House passes state government finance bill after debate over proxy voting, elections and attorney general funding

The Minnesota House passed Senate File 3045, the 2025 state government finance bill, after extended debate and several roll-call votes. The bill funds the legislature, nonpartisan staff, constitutional officers and a range of state agencies and programs, and it cleared the House on a final vote of 113 yeas to 21 nays.

Supporters said the bill sustains the institutions that keep the Legislature and state government running and includes bipartisan policy provisions. "This 2025 state government finance budget bill does really important things," Representative Ruth Cleburne said on the House floor, listing funding for staff, the reviser and the Capitol building.

Why it matters: The measure combines base funding for operations with targeted policy changes and program funding. Members debated several high-profile amendments on election rules, bribery and inducement prohibitions, proxy voting for deployed members, and funding for the attorney general's office and Medicaid fraud enforcement. The bill also contains items proponents described as bipartisan compromises: election security measures and changes to campaign finance and voter-related provisions, a healthy-aging subcabinet, business filing fraud protections, and additional auditors for the Office of the Legislative Auditor.

Major provisions and debate - Funding for the legislature and staff: Sponsors repeatedly emphasized that the bill pays salaries and benefits for nonpartisan staff who support legislators'work. Representative Cleburne thanked nonpartisan and partisan staff, pages and reviser staff for their work.

- Elections: Representative Steve Freyberg summarized the bill's elections provisions, saying the measures fund the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board and include a $200,000 allocation tied to Help America Vote Act activities and a $79,000 operating adjustment for the campaign finance board. The package also includes multiple policy provisions carried over from several House files, updates to how election judges are assigned, and a change to the in-person absentee ballot drop-off end time from 8 p.m. to 5 p.m.

- Medicaid fraud and the attorney general's office: Several members debated increases in the attorney general's budget and staffing. Representative Chris Davis proposed amendment A10 to scale back some proposed increases, arguing the attorney general's budget has grown substantially in recent years and citing staffing numbers and budget totals discussed on the floor. Representative Davis described A10 as "a responsible adjustment to the attorney general's budget." Supporters of the AG funding said additional staff and resources are needed to prosecute fraud and to support county attorneys on complex cases; opponents said the office must show transparency and accountability before receiving larger increases.

- Business filing fraud and consumer protections: Representative Lisa Dreier highlighted a business filing fraud prevention provision, which aims to streamline help for victims of business identity fraud and to curb deceptive solicitations that charge unnecessary fees to business owners.

- Healthy aging subcabinet and other programs: The bill creates or funds a healthy-aging subcabinet, the result of a multi-year task force on aging. Representatives noted funding for various museums, the Minnesota Air National Guard Museum, Farm America and other community institutions.

Significant amendments and floor actions - A7 (proxy for deployed members): Representative Eric Sexton offered an amendment (A7) to allow a legislator who is deployed on active duty either to vote remotely or to have a colleague serve as a proxy. Sexton described the amendment as "a very simple addition to the bill" and said it was intended to allow service members to carry out both duties. After debate and a division vote, A7 was adopted, reported on the floor as prevailing with 58 ayes and 52 nays.

- A5 (plain-language lobbying handbook): Representative Jamie Coulter introduced A5 to require the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board to create a plain-language lobbying handbook; Coulter later withdrew the amendment.

- A17 (prohibiting agency rules to ban certain products): Representative Schultz offered A17 to prohibit state agencies from adopting rules that would limit purchases of consumer products (examples cited included some vehicle and equipment rules). The amendment was rejected on a roll-call vote, 65 yeas to 67 nays.

- A18 (prohibiting inducements to register or vote): Representative Esther Greenman proposed A18 to clarify and expand the bribery statute to make it explicitly illegal to use lotteries or other inducements to induce registration or voting during the absentee voting period; A18 was defeated on a roll call, 66 yeas to 67 nays. The amendment included a de minimis exception for items under $20; floor questions focused on how that exception would be interpreted.

- A10 (adjustment to attorney general funding): Representative Davis's A10, described by Davis as reining in operational and one-time spending while maintaining the Medicaid fraud expansion, was tied in the roll call 67-67 and therefore did not prevail.

Final steps and outcome After the votes on amendments and floor debate, the House gave Senate File 3045 its third reading and passed the bill as amended, with the clerk announcing "There being 113 yays and 21 nays, the bill is passed as amended and its title agreed to." The bill as passed includes the adopted proxy-voting amendment A7 and the other provisions noted above.

Ending The bill passed the House as amended; the floor record shows multiple roll-call votes and divisions during debate. Members on both sides emphasized the bill's mix of funding for core government functions and targeted policy provisions, and speakers urged colleagues to consider both fiscal restraint and the operational needs of state government.