Conference committee reviews Senate Offer No. 2 to House File 2431, flags funding and policy changes

The conference committee on House File 2431 met May 17 to review the Senate27s second offer, a spreadsheet of appropriation and policy changes that includes altered funding levels for higher-education grants, adjustments to student aid formulas and several policy provisions.

Nonpartisan staff walked members through the spreadsheet labeled "senate offer number 2," noting line-item changes including a proposed appropriation of $35,976,000 in fiscal 2025-27 and $18,310,000 in fiscal 2028-29 for a state grant program, a $1,000,000 per-biennium increase to childcare grants, and a reduction of $2,000,000 per biennium to the base appropriation for cannabis research. Staff also said the Senate27s package would reduce several loan-repayment and student-teacher shortage grants by $500,000 per biennium or smaller amounts and would eliminate ongoing funding for some programs, including economic development research and the Humphrey Forum.

"The senate number 2 proposes an appropriation of 35,976,000 in the '25 through '27 biennium," the nonpartisan staff member said while reading line-item…