STATE OF MINNESOTA THIRTIETH MEETING
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES EIGHTY-FOURTH SESSION
COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION FINANCE
MINUTES
Representative Bud Nornes, Chair of the Committee on Higher Education, called the thirtieth meeting to order at 12:39 PM on Monday, March 20, 2006, in Room 300S of the State Office Building.
The Clerk noted the roll.
Members present:
NORNES, Bud, Chair
URDAHL, Dean, Vice Chair
ABELER, Jim
ABRAMS, Ron
CARLSON , Lyndon
COX, Ray
DEMPSEY, Jerry
EASTLUND, Rob
HAWS, Larry
LATZ, Ron
PELOWSKI, Gene, Jr.
Members excused: MARIANI, Carlos
No members were unexcused.
A quorum was present.
12:39:20 PM Chair Nornes called the meeting to order.
12:39:33 PM HF 2921 (Severson) Leaves of absence for family members of seriously injured or killed member of the armed forces required, veterans programs provided and funded, military pension tax subtraction created, educational fairness required, and money appropriated.
Chair Nornes moved HF 2921 be recommended to pass and re-referred to the State Government Finance Committee.
12:40:31 PM Rep. Severson offered an oral amendment to HF 2921.
Page 3, line 8, delete the comma and insert a period.
Page 3, line 9, delete "and" and insert "A state college or university"
Page 9, line 24, after "for" insert "veteran"
Page 9, line 25, after “staff" insert “from a veteran pool"
Page 9, line 27, after the first “liason" insert “who is a veteran" and after the second “liason" insert “who is a veteran".
12:44:17 PM Chair Nornes incorporated the oral amendment into his original motion.
12:44:34 PM Rep. Severson continued his presentation.
12:47:50 PM Andy Davis, Chairman/Co-founder of the Veterans Transition Center at the University of Minnesota, supported the bill.
12:53:03 PM Commissioner Clark Dyrud, Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs, testified in support of the bill.
1:04:40 PM Rep. Latz offered an oral amendment to HF 2921.
Page 2, line 17, before “Each" insert “If there is a need as determined by the commissioner of veterans affairs,"
Chair Nornes incorporated the oral amendment into his original motion.
1:05:27 PM Kathy Novak, House Research Analyst, responded to a question from the committee.
1:10:53 PM Doug Berg, Fiscal Analyst, responded to a question from the committee.
1:25:56 PM Tricia Grimes, MN Office of Higher Education, testified in support of the bill.
1:34:52 PM Steve Frantz, MnSCU, testified in support of the bill.
1:45:46 PM Chair Nornes renewed his motion that HF 2921, as amended, be passed and re-referred to the State Government Finance Committee. THE MOTION PREVAILED. THE BILL WAS PASSED.
1:46:41 PM HF 2892 (Dorn) Mankato academic building construction authorized.
Chair Nornes moved HF 2892 to be recommended to pass and be placed on the general register.
1:47:12 PM Rep. Dorn presented HF 2892.
1:51:22 PM Rep. Pelowski moved the H2892A1 amendment. The motion prevailed, the amendment is adopted.
1:52:08 PM Richard Davenport, Minnesota State University, Mankato, testified in support of the bill.
1:56:40 PM Allan Johnson, Associate Vice Chancellor for Facilities, MnSCU, responded to a question from the committee.
1:58:36 PM Chair Nornes amended his original motion that the bill be passed, as amended, and to be placed on the consent calendar.
1:59:42 PM the motion prevailed. the bill is passed.
1:59:55 PM Chair Nornes presented his intention for the committee’s recommendation to go to the Capital Investment Committee.
2:11:17 PM Rep. Latz moved to divide the question and vote separately on the system requests and the independent bills.
2:13:14 PM Motion to pass the system recommendations: THE MOTION PREVAILED.
2:13:37 PM Motion to pass the additional bills: THE MOTION PREVAILED.
2:22:09 PM Rep. Latz moved that the committee also recommend the MnSCU projects not included in the original recommendation (see attached).
2:27:25 PM The motion did not prevail. The meeting was adjourned.
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REP. BUD NORNES, CHAIR
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Brooke Peterson
Committee Legislative Assistant