The Minnesota Legislature worked until the last allowable minute of the 2016 session. Two major pieces of legislation crossed the legislative finish line and are on their way to Governor Dayton’s desk for his signature into law. A $258 million tax cut bill and a $182 million supplemental budget bill made it just under the Sunday midnight deadline for passing bills. … Read More
Funding Approved: Early Learning, Concurrent Enrollment, Support Services
The Legislature passed a $182 million supplemental budget before the midnight deadline that included funding for early learning and several provisions requested by rural education interests. Early Learning The biggest piece of the E-12 pie is inclusion of a general education pre-K program with $25 million awarded in fiscal year ’17 to districts who apply and and meet certain criteria. A … Read More
Legislature Passes Ag2School Tax Credit
Legislature passed a major provision aimed at reducing farm taxes owed for school bond payments. This targeted bond credit for agricultural land is a major win for farmers and school districts struggling to pass building bonds. Here are the specifics and mechanics of how this credit will work: Who’s eligible: Eligible property for the credit includes all class 2a, 2b, and … Read More
MnSCU’s New Tuition Rate for Dual Credit Soars
The Minnesota State Colleges & Universities system (MnSCU) decided a month ago to adopt a uniform tuition for concurrent enrollment courses that for some high schools doubles their cost per dual credit course. MnSCU described this increase in a memo to the campus concurrent enrollment coordinators with general instructions to pass this along to the high schools. Read the memo. The decision … Read More
MnSCU Webinars on Dual Credit Begin Today
The Minnesota State Colleges & Universities system (MnSCU) will host a series of webinars this week to gain feedback from school leaders on the framework for “Tested Experience” for the new guidelines on those teaching concurrent enrollments classes to high school students. High school teachers, principals and counselors are encouraged to review and provide feedback during the webinars: Monday, May 23: 1-2:30 pm … Read More
TRA Sustainability Elusive in Final Days of Session
The Teacher’s Retirement Association (TRA) is seeking legislative action this session to close a $1.5 billion funding gap created by increased member longevity according to recent pension system experience studies. As of today, a comprehensive fix is proving elusive, and a bill moving forward in the House would essentially punt on a long-term solution. The current proposal of reducing cost … Read More
It’s Cram Time at the Capitol
It is the final week at the Capitol. The Legislature has until midnight on Sunday to finish their work. As always, every major decision is still up in the air. It’s cram time. Here’s a look at where things stand: Transportation & Taxes Despite a flurry of activity, it is doubtful there is a viable path to solving transportation and … Read More
Concurrent Enrollment Tested Experience Drafts Need Feedback
Both MnSCU and the University of Minnesota released for stakeholder comment draft frameworks for “Tested Experience” for the new guidelines on those teaching concurrent enrollments classes to high school students. High school teachers, principals and counselors are encouraged to review and provide feedback on these drafts to MnSCU and the U. MnSCU has scheduled three webinars to collect feedback and set a … Read More
Voluntary PreK Funding: Calculate Program Impact
Voluntary PreKindergarten Funding is a top priority in education funding for Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton and the Senate. MREA partnered with the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) to create an Estimator Tool to help school leaders calculate the financial impact on their school district. Districts would need to decide by July 1 whether to apply for funding for the 2016-17 school year … Read More
Minnesota Conferees Names for Supplemental Budget Process
The House and Senate named members to serve on the supplemental budget conference committee. The House named five GOP members to serve on the supplemental budget conference committee while the Senate named four DFLers and one GOP. The House members are: Ways & Means Chair and Conference Committee co-chair, Jim Knoblach (GOP-St. Cloud) Education Finance Chair, Jennifer Loon (GOP-Eden Prairie) … Read More