The House passed its omnibus education bill on Saturday after heavy criticism about it falling short of what is needed for education in Minnesota. The Senate omnibus education budget bill (SF 811) is expected to be heard – and passed in some form – on the floor on Wednesday. The Senate bill includes a variety of provisions to support education. View … Read More
House Education Bill Passes 69-61
The House convened in session on Saturday to take up its omnibus education bill, HF 844. After several hours of debate, legislators added two substantive amendments and passed the bill 69-61. View what’s in the bill and how it compares to the Senate bill. Teacher Licensure Rep. Dean Urdahl (GOP-Grove City) was successful in getting more flexibility around passage of MTLE exams with … Read More
Success for SPED Program in Final Hours
Well into the late hours of Thursday evening, the Senate Finance Committee reviewed the omnibus E-12 budget bill (SF 811) and a handful of amendments offered to shuffle funds within the bill. Legislators added one amendment to slightly reduce the new long-term maintenance levy program to add $1 million each year to Head Start funding. The new long-term maintenance levy program … Read More
Commissioner Talks Issues with MREA Board
Minnesota Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius talked about issues that affect Greater Minnesota schools with the MREA Board of Directors on Thursday. Commissioner Cassellius shared her hopes for the session and the challenges still ahead. During the morning discussion, the Commissioner and MREA Board members reviewed a variety of issues ranging from teacher shortages and the restrictive Minnesota Teacher Licensure Exam … Read More
E-12 Plans Advance In House, Senate
The House and Senate Education finance committees last week unveiled their omnibus bills and passed them out of their respective committees. Each bill has a few more stops before full debate in front of the House and Senate and then onto conference committee. MREA created a side-by-side comparison of the funding and policy issues currently being debated at the Capitol related … Read More
E-12 Funding Bills To Emerge
Just as children are anxious the night before Christmas, so too are education lobbyists who have waited until this point of session to see what House and Senate education leaders have in store for education funding specifics this year. We know the various spending levels: the House is a $157 million and the Senate is now at $361 million. But … Read More
School Districts Share Impact of 1&1 Funding
Responding to an MREA survey, 124 school superintendents across Greater Minnesota reported the impact of the proposed 1&1 funding for education would mean larger class sizes, fewer electives and hundreds of pink slips. The report results reveal rural Minnesota can expect 160 teachers and 80 support staff to be laid off or not replaced and a total of $17.4 million in … Read More
What Will 1&1 Mean for Your Students?
MREA prefers mix of formula, targeted funding for facilities and School Districts without QComp to address the TDE requirements, and tax base equalization for Rural Education. The reality is that 1 percent and 1 percent, commonly referred to as 1&1, is inadequate. If Minnesota elected leaders invested half the $1.9 billion surplus for education, they could address facilities, TDE, move towards … Read More
Legislature Returns to Take on Budget
The Minnesota Legislature reconvenes at noon on Tuesday, April 7. Budget committees will continue reviewing individual budget requests this week as legislators and interest groups make their last minute attempts to find their way into an omnibus spending bill. The next phase of the session is for omnibus spending bills to roll out of their respective committees. Omnibus Budget Bills … Read More
Setting the Education Budget Target
With the second bill deadline behind them, Minnesota legislators left St. Paul on Friday for their traditional spring break. This is a time for legislators to get back to their districts and get a reality check on what they’ve been working on. We hope that school leaders will take some time to reach out to their legislators to talk about … Read More