The 2024 legislative session is now several months in the rearview mirror.
Many of the new laws and expenditures passed by the DFL majority in the state House and Senate and signed by Gov. Tim Walz are beginning to paint a picture for voters this fall. Those voters will be charged with deciding which major party controls the House and Senate.
Here’s a summary of the major legislation that passed the DFL majority House and Senate earlier this year that Gov. Walz signed into law.
The legislature:
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Established a state-mandated rideshare minimum wage structure to keep Uber and Lyft in Minnesota, resulting in higher fares for consumers.
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Amended a 2023 law that caused many police departments to pull school resource officers from high schools across Minnesota, making students more vulnerable
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Prohibited book bans in school and county libraries, limiting the control parents have over what their children are exposed to.
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Increased the annual cap to raise the minimum wage as indexed to inflation from 2.5 percent to 5 percent, with no consideration as to the resulting layoffs or business closures.
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Passed a 1,400-page omnibus bill in the waning moments of session that:
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Amended a paid leave act with new provisions, putting the pressure on small businesses, leading to higher prices
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Passed a junk fees bill that Republicans criticized as not going far enough to eliminate junk fees altogether. This simply hides them within the billing statement, not reduce them.
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Established the ability for college campuses to open “pop-up” polling places for students,
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Passed a bill allowing homeless people to register to vote without providing a physical address on voter registration applications, making it impossible to track such voters.
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Expanded the ability for funeral homes to utilize “human composting” technology in lieu of traditional burial methods or cremation
There were several pieces of legislation that failed to pass both DFL-controlled chambers, including:
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A bonding bill Gov. Walz proposed that would have spent about $980 million on various capital projects statewide
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Equal Rights Amendment legislation
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A physician assisted suicide proposal
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A ranked choice voting “local options” bill
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A "safe storage" gun control bill
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A proposal against rainbow flag bans
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The “North Star Act” making Minnesota a sanctuary state for illegal immigration
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A childcare subsidy program for middle-income families
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A bill that would have legalized commercial surrogacy in Minnesota