Special election update
Nathan Nelson
won this week’s Republican primary for the special election for House District 11B over Ayrlahn Johnson. Nelson prevailed with 88 percent of the vote.
Nelson is a dairy farmer and president of the Pine County Farm Bureau. He and his wife live in Clover Township, just east of Hinckley, with their five children. Nelson has served as a member of the Clover Township Board for nine years. During the primary, he had the endorsement of the local Republican Party and the support of Congressman Pete Stauber and State Senator Jason Rarick.
Nelson will face
Tim Burkhardt
, a member of the Hinckley City Council, who is the DFL nominee for the House District 11B special election.
The House seat became vacant when then-state Representative Jason Rarick, R-Pine City, was elected to the Minnesota Senate in a special election on February 5. Rarick resigned his seat in the Minnesota House prior to being sworn in as a member of the Minnesota Senate on February 13.
House District 11B includes almost all of Pine County as well as the eastern portion of Kanabec County. The special election is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.
Governor Walz signs first bills
Governor Tim Walz signed his first two bills of the session this week. The first, HF 861, is a bill that provides $13 million for MNLARS, the state’s vehicle registration system. MNLARS has been plagued by problems, including delays for motorists seeking new vehicle tabs, plates and licenses, since its launch in 2017. The funds are for new technology, maintenance and customer service support for the Minnesota Licensing and Registration System. It also directs a task force to issue recommendations for next steps in repairing the system by May 1.
Walz also signed HF 80 this week, a $102 million capital investment bill that funds environmental and infrastructure projects across the state of Minnesota. Cities across the state have been anxiously awaiting the sale of these bonds for landfill cleanup, conservation projects, wastewater treatment upgrades, and improvements to parks and water quality.
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At the Capitol
Friday, March 8
8:30 a.m.
House
Education Policy
Chair:
Rep. Cheryl Youakim
Agenda:
HF247 (Kunesh-Podein) - Student access to library media specialists grant program established, and money appropriated.
HF768 (Edelson) - Child age range increased for school-age care programs, funding for school-age care programs increased, and money appropriated.
HF199 (Urdahl) - Teachers of concurrent enrollment students provided a temporary refundable credit.
8:30 a.m.
Room: Basement hearing room
Chair: Rep. Laurie Halverson
Agenda:
HF 622 (Wolgamott) Real estate broker and licensee advertising requirements modified.
HF 893 (Huot) Certified public accounting practice provisions modified.
HF 1138 (Fischer) Digital fair repair provided.
HF 1241 (Mahoney) Minnesota Call Center Jobs Act; call center or customer service operation relocation notice required, and recapture of public subsidies provided.
HF 1424 (Stephenson) Student loan ombudsperson established, student loan servicer licensure required, student loan servicing practices prohibited, and report required.
HF 1578 (Kotyza-Witthuhn) Credit union conversion, merger, or consolidation supermajority requirements eliminated.
HF 1840 (O'Driscoll) Subprime references in Minnesota Statutes removed.
HF 2018 (Tabke) Pari-mutuel Racing Commission licensing, reporting, and other regulatory provisions modified.
10:15 a.m.
House Government Operations
Room: 5 State Office Building
Chair:
Rep. Mike Freiberg
HF1811 (Noor)
:
Liberians; a resolution urging the President of the United States to continue Deferred Enforcement Departure (DED) for Liberians.
HF1300 (Koegel)
:
Month of May designated as Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month.
HF1963 (Winkler)
:
Chisago County Interstate Park renamed.
HF1974 (Nelson)
:
Outdated budget-related language updated and deleted, and technical changes made.
HF1975 (Nelson)
:
State solicitation process best and final offer modified.
HF1997 (Nelson)
:
Hennepin County job order contracting expiration and reporting requirements repealed.
HF717 (Mariani) PENDING REFERRAL
:
Cannabis task force created, and report required.
HF728 (Mann)
:
Pharmacy benefit managers licensure and regulations created, and rulemaking authorized.
HF499 (Kreshaw)
:
Child Welfare Training System modification required, report required, rule making authorized, and money appropriated.
HF1289 (Her)
:
Education; prior written notice documentation requirements rulemaking authorized
HF1390 (Moller)
:
Individualized education program requirements modified to permit reporting of student performance on assessments, and rulemaking authorized.
HF1414 (Lippert) PENDING REFERRAL
:
Commissioner of education required to develop sexual health curriculum program, and report required.
HF1415 (Youakim) PENDING REFERRAL
:
Teacher licensure and board composition technical changes made.
Monday, March 11
9:45 a.m.
House Ways and Means
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Lyndon Carlson
Agenda:
HF 593 (Edelson) Rotary International special license plate established.
HF 50 (Hornstein) Cell phone use while a motor vehicle is in motion prohibited (pending referral from Judiciary Finance)
HF 548 (Haley) Eisenhower Memorial Bridge over the Mississippi renamed Bridge of Valor
HF1171 (Nash) Carver County Trunk Highway 25 segment designated as Captain Jeffrey Vollmer Memorial Highway
11:00 a.m.
Senate in Session
12:45 p.m.
House Greater Minnesota Jobs and Economic Development Finance Division
Room: 10 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Gene Pelowski
Agenda: HF7 (Ecklund): Broadband grant program money appropriated
1:00 p.m.
Senate Jobs and Economic Growth Finance and Policy
Room: 1150 Senate Building
Chair: Sen. Eric R. Pratt
Agenda:
S.F. 293-Nelson: Construction and skilled trades career counseling commissioner of
education collaboration requirement; safety of youth in skilled trades
report requirement.
S.F. 1547-Rarick: Unemployment insurance provisions modifications previously recommended by the Unemployment Insurance Advisory Committee adoption.
S.F. 1207-Simonson: Duluth regional exchange district establishment, bond issue and appropriation; state general sales tax exemption authorization.
3:00 p.m.
Senate E-12 Finance and Policy
Room: G-15 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Carla J. Nelson
Agenda:
S.F. 1056-Rosen: Shared time pupils definition expansion.
S.F. 1211-Dahms: Student organizations appropriation.
S.F. 1212-Dahms: Agricultural educator grants appropriation.
S.F. 1347-Anderson, P.: Minnesota math corps program appropriation.
S.F. 1689-Chamberlain: Civics education programs grants appropriations.
S.F. 1439-Nelson: Education curriculum review and best practices sharing establishment and appropriation
Tuesday, March 12
8:00 a.m.
House Jobs and Economic Development Finance
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Tim Mahoney
Agenda:
HF 1268 (Kotyza-Witthuhn) Angel Tax Credit
HF 1012 (Claflin) Displaced homemaker programs funding provided, and money appropriated
HF 988 (Bernardy) School contractors eligibility requirements modified.
HF 985 (Hassan) East African community economic development pilot grant program funding provided, and money appropriated.
HF 1359 (Petersburg) Owatonna and Steele counties workforce training funding provided, and money appropriated.
9:45 a.m.
House Agriculture and Food Finance and Policy
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair:
Rep. Jeanne Poppe
Agenda:
HF1965 (Poppe) Saltwater aquatic farm requirements modified (added)
HF 1908 (Hansen) Pesticide treated plans false labeling prohibited (added)
Pending bill introductions/referral on Thursday, RFA modifications to address snow disasters (added)
Roll out of Delete Everything for HF 1733 - Omnibus Agriculture Policy bill
MDA Grain Advisory Task Force Update
HF 915 (Anderson) Licensed grain buyers annual inventory exam
HF 20201 (Anderson) Grain credit contract indemnity program established (added)
MDA update on resources available to address snow/wind damaged/collapsed barns (added)
5:10 p.m.
Legislative Commission on Pensions and Retirement
Room: G-3 State Capitol
Chair: Rep. Mary Murphy
Agenda:
LCPR19-013: State Auditor's Volunteer Fire Relief Association Working Group bill.
HF416 (Poppe); SF569 (Sparks): Fire state aid penalty forgiveness for the City of Austin.
HF483 (Poppe); SF570 (Sparks): Extending the alternative allocation of fire state aid for the City of Austin.
Thursday, March 14
9:45 a.m.
House Agriculture and Food Finance and Policy
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair:
Rep. Jeanne Poppe
Agenda:
HF 1733 (Poppe) Omnibus Agriculture Policy bill (amendments and vote out)
HF 1339 (Ecklund) Shade tree replacement planting funding provided
HF 395 (Hansen) Funding for forest pest response
HF 1546 (Lippert) Beginning farmer tax credit modified (added from Tuesday)
