The Minnesota House on a voice vote adopted the conference committee report on House File 2446 and repassed the bill as amended by the conference committee, clearing an omnibus budget bill for the Department of Agriculture.

Representative Anderson P.H., the bill author and a conferee, urged adoption of the report, saying the package largely preserved the bill’s core programs while accepting some Senate policy changes and “a couple of fee increases” that could not be negotiated. “Our top priority all along has been maintaining funding for the Board of Animal Health,” Anderson said, calling the board “our first line of defense in terms of any livestock diseases that may show up in Minnesota.”

The bill’s supporters said the measure is bipartisan and balances traditional agriculture interests with newer priorities such as food programs and worker protections. “This bill is a hybrid,” Representative Hansen, co-chair of the conference committee, told the House, describing the package as a mix of “house GOP, the house DFL, the senate, and the executive branch.”

Members cited specific allocations and policy changes included in the conference report. Representative Godfrey said the bill provides $6.8 million over four years for local food purchasing assistance and milk distribution programs and an additional $1.2 million for farm-to-school and early-care programs. The bill also includes a $1.5 million emergency fund to expand avian influenza testing, with about half of that sum designated for testing workers in the supply chain, lawmakers said. Representative Smith highlighted a $75,000 soil-health study in Olmsted County included in the bill to explore expanding a county-level nitrate-reduction program.

Other items identified by members during debate included increased funding for the Board of Animal Health, expanded meat inspection funding, compensation increases for elk and wolf depredation in northern Minnesota, county agricultural inspector pay increases, and provisions affecting cottage food bakers that allow them to ship products. Representative Roach praised the cottage-food shipping change as beneficial for small business owners who sell at farmers markets.

Supporters repeatedly framed the bill as a response to federal cuts for food purchasing programs. Representative Smith said earlier federal reductions removed roughly $13.3 million in school food purchasing for fiscal 2025 and $4.7 million for food-bank product support in the same year; the bill’s state funding, she said, will only partially address those losses. Representative Jacob and others emphasized the bill’s intent to support all types of agriculture, from large commodity producers to small and urban farms.

Representative Anderson moved adoption of the conference committee’s report on House File 2446 and that the bill be repassed as amended by the conference committee. With no further debate, the clerk polled the roll; the clerk reported 130 ayes and 4 nays, and the House repassed the bill as amended. The clerk then gave the bill its third reading and the title was agreed to.

Members who spoke during debate thanked committee staff and the conference committee for their work. Representative Hansen read a list of House and Senate committee staff who supported the process.

What the action does and what remains unspecified: the conference report keeps the bill’s principal programs but reduces the overall funding target roughly in half from the House-passed level, according to Anderson. Specific fee increases for grain-licensing and food-handling were accepted from the Senate, but the transcript does not specify dollar amounts for those fee changes. The conference report also makes several grant programs competitive via an AgriWorks program rather than naming individual grants in the spreadsheet.

Votes at a glance
House File 2446 (as amended by the conference committee): motion to adopt conference committee report and repass the bill — outcome: repassed as amended; tally: 130 yes, 4 no.

The bill now proceeds with the conference amendments adopted; the transcript records the House action but does not include any further implementation timeline or final enrollment steps in this excerpt.