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Committee hears Minneapolis plan to expand downtown tax boundary; members press stadium oversight concerns
Summary
House File 4361 would expand Minneapolis’s downtown special-tax boundary to include the North Loop and remove a narrow obligation to transfer excess revenue to U.S. Bank Stadium; committee members supported parts of the bill but raised oversight and funding-allocation concerns.
The House Tax Committee on April 21 heard testimony on House File 4361, a Minneapolis-authored bill to expand the city's downtown special-tax boundary to include the North Loop and to alter how certain excess revenue is deployed. The measure, amended in committee, would keep the city's obligations to repay construction bonds and cover operating and capital costs for U.S. Bank Stadium but eliminate a separate, narrower obligation that previously transferred "excess" downtown revenue to the stadium.
City finance representatives said the change would better align downtown taxing boundaries with the modern footprint of downtown activity and would allow the city to retain additional revenue for municipal downtown assets. "The bill only eliminates the 4th obligation to the stadium," a city presenter said, while emphasizing the city would continue to repay bond and operating obligations tied to the stadium.
Committee members praised efforts to align tax boundaries with current activity but some voiced strong concerns about shifting additional revenue away from a state-owned facility. Representative Keith, a member of the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority oversight ecosystem, warned that legislative oversight of stadium-related spending has been inadequate: "This is a serious thing as legislators. We're supposed to sit on these boards... I am sick and tired of these fake boards out there," he said, arguing for stronger oversight before altering revenue flows.
The bill also contains language authorizing $7 million from a Minnesota fund to help Minneapolis attract PGA tournaments, a provision sponsors described as economic development support for downtown venues.
Committee action: Co-chairs took the amendment and laid HF 4361 over for possible inclusion in the 2026 tax bill while members said they would continue to negotiate funding language and oversight provisions.
Why it matters: The measure would change how downtown special taxes apply and how the city can use certain downtown revenues, with implications for stadium financing, downtown asset maintenance and local economic development priorities. Members signaled they want clearer accountability and more work on funding language before finalizing the proposal.
