Senators change bill language to include people with disabilities as they consider senior housing infrastructure grants

Senators and advocates told the Minnesota Senate Housing Committee that seniors and people with mobility limitations are an underserved segment of the housing market and that targeted infrastructure support could help produce “one‑level” homes and accessible units.

Senator Draheim presented Senate File 1227 as a bill to provide infrastructure support for senior housing and for households needing single‑level, accessible homes. He said rising infrastructure costs make it difficult to build one‑level living units — homes where everything is on a single floor — and argued the state should prioritize those needs as the population ages.

"When we look at the population of Minnesota, in February, it was a little about 12% of the population was 65 and older. That's gonna grow to almost 20% by 02/1930," Draheim said, urging attention to senior housing stock. (Transcript phrasing preserved.)

During committee consideration, Draheim offered an A‑1 amendment to expand the bill’s focus from seniors to also include younger households with members who have mobility limitations. The committee adopted the A‑1 amendment. Later, an oral amendment was adopted to replace the phrasing "disabled" with person‑first language: "people with disabilities." Committee members and the chair discussed ensuring respectful, person‑first wording in the bill text and staff confirmed the change.

Action: Senate File 1227 was laid over for possible inclusion in a future omnibus. Senators generally supported targeting resources to accessible, single‑level housing and asked staff to refine language for clarity and broader applicability.

Committee members emphasized prioritizing projects that serve seniors and households with mobility needs in areas where infrastructure costs are a barrier to producing accessible units. No final appropriation was made at the hearing; the bill will be considered during omnibus negotiations.