Minn. House Ways and Means committee advances judiciary, public safety, housing, commerce, environment, unemployment and cannabis measures to next stages

At a meeting of the Minnesota House Ways and Means Committee, members voted on a series of fiscal and policy bills from several author committees, moving most to the general register or laying them over for further action.

The committee advanced the judiciary finance bill, House File 2,300, and the public safety finance bill, House File 2,432, and then voted to incorporate both bills' language into a combined public safety and judiciary omnibus. The committee also laid over or moved forward housing (House File 2,445), commerce (House File 2,443), environment and natural resources (House File 2,439) and a cannabis policy vehicle (House File 16,115) to the general register, and recommended placement of an unemployment insurance extension (House File 3,023) for mine workers on the general register.

Key outcomes

- House File 2,300 (Judiciary finance): Committee co-chairs moved the bill and an A7 amendment was adopted to remove a uniform law provision; the bill as amended was laid over. Nonpartisan staff confirmed the committee target of an additional $30 million for FY26-27 and $30 million in the tails was met. Committee discussion highlighted efforts to hold employee paychecks harmless for increases in health insurance costs, reinstate a Guardian ad Litem volunteer program (funding for two FTEs and a report back to the Legislature), and one-time infrastructure investments with funds available for four years.

- House File 2,432 (Public safety finance): The committee was told the public safety committee target was $50 million in each biennium; staff said the bill met that target. The bill adds funding for peace officer training and recruitment (including $5.5 million per year for a named training fund), local public safety radio equipment, victim services increases and other operating adjustments. Committee discussion repeatedly returned to operating shortfalls for the Department of Corrections (DOC), the effect on processing evidence, and risks to retaining corrections officers. Members noted portions of costs (for example prisoner phone-call funding) previously added to the base ($3.0 million a year) and that roughly $2.2 million of that goes to the actual cost of calls; cable-TV spending was cited at about $1.0 million a year.

- Merger into omnibus: By voice vote the committee approved motions to incorporate the judiciary (HF2300) and public safety (HF2432) language as separate articles into a combined public safety and judiciary omnibus and directed nonpartisan staff to make technical corrections. Those incorporation motions carried on voice votes.

- House File 2,445 (Housing finance): The committee heard a long discussion on a housing bill that the co-chairs said meets a $75 million biennial target and includes emergency rental assistance, investments in multifamily and single-family affordable housing, manufactured housing, and $100 million in housing infrastructure bond debt service. Members debated a newly added policy article that would give Minnesota Housing scoring priority (a "carrot") for projects in municipalities that adopt a set of pro-housing supply policies (e.g., allowing duplexes and accessory dwelling units). Several members objected to both the timing (late addition to the bill, bypassing some other committees) and parts of the policy language, arguing it could advantage cities of the first class, disadvantage Greater Minnesota and suburban jurisdictions that cannot meet all listed criteria, and lack explicit affordability safeguards in the scoring language. Chairs said the scoring metric would be additive to existing program affordability requirements (for example federal tax credit projects) and that Minnesota Housing retains tools to ensure regional balance.

- House File 2,443 (Commerce finance) and A6 amendment: The committee adopted an author's A6 technical amendment (voice vote) that updated revenue projections for the securities assessment but did not change the target. A substantive provision discussed and included in the bill is creation of a task force on homeowners and commercial property insurance administered by the Legislative Coordinating Commission (LCC). Members questioned committee jurisdiction (the provision did not go to state government finance or local government committees) and cost; staff said the appropriation in the A6 package included $200,000 to begin the task force in the 2025 appropriation and that the item was placed in commerce because it principally involves insurance regulation administered by the Department of Commerce. The A6 amendment was adopted on a voice vote and the bill was laid over.

- House File 2,439 (Environment and natural resources finance): Co-chairs described this bill as a "bare-bones" environment budget that met a $10 million reduction target for FY26-27. The bill does not include major agency operating increases requested by agencies; instead it backfills the cut by reducing certain unspent appropriations from the 2023 budget (MPCA, BWSR, DNR program reductions were described). The committee laid the bill over.

- House File 3,023 (Unemployment insurance extension for mine workers): Representative Johnson presented a bill to extend unemployment insurance (UI) benefits by 26 weeks for miners affected by temporary closures of two Cleveland-Cliffs-operated mines (identified in committee testimony as the Menorca mine in Virginia and the Hibtac mine in Hibbing). Staff provided a fiscal note estimating a potential cost to the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund of just under $15 million in FY26 if an estimated ~600 workers participate for 26 weeks. Members discussed whether costs would be socialized (spread across employers) or charged to specific employers; the author said costs under the bill would be charged back to the employers that laid off the workers (i.e., not socialized across all employers). The committee voted to place HF3023 on the general register.

- House File 16,115 (Cannabis policy; low-dose wholesaler license and social-equity transfer rules): Chair Stevenson said a narrow licensing provision in the cannabis policy bill (a new low-dose THC wholesaler license for products such as beverages and gummies) produced small state savings used by Commerce to meet its target. Sponsors described the licensing change as necessary because current law requires a cannabis wholesale license that can create federal tax exposure for traditional beer/liquor wholesalers. The bill also modifies social-equity ownership thresholds for transfers of cannabis licenses (the bill lowered an earlier 65% social-equity ownership requirement to 51% for transfers, with an effective date delay). Committee members raised concerns about changes to social-equity provisions and asked for clarifying language; the author said intent was to apply the change at transfer and to preserve pathways for social-equity participation while allowing license holders some flexibility. The committee took a roll-call and the motion to place HF16,115 on the general register prevailed 15-13.

Votes at a glance (committee actions summarized)

- A7 amendment to HF2300 (Judiciary): adopted (voice vote). HF2300 laid over as amended. - HF2300 (Judiciary finance): laid over (co-chairs moved; voice votes). Committee target met: +$30M FY26-27 and +$30M tails. - HF2432 (Public safety finance): recommended for placement on the general register; later incorporated into a combined public safety/judiciary omnibus (voice votes). Target met: +$50M per biennium. Noted investments: training, recruitment, victim services, DOC operating risk. - Motions to incorporate HF2300 and HF2432 into omnibus articles: adopted (voice votes). - HF2445 (Housing finance): laid over; target met: +$75M FY26-27. Substantial policy debate recorded about a scoring incentive for municipalities and process concerns. - A6 amendment to HF2443 (Commerce): A6 adopted (voice vote). A6 included an LCC task force on homeowners and commercial property insurance with a 2025 appropriation item recorded at ~ $200,000; HF2443 laid over. - HF2439 (Environment): laid over; met $10M reduction target for FY26-27; several 2023 appropriations reduced to backfill cuts. - HF3023 (Unemployment insurance for mine workers): placed on the general register (voice vote). Fiscal note: potential UI trust fund impact ~$15M in FY26; ~600 workers affected per sponsor testimony. - HF16,115 (Cannabis policy): roll-call to place on general register prevailed 15 ayes, 13 noes. The bill includes a new low-dose wholesaler license and modifies social-equity transfer thresholds (effective 07/01/2026 language flagged for clarification).

What committee members pressed for next steps

- Several members asked for clearer language and reports back, including: - More detail on how housing scoring incentives would interact with statutory program affordability requirements and regional balance tools used by Minnesota Housing. Some members requested the policy portion have review in local government committee or further stakeholder process. - Clarification that changes to social-equity thresholds in the cannabis bill apply to transfers (after the waiting/holding period) and not to initial social-equity application qualifications; chairs committed to clarifying the language as the bill moves forward. - For commerce: members pressed on the cost and duration of the insurance task force and whether LCC is the right home; authors said the task force appropriation and placement in commerce reflected the insurance focus and the committee's desire to start work in 2025. - For public safety and judiciary: members repeatedly pressed both co-chairs to address DOC operating shortfalls and the potential programmatic impacts on evidence processing, corrections staffing and rehabilitation programs.

Next steps

Most of these measures were either laid over for technical corrections by nonpartisan staff or recommended to the general register, where they will be eligible for floor action. Members flagged multiple drafting and jurisdictional issues that sponsors said they will continue to address before floor consideration.

(Reporting note: article summarizes motions, amendments and voice/roll-call outcomes that were recorded by the committee during the hearing; quotes in the committee transcript were reviewed for direct statements included above.)