Dear Neighbor,
After a nearly four-week absence, Minnesota House DFL members returned to the Capitol Thursday for what turned out to be the opening day of session. They had been boycotting the House ever since the traditional opening day on Jan. 14 over a dispute on how many members constituted a quorum.
Election results from last November had the House tied with 67 Republicans and 67 DFL members, which has only happened once before in state history. Further complicating the situation, a judge ruled that a DFL candidate would not be allowed to serve in the House because he didn’t actually live in the district he won. That resulted in a 67-66 edge for Republicans, and, with one fewer member seated in the House, they reasoned the quorum number was also reduced by one to 67.
However, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled two weeks ago that, despite the House being one member short, the number that represents a quorum was still 68. DFL members had been staying away to keep the number of members attending session below the 68 needed to constitute a quorum.
It has been frustrating these last four weeks. Many important issues need attention from the Legislature, first and foremost being the creation of a new two-year state budget. After several years of surplus revenue, we are looking at a structural deficit in the future. So, it’s important we start looking now at revisions in state spending to avert an actual shortfall in two years.
The key points to the agreement House Republicans and Democrats reached allowing the body to come to order include:
- There will be a Republican Speaker of the House for the first time in six years. As Speaker, Lisa Demuth will be the second-most powerful elected official in Minnesota.
- Republicans will chair the new House committee we established to investigate fraud in state government programs for two years, and have a 5-3 voting margin over Democrats.
- Republicans have committee chairmanships and majorities on all committees for the entire five-week period leading up to the March 11 special election in District 40B (Roseville).
- We will return to a split committee roster and co-chairs IF the Roseville seat returns to Democrats.
- Even if the House returns to an even 67-67 split, Rep. Demuth remains the sole Speaker of the House.
It is nice that Rep. Demuth will be serving as Speaker the next two years because it will bring some sorely needed balance back to the Capitol after one-party rule was in place the last biennium. It also is good House Republicans who created the new committee on fraud will have an acting majority on that subject to ensure it is taken seriously.
We will now turn our attention to taking official actions on the issues themselves, including numerous priorities House Republicans share with Minnesotans. This includes:
Minnesota Tax Dollars for Minnesotans
 House Republicans have unveiled a package of legislation to ensure state-funded programs and taxpayer resources are reserved for legal residents, while also strengthening immigration enforcement. Main measures in the “Minnesota Tax Dollars for Minnesotans” package include: - Ensuring state-funded benefits go to legal residents: This measure prohibits illegal immigrants from receiving state-funded financial aid, grants, subsidies, or other taxpayer-funded assistance, including programs such as the North Star Promise college tuition program and MinnesotaCare.
- Banning sanctuary cities and strengthening immigration enforcement: This legislation prevents local and state government entities from enacting policies that restrict cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. It also mandates reporting illegal immigrants arrested for violent crimes to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ensuring that criminals who are here unlawfully are held accountable.
Have a good weekend and please stay in touch as we start working to make up for lost time in the 2025 session. Sincerely, Paul |