Minnesota House Bill HF4946

Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 4/13/26
• Refer: 4/13/26

Caption

Winona; Mississippi Riverfront Trail prior appropriation modified.

Summary

HF4946 amends a prior capital investment appropriation for the Mississippi Riverfront Trail in Winona. The bill keeps the existing $5,000,000 grant to the city of Winona for final design, engineering, and construction of a bridge and bridge approaches connecting Chestnut Street and Carimona Street as part of the multipurpose nonmotorized Riverfront Trail between Levee Park and Lions Park. The measure also expands the use of any unspent balance from that appropriation. After the original project is completed and the city gives written notice to the commissioner of management and budget, remaining funds may be used for final design, engineering, and construction to extend the Mississippi Riverfront Trail in Winona. The bill is effective the day after final enactment.

Impact

The bill changes a specific prior appropriation in Minnesota’s capital investment law, Laws 2023, chapter 72, article 2, section 9, subdivision 12. It does not create a new program or statewide policy; instead, it modifies the permitted use of an existing local infrastructure grant for trail and bridge construction in Winona and authorizes reallocation of any leftover funds to further trail extension work.

Sentiment

There is no recorded committee testimony or vote history in the provided materials, so the bill’s sentiment cannot be measured from discussion. Based on the text alone, the bill appears straightforward and locally focused, with an apparent purpose of supporting completion and possible expansion of a recreational and transportation trail project in Winona.

Contention

No specific points of contention are documented in the available transcript or voting record. The only potentially notable issue is the bill’s flexibility in allowing unspent appropriated funds to be redirected to additional trail extension work after the original project is completed, which could raise questions in general about scope, project completion, and oversight of remaining capital funds. However, no opposition or disagreement is shown in the provided materials.