Sen. Putnam wins committee adoption of task force to study property‑tax relief; bill sent to finance

Senator Putnam introduced Senate File 4262 on April 15, asking the Taxes Committee to create a bipartisan task force charged with producing legislative recommendations to reduce the property‑tax burden on Minnesota homeowners. He told the committee the task force is intended to “come up with solutions … to reduce the property tax burden,” and that at least one option should have minimal general‑fund impact.

The bill, as described by Putnam, directs the Commissioner of Revenue to convene a group with equal bipartisan legislative representation and local government appointees to examine tools such as a homestead market‑value exclusion and classification‑rate changes. The bill text sets a report deadline of February 1, 2027, and provides that the task force expires after it files its report.

Committee counsel and staff discussed where to include required statutory (draft legislative) language in subdivision 5 so that the task force’s report would contain implementable bill text. After that technical discussion, the committee took SF4262 from the table, Senator Putnam moved an author's A1 amendment to insert draft legislative language following the word “recommendations,” and the amendment was adopted by voice vote.

Following adoption of the A1 author's amendment, the committee moved to pass SF4262 as amended and refer it to the Senate Finance Committee. The motion carried by voice vote. No roll‑call tally was recorded in the hearing transcript.

The action sends the task‑force bill to the finance committee for further consideration, where staff and members will have the opportunity to review the inserted statutory language and the task force's final product when it is delivered.