee action by July 1, 2022. Members discussed whether that timeline was realistic given the number of recommendations and the workload of counsel and senators, but no final action on the resolution is reflected in the transcript excerpt.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee took up House File 3438 and first considered the author’s DE5 amendment, which reorganized the bill into a larger legacy appropriations package. Representative Green questioned whether the Clean Water Fund projects in the amendment had been sufficiently vetted and objected to moving a substantially changed DE before testimony. Chair Lilly and Vice Chair Jordan explained that the amendment was intended to put the bill in the author’s desired shape before hearing testimony and discussion. The committee then voted, with ayes and noes called, and the DE5 amendment was adopted. Nonpartisan staff then walked members through the DE5. The bill was described as a four-article supplemental appropriations package covering the Outdoor Heritage Fund, Clean Water Fund, Parks and Trails Fund, and Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. Staff said Article 1 reflected previously heard Outdoor Heritage recommendations with no fiscal changes; Article 2 included Clean Water Fund language from HF 4377, made legislative members of the Clean Water Council voting members, changed recommendation timing, and extended the Ash River sewer planning project; Article 3 proportionally increased Parks and Trails appropriations to meet reserve requirements and extended certain projects including coordination among partners and Central Park; and Article 4 increased Arts and Cultural Heritage appropriations based on new revenue and extended a Historical Society appropriation. During public testimony, Muhammad Farah of Kajok supported the amendment and described the organization’s Somali youth arts and cultural heritage work, saying the funding would support intercultural dialogue and community-building. Representative Murphy asked how the committee would be informed about how the money is spent, and Farah said they could provide reports and participant information. David Kelleher of the Minnesota Historical Society also testified in support, thanking the committee for its support and saying the organization’s annual report provides a detailed accounting of spending and outreach. No final vote on the bill itself was taken in the portion of the meeting provided.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee met virtually on April 6, 2022, took a quorum, and approved the April 1 minutes. Members then began a walkthrough of House File 4293 and the DE2 amendment, with House fiscal staff and House Research explaining the bill’s appropriations and policy provisions. The fiscal presentation covered funding for legislative operations, the Attorney General, Secretary of State, IT and cybersecurity initiatives, Department of Administration programs, Minnesota Management and Budget, the Historical Society, and licensing boards. Major items included House and legislative operating adjustments, a large one-time IT replacement for the bill drafting system, election security and cybersecurity funding, enterprise cloud and technology modernization, translation and language access services, public television block grants, and several smaller agency and board appropriations. The overall net general fund change was presented as about $76.238 million, with about $76.638 million in all funds. The policy walkthrough of the DE2 amendment highlighted a broad state government and elections package. It included LCC administrative language, authority for the LCC director to contract, collateral rules for the Executive Council, Juneteenth as an official state holiday, emergency cyber-response authority for the governor, data practices and open meetings opinion fee changes, updates to the Legislative Salary Council statutes, statewide systems billing changes, creation of the Office of Enterprise Translation, grant administration provisions, cybersecurity grants to local governments, and a series of provisions from the task force on state employees with disabilities. It also covered state housing-related fund deposit language, local government investment authority, a new State Emblems Redesign Commission, a task force on aging, and a reviser instruction to review statutes for equal rights amendment compliance. In the elections article, staff described provisions from the Secretary of State’s technical bill and several member bills. These included a definition of “expressly advocating,” lobbyist access rules for candidate-hosted events, expanded absentee ballot processing timelines from seven to 14 days, standards and documentation for absentee ballot boxes, reporting on absentee ballot statistics, donor disclosure and disclaimer requirements for independent expenditures, notices on private mailings containing absentee ballot applications or sample ballots, and criminal/civil penalties for intimidation or interference with election officials. The final article addressed barbering and cosmetology updates, including mobile barber shops, a three-year license for hair technicians, and implementation of Legislative Auditor recommendations. No votes were taken on the bill itself during the portion provided, but the chair noted DE2 amendments were due later that day.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard a presentation on the governor and lieutenant governor’s capital investment, or bonding, proposal and a related bill summary that incorporated a governor’s amendment after the latest budget forecast. Staff walked through the bill’s articles and policy sections, which cover mostly bond proceeds and some general fund and equity appropriations. The policy provisions include new or expanded programs for renewable energy in state buildings, stormwater infrastructure grants for local and tribal governments, transportation facilities, active transportation accounts, expanded eligibility for homeless services and early childhood facility grants, higher grant caps for rural development assistance, zero-percent drinking water loans for lead service line replacement, expanded housing infrastructure bond uses for multifamily housing, additional housing infrastructure bond authority, extended availability for veterans homes appropriations, and an end to a now-unneeded parking account transfer for debt service. Commissioner Jim Showalter of Minnesota Management and Budget outlined the governor’s $2.8 billion local jobs and projects plan and the process used to develop it, including agency and local government requests, site visits, public comment, and the March 17 supplemental recommendations. He said the plan reflects about $2 billion in general obligation bonds and about $751 million in other funds, and that it is designed around asset preservation, community and equity, environmental stewardship, housing and homelessness, and infrastructure. He emphasized that the package is intended to leverage about $2 billion in additional federal, local, and private funds, including matching opportunities tied to federal infrastructure funding. Showalter also highlighted the scale of demand for capital projects, noting nearly $5.5 billion in requests in 2022, including about $150 million in nonprofit capital requests handled through a separate process. He said the governor’s proposal includes about $529 million for asset preservation, roughly $100 million for equity-related projects, $944 million for climate-related investments, $250 million for housing infrastructure bonds, and major investments in roads, bridges, and water infrastructure. He also reviewed debt capacity and forecast impacts, saying the proposal stays within state debt guidelines and would have long-term general fund and trunk highway debt service costs. Commissioner Alice Roberts Davis of the Department of Administration followed with a detailed case for asset preservation, saying the governor recommends 38 percent of the package for state agency preservation projects. She stressed that maintaining existing buildings is safer and cheaper than deferred repairs, reduces energy use and greenhouse gases, and helps address the state’s large deferred maintenance backlog. No committee vote or final action was taken in the portion provided.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The Workforce and Business Development Policy and Finance Committee met remotely, approved the April 2022 minutes, and took up its omnibus workforce and business development bill, House File 4355, with a delete-everything amendment before moving the bill toward referral to Ways and Means. Chair Noor and members described the bill as a broad package of economic development, small business, workforce, and community investment programs. Representative Baker offered several amendments to add or modify programs, including the SPARK revolving loan program, a small business grant program, community capital and emerging developer funds, Main Street revitalization, Canadian border relief, redevelopment funding, child care grants, women of color economic security, business technical assistance, Join Us Minnesota marketing, workforce development, youth tech training, TeamWorks, and New Americans support. Baker also proposed direct funding for hospitality-related training and a Cajun phlebotomy training proposal, but the committee rejected those amendments after Chair Noor argued they were better handled through existing programs or the higher education budget; Representative Frankie supported the hospitality amendment as employee empowerment. Representative Hamilton offered an amendment tied to a southwestern Minnesota tuition-forgiveness style program based on models in South Dakota and Iowa, but withdrew it after discussion about the committee’s reluctance to use direct appropriations from workforce development funds. Chair Noor’s A5 amendment was adopted, making numerous technical and policy changes, including moving some appropriations between subdivisions, extending Main Street funding, renaming the Pandemic Relief Grant Program the Small Business Recovery Grant Program, adjusting the PAC-Spark loan program and Canadian border county relief administration, revising the Emerging Entrepreneur Fund, and adding grant administration flexibility. An oral amendment then reduced one appropriation amount from $3,996,000 to $3,496,000, and the oral amendment was adopted.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House Housing Finance and Policy Committee met to take up House File 4376, the housing omnibus bill, and approved the April 5 minutes. Chair Howard outlined the process for the bill: moving HF 4376 to Ways and Means, adopting the DE-2 amendment, then considering further amendments before final passage. The committee adopted the A5 amendment, which adjusted base funding to cover added Department of Human Rights costs, made a technical article renaming fix, incorporated a previously adopted amendment from HF 2861, and clarified that owner-occupied housing in a community stabilization program would not be limited to single-family homes. The A6 amendment, offered by Representative Hussein to make spending one-time appropriations rather than base increases, was rejected. The A7 amendment was withdrawn, and the A8 amendment was not offered. The DE-2 amendment as amended was then adopted, and HF 4376 was re-referred to Ways and Means. During amendment debate, Representative Hussein argued for one-time spending and later for additional investments in housing production, rehabilitation, infrastructure, and community development financial institutions, saying the bill should better support builders and homeownership. Chair Howard opposed the one-time-spending approach, saying housing needs require ongoing investment, and later explained that some funding choices were made to keep priorities viable in conference committee and to align with Senate expectations. Howard also noted that major housing items such as HECAT, housing infrastructure bonds, and the challenge fund were strongly funded in the House bill, even though the Senate bill did not add money for some of them. On final bill discussion, Representative Howard said the bill reflected historic bipartisan work and significant investments across the housing continuum. Representative Hassan supported the bill but urged more emphasis on homeownership, citing Minnesota’s low homeownership rates between white and non-white residents and saying many mortgage-eligible families still cannot buy because of a lack of affordable units. Hassan asked that conferees push for more homeownership dollars, noting that down payment assistance alone is not enough without available homes to purchase. Chair Howard responded that the committee had also made homeownership investments in other parts of the budget, including the tax bill, and said she would prepare additional analysis before Ways and Means.