2017 Minnesota State Legislative Session Begins Today
Today the 90th Minnesota State Legislature will gavel in and begin the process of orienting new legislators and reviewing the jurisdictions of various committees. The 2017 legislative session marks the first year of the biennium and will focus on the state’s approximately $42 billion state budget. The session is expected to last more than five months, with adjournment constitutionally required by Monday, May 15, 2017.
Election Results and Leadership Changes
For only the second time since the Minnesota Legislature started using party designation on the ballot, Minnesota Republicans won a majority in the Minnesota Senate. The Republicans hold a narrow majority of 34-33. Senate Republicans elected Sen. Michelle Fischbach (R, Paynesville) as the President and Sen. Paul Gazelka (R, Nisswa) as the Majority Leader. Sen. Tom Bakk (DFL, Cook) will serve as the Minority Leader.
Speaker of the House Kurt Daudt (R-Crown), Majority Leader Joyce Peppin (R-Rogers), and House Republicans will again control the Minnesota House of Representatives. In a year where most pundits predicted that the Republican majority would shrink or disappear, House Republicans actually increased their majority. They begin the 2017 legislative session with a 76-57 majority (up from the previous 73-61 split). There will be a special election held Feb. 14 in House District 32B and most Capitol insiders expect the Republican candidate to win in the conservative district. If that were to happen, the Republican majority would expand to 77-57. Rep. Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park) replaces Rep. Paul Thissen (DFL-Minneapolis) as House Minority Leader.
Legislature to Focus on Biennial Budget
The 2017 legislative session is expected to be contentious as the Republican-controlled House and Senate clash with DFL Gov. Mark Dayton. The November budget forecast projected a $1.4 billion surplus for the 2018-19 biennium amidst slow but steady economic growth. Legislative leaders have already begun discussing ways to use the projected surplus, with Majority Leader Gazelka and Speaker Daudt emphasizing the importance of investments in roads and bridges as well as a variety of tax relief initiatives. DFL leaders Bakk and Hortman have called for increased investments in early childhood education and measures designed to reduce the cost of the state’s public colleges and universities.
Other major issues for the session include the cost of health insurance, a comprehensive transportation funding package, and a potential capital investment bonding bill. Gov. Dayton is scheduled to release his budget on January 23, 2017. The February budget forecast will be released in early March and will provide the framework that the Legislature will use to pass the FY 18-19 budget.
State Capitol Restoration Finished
After a three-year restoration, the Minnesota State Capitol is now fully operational. Both the House and the Senate will hold their floor sessions in the newly renovated building and, unlike last session, the galleries in both chambers will be open to the public. All 67 state senators will have offices in the new Minnesota Senate Building across the street from the Capitol. In previous years, the majority party senators were housed in the State Capitol and the minority party senators were in the State Office Building along with members of the House of Representatives.
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