When legislative leaders left St. Paul before the Fourth of July, it looked like the prospects for a special session to pass revised Tax and Bonding bills were dead. Just after the Fourth of July, the Governor met with House Speaker Kurt Daudt and suddenly talks of a special session re-emerged. On July 15, Governor Dayton, Speaker Daudt and Senate Majority Leader Tom … Read More
Special Session Talks Drift
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton last week met with legislative leaders to negotiate terms for a special session, but their talks failed to make progress on the situation. Just over three weeks ago, Governor Dayton issued a list of additional bonding and spending projects he wants in a special session legislative package. The GOP has bristled at adding more spending in … Read More
Session Insight: Will Legislators Reach a Deal?
The 2016 legislative session must end three weeks from Monday and as expected we’re nowhere close to a grand bargain that would bring resolution to transportation, taxes, bonding and supplemental spending. This shouldn’t be a surprise as every legislative session sees the major issues pile up in partisan wrangling as we head down the stretch. View MREA’s complete side-by-side comparison of the legislative … Read More
Amendments of Interest Made in House, Senate Debates
Before the House and Senate approved their supplemental budget bills last week, a series of key amendments were made that impact P-12 education. MREA provided a brief overview of amendments of immediate interest below. View MREA’s complete side-by-side comparison of the legislative proposals. House Amendments Education Finance Chair Jennifer Loon (GOP Eden Prairie) added an amendment to increase the loan forgiveness program … Read More
Technology, Teacher Recruitment Top Priorities in Omnibus Bill
The House and Senate Education Committees passed their education finance bills on schedule last week. They neatly bracket the Governor’s target of $60.77 million. The Senate’s budget tops $100.5 million, while the House spends $52 million. Both bodies assume that several districts with Capital loans will repay their loans thus providing the state with an infusion of $52 million. Even … Read More
MREA, Members Advocate on Bills for Para Program, Concurrent Enrollment and Mental Health Services
MREA and its members advocated for three key bills last week that would help address the increasing teacher shortage, respond to the Higher Learning Commission’s concurrent enrollment changes and provide enhanced mental health services. On overview of each bill is below. Para to Teacher Program The Senate E-12 Committee on Thursday heard a bill that would create pathway to be licensed in … Read More
Education Omnibus Bills Introduced: How They Compare
After three packed weeks of bill introductions and testimony, both the House and Senate Omnibus Education Policy Bills passed out of committee for their first deadline. HF 3066 DE and SF 2744 A5 are designed to include policy changes that do not have state-level cost impacts. View side-by-side comparison of bills. Some of the more significant proposed policy changes include: Personal … Read More
Bills of Interest Moving Through Legislature
MREA, together with its members, has been working to address a series of education issues via several smaller requests during this short session. Here’s a look at the key issues and their progress as the Legislature faces bill deadlines: Concurrent Enrollment The Higher Learning Commission announced last fall it would require concurrent enrollment teachers to have at least 18 graduate credits in their content … Read More
Final Rush for Policy Bills: What's Next?
This week is the second bill deadline at the Capitol. This is the final rush of policy bills and most individual finance bill hearings. Committee agendas this week are packed with many bills scheduled for hearings. It’s possible that by the end of the week we’ll see House and Senate supplemental budget plans emerge, at least at the “10,000-foot” level. … Read More
Final Rush for Policy Bills: What’s Next?
This week is the second bill deadline at the Capitol. This is the final rush of policy bills and most individual finance bill hearings. Committee agendas this week are packed with many bills scheduled for hearings. It’s possible that by the end of the week we’ll see House and Senate supplemental budget plans emerge, at least at the “10,000-foot” level. … Read More