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*06.13.2025*






Legislative Update





Friends,  

With Monday’s Special Legislative Session behind us, we’ve officially wrapped for the year. It was an often tumultuous one, given that this session was met with a tied House, multiple special elections, and a looming $6 billion budget deficit, no one is completely happy with how things turned out. But that’s the reality of a divided state government that demands compromise – the end result will be a mixed bag with some good provisions and some bad ones.   

I know many of you, frustrated by years of Democrat control, were looking for a little more out of this session – I hear you. There was a lot of legislation I was disappointed to see stalled and even more I was unhappy with being included in final legislation.  

While being in the minority these past few years allowed for us to beat our chests and decry every move made by the Democrats, there’s a stark difference between yelling from the sidelines and playing on the field.   

We now have a seat at the table, occupying one half of one third of state government, we were able to deliver significant progress for our constituents and the State of Minnesota. We’ve gained ground and we must continue building on that as we move forward – not fall back into tearing down our fellow Republicans. 

This year we showed families that we meant it when we said we’d prevent tax increases, we showed teachers what it’s like to have real and experienced representation in the House, and we stuck to our promise of providing increased oversight, fraud prevention, and fiscal reform within bloated state institutions.  

Monday’s Special Session was an excellent example of all of this. We passed 14 bills – 12 omnibus packages – and 2 standalone proposals covering everything from education and health care to infrastructure, energy, and tax relief. While we did not get everything we wanted, there are some great provisions that I would like to cover below.  

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*Special Session Recap* 

 

*MinnesotaCare Repeal Bill*

The first bill we passed repeals taxpayer-funded health care for undocumented adults under the MinnesotaCare program. This is an important step toward restoring fiscal responsibility and refocusing state resources on core services that benefit Minnesotans. The repeal is expected to save hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars in the years ahead. 

 

*Education Policy* 

This year’s Education Policy bill had some important wins worth highlighting. We successfully protected nonpublic pupil aid – ensuring continued support for homeschool, religious, and charter school students. It’s also important to note that the cut to non-public pupil aid would be a cut to our public schools because of how this funding works. Charter school support remained intact, and we made real progress by establishing the Science of Reading as the official literacy standard in Minnesota. That’s a major step forward for our students and a needed course correction in how we approach reading instruction. The bill also places new limits on how the Department of Education can use litigation funds, keeping taxpayer dollars focused where they belong – on student success. 

"But there were serious concerns as well." 

While the Democrats and Governor Walz were pushing through a $17 million dollar funding increase for the Department of Education, they simultaneously cut over $70 million from our schools.  

That sends the wrong message. We should be prioritizing classrooms, not bureaucracy. Educators and students deserve better than another round of top-down decisions that shortchange local schools. 

I broke down the good and the bad of this bill in a quick video during the special session. You can see here why I voted against this bill: [here [ [link removed] ]]

 

*Health Bill*

We passed a strong Health Bill that protects patients, preserves rural care, and prevents costly new taxes on Minnesota’s healthcare system. This legislation secures critical funding for hospitals and EMS, especially in Greater Minnesota, while pushing back on proposals that would have driven up costs for providers and patients alike.  Despite the good provisions in this bill, I voted against this bill because of the significant increase to the Departments included in this bill. 

 

*Human Services Bill*

We passed meaningful reforms to strengthen oversight, protect nursing homes, and ensure taxpayer dollars are used responsibly. This bill reflects practical, people-focused solutions that support the Minnesotans who rely on these services while making sure government programs are accountable and effective.  Despite the good provisions in this bill, I voted against this bill in large part because of the increases in spending to departments will we are cutting services to the people of Minnesota. 

 

*Environment Bill*

We passed long-overdue permitting reform to reduce delays and help Minnesota businesses grow while preserving environmental protections. The bill also includes funding for trail maintenance, conservation work, and support for outdoor recreation.  I strongly support these provisions but could not vote in favor of this bill because of fee increases and operating increases. 

 

*Workforce & Labor Bill*

This bill includes a provision extending unemployment insurance benefits for Minnesota miners - a major win for workers in our region. It also included two of my workforce development bills, makes modest improvements to the Earned Sick and Safe Time law, slightly reduces the Paid Family and Medical Leave tax rate and adds oversight to prevent fraud. Additional provisions address Vocational Rehabilitation Services mismanagement by the Department of Employment and Economic Development and clarified rules for telecommunications installers. While helpful, it’s clear more work will be needed next session to address small business concerns.  Although not perfect, as a member of the Labor and Workforce Committee, I voted in favor of this bill because of the approximately $60 million in reduced spending and the provisions outlined above. 

 

*Tax Bill*

We successfully blocked over $8 billion in proposed tax increases, protecting Minnesota families and job creators. The bill also safeguards Local Government Aid (LGA), County Program Aid (CPA), and Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT), helping local governments hold the line on property taxes and maintain essential services. Despite stopping a lot of bad provisions, I ultimately voted against this bill because it raised taxes (on cannabis).  

 

*Transportation Finance Bill*

This bill prioritizes practical infrastructure investments by fully funding state road construction and maintenance. It prevents cuts to the State Patrol, blocks expansion of the electric bike rebate program, and scales back spending on inefficient transit lines like the Blue Line. Despite the good provisions in this bill, I voted against it because of the numerous funding increases it contained. 

 

*Bonding: GO and Cash Bills*

I supported this year’s GO bonding bill because of investment into critical infrastructure, including $206 million for clean water and drinking water projects and $86.5 million for roads and bridges - delivering meaningful support to Greater Minnesota. The bill also avoids the usual political handouts, keeping the focus on core infrastructure needs. I voted against the Cash Bonding bill because of the unnecessary political projects it included.

 

*Data Center Bill*

This bill strengthens oversight of large-scale data centers by creating a new “Very Large Customer” class under the Public Utilities Commission and requiring high-water-use facilities to provide early notice to the DNR. It also imposes a fee to support the Energy and Conservation Account and extends the IT sales tax exemption to 35 years. I voted in favor of this heavily negotiated bill to support future investments into Minnesota. 

 

*Energy Bill*

This year’s energy bill holds the line against unaffordable and unrealistic climate mandates by rejecting new funding for extreme proposals. Instead, it delivers practical policy wins like securitization, which helps to lower costs for consumers, and expanded capacity for liquefied natural gas storage - supporting reliability and affordability in our energy system. Despite these changes, I voted against the bill because I do not feel it did enough to reduce energy costs for Minnesotans. 

 

*Higher Education Finance Bill* 

This bill responsibly addresses a $239 million shortfall in the State Grant Program while ensuring stability of essential services for students. It doubles funding for the under-supported Fostering Independent Grant program, which helps foster youth access to higher education. Other provisions include full-ride scholarships at Minnesota State for peace officers injured in the line of duty and their children, the elimination of unused cannabis training funds, and the removal of state funding for highly profitable institutions that can self-fund programs at their own expense. I voted against this bill because of the department increase and failure to fulfill our responsibility to elect Regents at the University of Minnesota.

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*Building for the Future* 

This isn’t a one-time deal, this is the platform going forward: delivering real, effective solutions for our constituents while ensuring tax dollars are truly going where they’re intended – not to shady non-profits and radical causes that don’t reflect the wishes of Minnesotans.  

I’m proud of the work we did this year, and I want to thank each of you who took the time to share your thoughts, experiences, and ideas. Whether it was through an email, a phone call, or a conversation back home, your voice helped shape the policies we brought forward for our students, teachers, families, and communities. I’m grateful for your partnership, and with this session behind us, I’m looking forward to building on the progress we’ve made and continuing to fight for the values we share. 

Let’s continue working to get our state back on track.  

Sincerely,  

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