Committee adopts veterans subcommittee reports, forwards bills to next steps
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Summary
The Minnesota Senate committee adopted veterans-related subcommittee reports for SF 4807, SF 4560 and SF 3603 and forwarded the files to the next bodies: SF 4807 to finance, SF 4560 to State Government, and SF 3603 to the Senate floor.
The Minnesota Senate Committee on Agriculture, Veterans, Broadband and Rural Development on April 13 adopted several subcommittee reports on veterans-related bills and moved them to the next legislative steps.
Senate File 4807, described by Senator Putnam as a budget-neutral update to state active-duty pay, replaces a 1997 $130-per-day minimum with a base tied to the federal E-5 (sergeant) pay grade so state paykeeping aligns with federally set military pay tables. The committee adopted the veterans subcommittee report and a motion to pass the bill as amended to the Senate finance committee by voice vote.
Senate File 4560, which formalizes an existing commander's task force composed of veterans advocacy groups such as Disabled American Veterans and the American Legion, was reported favorably out of the subcommittee and sent to the Senate Committee on State Government after members confirmed it carries no direct cost.
Senate File 3603, establishing a Minnesota high school diploma program for veterans who left school to serve in the Korean or Vietnam conflicts, was recommended to pass as amended and referred to the Senate floor.
No roll-call tallies were recorded on the transcript; votes were taken by voice and the committee chair announced each file as "on its way" or referred accordingly. The committee's actions were routine procedural approvals of items that previously passed unanimously through the veterans subcommittee.
The committee then shifted to informational and agency business and held no final votes on those matters during the April 13 session.
