ST. PAUL, MN – Today, the Minnesota House of Representatives passed the conference committee reports on the Omnibus Higher Education Finance Bill and Omnibus Health and Human Services Finance Bill. State Representatives John Ward (DFL – Baxter) and Joe Radinovich (DFL – Crosby) supported both pieces of legislation.
The higher education bill includes $250 million in funding that will directly benefit students by freezing tuition at both the University of Minnesota (U of M) and the Minnesota State Colleges and University system (MnSCU), including Central Lakes College. It also contains $74.5 million in additional funding for the State Grant Program.
“We have to ensure that our higher education institutions are affordable and accessible to every Minnesotan, no matter your income,” said Rep. Radinovich. “Post-secondary education is the gateway to the middle class and future success. Our community and technical colleges are on the front lines of workforce development and job training for our communities.”
“The previous legislature cut higher education to 1998 levels and tuition has nearly doubled at state colleges and universities over the past decade — hurting our students and their families,” said Rep. Ward. “Central Lakes College has been a great partner for our local businesses and high schools. Their work boosts our economy and we need to support it.
The bill also includes new reforms to expand the oversight function of the legislature. They are designed to better hold the U of M and MnSCU accountable for budgeting practices that have come under fire for high administrative costs and excessive compensation for top administrators.
The Omnibus Health and Human Services Bill makes $50 million in reductions to the health and human services budget while protecting core services to the vulnerable and increasing funding for nursing homes by 5 percent. It also increases the rate for long-term care providers by 1 percent while also repealing a 1.67 percent cut scheduled to take effect in July. Health and human services is the fastest growing area of the state budget.
The budget also expands the availability of school-linked mental health grants which allow licensed mental health professionals to provide behavioral and mental health services to children in public schools. In addition, the budget includes $1.6 million for Minnesota Teen Challenge, a program that helps Minnesota teens battling chemical dependency and has a facility in Brainerd. After the funding was not included in the initial House bill, Reps. Ward and Radinovich signed onto a bipartisan letter advocating for funding. Rep. Ward also met with Governor Dayton to push for its inclusion in the final bill.
“We are slowing the growth in spending while setting the right priorities and protecting our seniors, the poor, and the vulnerable,” said Rep. Ward. “In addition, as a former emotional and behavioral disorder teacher, I understand the importance of these mental health grants for children. These grants play a pivotal role in ensuring that our students are receiving the help they need and saves our state and schools money down the road.
“It’s great news that funding for the Minnesota Teen Challenge was also included. The Teen Challenge is a great program that helps so many young people break free from addiction.”
The conference committee report does not include the increased hospital surcharge included in the bill that passed off the House floor in April.
“This is an improved bill than what initially passed off the House floor and I’m pleased we were able to work together with the Senate and Governor Dayton to reach an agreement with a larger increase for our nursing homes,” said Rep. Radinovich. “Our nursing home workers haven’t received a wage increase in four years, making these increases long overdue.”
Finally, the House failed to pass a Capital Investment Bill — also known as bonding. The bill needed a super majority of 81 votes, requiring bipartisan support. Only three Republicans voted in favor of the bill.
The bill contained a number of important local projects including:
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$2 million for Central Lakes College to replace the roof on the Library/Fine Arts building and replace air handlers, HVAC distribution and controls for the business and industry area
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$2.7 million for the Cuyuna Lakes Trail from Crosby to Deerwood, Paul Bunyan State Trail to Lum Park, a segment connecting to the Sagamore Unit of the Cuyuna County State Recreational Area; and Paul Bunyan State Trail to Riverton
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$450,000 in Accessibility for Public Building Grants — potential funding for an elevator in the Brainerd Civic Center to make it fully handicap accessible.
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$5 million for the Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport to construct an extension of water and sanitary sewer service and to replace one mile of the existing sewer line.
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$25 million for wastewater infrastructure projects throughout the state, potentially including $480,000 to rehabilitate an existing facility in the North Long Lake Sewer District and $845,000 to rehabilitate a Cuyuna collection system.
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$20 million for bridge replacement and rehabilitation, and $25 million for road repairs and improvements — some local projects will be included in this funding.
“It’s very disappointing that today’s bonding bill did not pass,” said Rep. Ward. “This was a great bill that would have created jobs and improved infrastructure across the entire state. I’ll continue fighting for a bonding bill.”
“I’m disappointed we didn’t get more support from our colleagues on the other side of the aisle,” added Rep. Radinovich. “We have a serious infrastructure problem in this state that we need to address and it only becomes a bigger problem the longer we wait. I’ll continue working to gain additional bipartisan support to get a bonding bill done if not this year, then next year.”