A Productive End to a Short Session
by Senator Jason Rarick

After a late start in mid-February, the 2026 legislative session adjourned on May 17. In a non-budget year, we weren’t expecting much. Overall, I do believe we got some good work done, but I also know there are some glaring omissions. I want to give a quick overview of some of the big items folks might be wondering about.

First, for our students’ education, we were able to get $10 million in additional compensatory revenue for schools, to offset the problems with the free meals program. This is something many of our schools have been asking for, although many of us acknowledge this isn’t nearly enough to make many districts whole, it is at least a start toward addressing some of the funding shortfalls districts have been seeing.

We also were able to give the Department of Public Safety (DPS) $4 million dollars to implement anonymous threat reporting systems in schools. This is a great way for school districts to work with DPS in addressing school safety measures that make a meaningful difference.

The last piece of school funding that I want to highlight is the $12.2 million that was allocated to school-linked mental health grants. When we talk about school safety, it feels like some often forget what a large role mental health plays in that equation. I’m hopeful these grants will be used in a way that makes our schools safer for kids and teachers alike.

Unfortunately though these funds are important and will help our schools, we failed to provide any mandate relief. I’ve been hearing from school districts in the area, and many are feeling pressure due to mandates passed by the Democrat trifecta in 2023 and 2024, many of which are just now going into effect. Though I’m happy we could get additional funding to the schools, we know it’s not a long-term solution.

Another area we got some good work done was in the final bonding bill. Throughout the past few years, we’ve seen bonding bills that were flooded with “pet projects,” and frankly, included a number of projects that I don’t think are the best use of bonding dollars. This year however, I’d say our final bill was infrastructure focused.

I was happy to see that four projects in our area were included in the final bill. All were focused on water and sewer infrastructure: $1.5 million for Thomson, $1.5 million for Wrenshall, $1.75 million for Moose Lake, and $820,000 for extending the Shorewood Park Sanitary Sewer District extension to Rush Lake Homes. The bonding committee had the chance to tour these projects over the past few years, and the need for all four was clear. These projects are necessary infrastructure improvements, and I’m glad we could get them done.

Minnesota families will also be relieved to hear we also got tax relief measures across the finish line. For years, Senate Republicans have been sounding the alarm on these issues and just how crippling Minnesota taxes have become for families across the state. This year we were able to get significant vehicle tab fee reduction through. For 2027, tab fees will return to 2022 levels, which equates to about $254 million in direct savings for drivers. This is a good step, but I don’t believe it’s enough - Minnesota tab fees will still be a huge outlier compared to our neighboring states. We were able to get this one year “break” while being in the minority and given the fact that next year will be a new legislature, I’m hopeful we can do more.

We were also able to infuse the homestead tax refund program with an additional $125 million. Again, just like tab fees, property taxes have gotten out of hand. This is one small step we took in addressing the concern of families, but we’re ready to do more.

Finally, we also passed government accountability measures that will make a difference in fighting fraud. We finally passed the Office of Inspector General bill, which will play a critical role in addressing fraud across state agencies. We also passed language taxing 100% of money obtained through fraud against public programs.

While I’m happy with what we got done in a relatively short non-budget year, I still believe we have more work to do. Minnesotans are tired of life being unaffordable – they are especially tired of being asked to pay more while fraudsters continue using taxpayer dollars to make themselves richer. Next year we will have a new legislature, and with that, hopefully a new opportunity to address the needs facing our state.