Week 4 – Education Bills Advance Amid Policy Debate

The Week in Review

Members across House and Senate Education Committees continued to debate full dockets of proposed legislation, with floor sessions beginning to spill over and preempt some committee meetings. While presentations from state agencies and partner organizations offered positive insights into new and ongoing educational programs across the state, and numerous measures received bipartisan support, tensions flared around a proposal to have Minnesota opt-in to a federal tax credit program to authorize scholarship granting organizations, with proceeds available to public and private school students.

Senate Education Policy

The Senate Education Policy Committee discussed a wide slate of proposed legislation, addressing MSHSL sports options and foundation funding, coaches’ safety training, school safety policies, and more flexible school board sizes for Minnesota’s smallest districts.

First up on Monday was SF 2831 (Cwodzinski), a bill that would extend funding for the MSHSL Foundation from 2027 through 2035, thanks to ticket and admission sales. This measure, which would continue to offset the costs of student athletic fees and coaches’ training, and which has the support of MREA, was unanimously approved, and moves forward to the committee on Taxes.

Next, SF 3548 (Westlin) would require all middle and high school coaches to receive CPR and AED training beginning in the 2027-2028 school year. Members heard powerful testimony from parents and coaches who shared stories of students nearly dying from sudden cardiac arrest when trained coaching staff or nearby AED equipment were not available. At the same time, some raised concerns about the practical challenges of implementing the requirement for an estimated 50,000 coaches statewide each year. This bill was also unanimously approved, and it moved to the committee on Judiciary and Public Safety.

Sen. Duckworth’s bill SF 3339, would require the MSHSL to sanction cricket as an official sport. Proponents spoke to the 3,000 athletes already engaged in the sport in Minnesota, while the MSHSL encouraged supporters to go through their Emerging Sports process rather than legislation as a means of solidifying cricket’s inclusion.

Finally, SF 3963 (Hauschild) would allow flexibility and right-sizing of school boards in small communities, by allowing voters in those communities to approve a five-member school board, to better align with their needs and capacity. Supporters of this provision include rural superintendents and school board members, as well as MSBA, who sees it as a simple, local-control solution. Both of these bills were laid over for consideration in the future omnibus bill.

The committee did not convene on Wednesday as planned, due to the floor session running long. As such, three bills related to school safety – SF 3717 (Mann), SF 3983 (Boldon), and SF 2435 (Maye Quade), were not heard this week.

Senate Education Finance

Senate Education Finance only convened on Tuesday this week, with a focus on the mental health of students, teachers, and staff in K-12 schools, and its impacts on teacher burnout and retention. Beginning the conversation was SF 0042 (Kunesh), a proposed appropriation to the Division of Indian Work to develop a suicide prevention curriculum. Chair Kunesh (D-New Brighton) noted that suicide is on the rise in Minnesota and is currently the second leading cause of death for those 10-24 years of age, with significant impacts on indigenous communities in the state. After supportive testimony from the Division of Indian Work (DIW) and a member of the Red Lake Nation, the bill was laid over for possible inclusion in a future omnibus bill.

Discussion then turned to teacher mental health and retention, with in-depth presentations by the Northeast Service Cooperative (NESC) and the Vital Network. The NESC’s Regional Manager of Behavioral & Mental Health Services, Aubrie Hoover, reported on their strategic partnerships with districts and community partner organizations over the past four years to improve school staff mental health, which she noted is a direct predictor of student outcomes and achievements. Results of their efforts have included stronger staff-student relationships, which have in turn helped to mediate the impacts of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and to lessen instances of student depression, suicide ideation, and attempts.

Dovetailing with the NESC’s report, the Vital Network’s CEO, Nathan Eklund, and Chief Strategy and Impact Officer, Erin Raab, presented on Minnesota school staff mental health and retention. Their warning bell data point that “K-12 workers have the highest burnout rate of any industry in America,” was cause for concern, but the presenters confidently insisted that the dynamics underpinning this fact are things we can address. Teachers and school staff are leaving the profession, their research finds, not because of pay but due to job conditions.

Top grievances fall under the categories of time management (work/life balance, workload management, meetings), voice and decision making (communication, engagement, agency), and care and support (lack of supportive community, positive working relationships, and leadership practices). Committee members raised the issue that student behavior is also a top concern that they hear from their educator constituents. Presenters and committee members agreed that addressing these concerns requires a shift from individualistic, antagonistic perspectives to collaborative, communal problem solving by all key stakeholders.

House Education Policy

With Co-Chair Rep. Bennett (R-Albert Lea) holding the gavel on Tuesday, members heard updates on the implementation of the READ Act from MDE, PELSB, and local perspectives, and a related bill – HF 3421 (Clardy) – requiring teaching candidates to have early field literacy experience. They also had a discussion about Evidence-Based Math, with presentations from the National Conference of State Legislatures and Minnesota Math Corps.

In terms of the READ Act, the news was overwhelmingly positive, with MDE and PELSB reporting that implementation efforts are on track with the legislatively mandated timeline. They noted that 99% of districts have submitted local literacy plans and identified a literacy lead, and nearly 90% of our teachers are currently or have already been trained. They reported that educators are now feeling more confident in their ability to serve students, and they better understand the critical nature of evidence-based structured literacy instruction, leading to better job satisfaction. Testifiers did speak to some challenges with implementation as well, including funding and districts having to absorb substantial unplanned, ongoing costs. All agreed that continued clear, timely guidance and sustained funding were necessary for the ongoing success of the program, and the Co-Chair thanked the presenters for their work on this vital issue. Clardy’s bill, HF 3421, had brief testimony from students and educators already engaging in this hands-on early literacy training with glowing results, and the bill was laid over as amended for further consideration at a later date.

Next up, HF 3067 (Jordan) seeks to define paraprofessional qualifications in Minnesota, codifying that the same two pathways of teaching and professional development be available to all paras, not just those working in special education. Testifiers from Minnesota Administrators for Special Education and SEIU 284 spoke in support of the measure, and it was laid over as amended for consideration at a later date.

Finally, Co-Chair Rep. Jordan presented HF 3730, MDE’s policy bill for the year. MDE leadership walked members through the modifications to their statutes in section by section detail, and addressed follow up questions that arose on numerous points. With the committee’s time for the week coming to a close, Co-Chair Rep. Jordan assured members that she is continuing to work on the bill with MDE, and that any further direct questions could be sent to her and MDE leadership. The bill was laid over for consideration at a later date.

House Education Finance

Discussion and debate on HF 3490 (Myers), a bill to authorize scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs) in Minnesota, was the sole topic of Tuesday’s House Education Policy Committee meeting under the gavel of Co-Chair Rep. Kresha (R-Little Falls). The passionate and contentious conversation centered on whether or not Minnesota should opt-in to this federal program, which, House Research notes, was “authorized under Public Law 119-21, also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” (OBBBA) [which] established a new federal tax credit for “scholarship-granting organizations,” or SGOs.” Opting into the program as HF 3490 proposes, would “allow taxpayers in Minnesota and other states to receive federal tax credits if they make a donation to an SGO serving Minnesota’s K-12 schools.”

Proponents of the bill, including the author, many Republican committee members, and organizations like AIM Higher Foundation argue that not opting in would leave federal tax credits on the table and would deny Minnesota schools the opportunity to benefit from those dollars. They note that this funding could close learning gaps, and expand academic supports for students, with a net revenue increase for Minnesota schools and students. They acknowledge that this bill will not solve the entirety of education funding issues, but that it can be one innovative tool in addressing the need for school funding.

Detractors, including many Democrats, MDE, the Governor’s office, and organizations such SEIU 284 argue that this would be similar to a voucher system, in which federal tax dollars could be redirected not only to public schools, but to non-public schools as well, ultimately weakening funding for the public school system. They also raised concerns about federal funding going to schools that have the ability to admit or deny students based on ability or identity, as well as lack of oversight of these dollars in non-public institutions and the potential for fraud. Many felt that the federal government should be focused on fulfilling their responsibility for funding 40% of special education costs, rather than diverting dollars through this tax credit program. After nearly two hours of vigorous debate, the bill was laid over for future consideration.

On Thursday, with Co-Chair Rep. Youakim (D-Hopkins) holding the gavel, four bills were discussed and laid over for possible inclusion. These included HF 3790 (Greene), a measure to restore lease levy authority to schools to be used for spaces for graduation ceremonies; HF 3470 (Virnig), authorizing a one-time fund transfer within the line items of Independent School District No. 197’s budget; HF 1099 (Sencer-Mura), a bill to reduce the share of unreimbursed special education aid paid by the resident school district to a charter school, and increase the state portion of special education aid for unreimbursed charter school expenditures; and two bills dealing with the local optional revenue program, HF 3654 (Greene) and HF 3371 (Rehrauer). Rep. Greene’s bill is a dust-off of the old AMSD proposal to give metro districts more levy authority for paying their staff more. Rep. Rehrauer’s bill would give districts with $0 of voter approved operating levy authority another $100 per pupil in LOR authority.

The Week Ahead

Senate Education Policy

On Monday, Committee members will face a packed agenda and an earlier start time at 12 pm, after their Wednesday meeting this week was canceled. On the docket are a host of measures, many of which have had previous conversation in the House Committee. Bills include SF 3969 (Maye Quade), SF 4431 (Maye Quade), SF 3572 (Cwodzinski), SF 3983 (Boldon),  SF 3717 (Mann), and SF 3368 (Clark).

The committee will also review SF 2909 (Kunesh), creating a statewide mandatory health insurance program for all public school employees and their dependents.

Senate Education Finance

Senate Education Finance will hear a CARE Teams Presentation and will debate three measures. SF 1310 (Cwodzinski) will amend ballot language for school district referenda, SF 3996 (Westlin) requires schools to develop school safety plans, and SF 0903 (Rarick) would include elementary counseling services for nonpublic pupils in nonpublic pupil aid.

House Education Finance

House Education Finance will dive into the proposed Constitutional Amendment, HF 3900, to modernize the distribution allowance of the Permanent School Trust Fund.

House Education Policy

House Education Policy will meet on Tuesday with Co-Chair Rep. Bennett (R-Albert Lea) holding the gavel. The committee will take action on the DE1 amendment for HF 3487 (Rehrauer), which requires anonymous threat reporting systems and reports, and will hear a presentation on Charter Authorizers and Schools from MDE.

On Wednesday, Co-Chair Rep. Jordan (D-Minneapolis) will hold the gavel, and members will debate three bills that focus on PSEO and Dual Enrollment (HF 4231 Keeler, HF 4232 Keeler, and HF 2544 Virnig), one that addresses children in foster care (HF 3714 Clardy), and one that modifies teacher licensure requirements on dyslexia (HF 60 Clardy).

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