Proposal to add alternates to ethnic councils laid over after council testimony

Representative Hudson introduced House File 31 68, a bill to authorize appointing alternate members to Minnesota's ethnic councils to help maintain quorum and broaden engagement.

Hudson said alternates would fill gaps when regular members cannot attend and help councils better mobilize and coordinate community outreach. He described the idea as inspired by delegate/alternate systems used in other organizations.

Andy Morris, legislative public affairs director for the Council on Asian Pacific Minnesotans, told the committee the Asian council’s enabling statute limits membership by ancestry community and that appointing alternates could create complex administrative challenges — for example, potentially requiring representation from many ancestry communities to honor the "no more than one member from any particular ancestry" requirement. Morris recommended additional statutory clarity before pursuing alternates.

Aaron Sepulveda, legislative and policy director at the Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs, said his council rarely fails to reach quorum (one exceptional recent instance noted) and that adding alternates could substantially increase administrative workload for staff unless new resources were provided; he suggested tailored solutions and offered to work with the sponsor to refine the proposal.

Chair Nash and members agreed the bill could be tailored and that further drafting and stakeholder work was appropriate; Representative Hudson agreed. The bill was laid over for further consideration and drafting.