SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, the Minnesota House passed H.F. 1999, the 2023 Legacy Budget Bill. The legislation invests over $820 million dollars in Minnesota’s outdoor heritage, clean water, parks and trails, and arts and culture.
Rep. Liz Olson (DFL – Duluth) supported the bill.
“Our Legacy bill represents a transformational package of support for our state’s water, wildlife, arts, cultural heritage, and so much more about what makes Minnesota a rewarding place to live,” Rep. Olson said. “Minnesotans value all of this so much they voted to increase their own sales taxes, and I’m proud to support these key investments in the future of our entire state, which leave no community behind.”
The 2023 Legacy Budget Bill invests $172 million to restore, protect, and enhance Minnesota’s prairies, forests, wetlands, and wildlife habitats, with projects covering a total of over 121,000 acres of land. It invests $318 million in the Clean Water Fund split between state agencies and creates a Minnesota Clean Water Goal to make sure our water is safe for fishing, swimming, and drinking by 2040. The bill also includes $136 million to preserve and protect parks and trails across the state, with a provision ensuring four free public access days a year. Finally, H.F. 1999 invests over $195 million dollars in arts, arts education, and arts access to preserve Minnesota’s history and cultural heritage.
The bill also includes key investments in and around Duluth, including $300,000 each of the next two years to support educational exhibits and programming at the Lake Superior Zoo, $500,000 for a hands-on exhibit about the history of the natural landscape of the state at the Great Lakes Aquarium, $2.5 million toward the St. Louis River Restoration Initiative, and additional resources to restore and enhance wildlife habitat in Lake Superior’s cold water tributaries.
The legislation also delivers significant measures to increase equity and better serve communities traditionally underrepresented within Legacy appropriations. These investments include requests from Tribal nations, funding for the arts community to facilitate healing and recovery, LGBTQIA+ arts programming, and youth outdoor outreach.
In 2008, Minnesotans voted to pass the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment to the Minnesota Constitution. The amendment increased the sales tax by three-eighths of one percent and dedicated those funds to protecting and enhancing our state’s outdoor heritage, clean water, parks and trails, arts, and cultural heritage.
A fact sheet about the Legacy Budget Bill is available here.