Friends and neighbors, this week the governor called the legislature to a special session. We convened and have started the process of passing the final budget bills. There are 14 bills that need to be passed by both the House and Senate and signed by the governor to avoid a government shutdown on July 1. 

As chair of Senate Education Finance and Policy, I have been in negotiations with the House since early May. The House is not interested in the same priorities as the Senate and has been unwilling to compromise on even the smallest of bipartisan provisions. I have laid aside many provisions that were priorities for our schools and students – provisions that fund our schools with flexibility and no mandates. 

While I have moved the issues that I am passionate about, I am also keenly aware that a shutdown is NOT an option for Minnesotans. Schools have asked for 2 things: adequate funding and no mandates. That is what we have done. I am standing strong and funding the formula at 3% and 1.5%.

I have kept my commitment to address teachers of color, literacy, and mental health in my offer from the senate. These are bipartisan issues that should have the support of the House.

The House has different priorities that fund mandates the schools are not asking for and are not in the best interest of the students or teachers. I am baffled by the short-sightedness of the House and their unwillingness to compromise as it appears they want to take it to the last minute of a possible shutdown.

In my efforts to find agreement and pass our budget, I am disheartened to leave behind many things I am passionate about and have fought hard this year to prioritize. With that said – the passing of the budget takes precedent.

The Senate’s offer includes: 

• FUNDING: The Senate’s offer includes a 3% per-student funding formula increase next year that would be spent based on decisions made by local school officials according to their own unique needs. It will be followed by a further increase of an additional 1.5% in the following school year. This is the largest increase in 15 years and far exceeds the original proposals from either Gov. Walz or the House.
• EQUITY: Provisions to increase opportunities for potential teachers – and particularly teachers of color – to enter the profession, to be mentored, and to be retained so that students will be able to have a wide breadth of experiences, backgrounds, and role models available to them in their classrooms.
• LITERACY: A bipartisan agreed upon expansion of a remarkably successful early literacy instruction training program, called LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling), which has been used nationwide and led to improved student outcomes. Literacy is the equity issue of our time, and it impacts every area from the academic achievement gap to special education to discipline.
• DIGITAL HEALTH: The terrible consequences of social media on our kid’s mental health is real. It is a serious problem that needs addressing. If we do not take action to educate and support the balanced use of digital media, the negative mental health trends among young people will continue to trend downward, greatly affecting their learning and ability to thrive. We know so much more now than we did ten years ago. The overwhelming evidence shows a strong correlation between the increased use of technology and increased mental health problems with children. This bi-partisan provision will provide grant money to LiveMore ScreenLess to address these issues.
• AGREED LANGUAGE (House and Senate): Teachers of color, Grow your own (teachers grant expansion), Girls in Action, and Suicide prevention training grants.

The Senate offer represents a bipartisan sincere compromise to prevent a shutdown on July 1.

We heard what families and schools asked for and we answered. Now is the time to simply provide our students, families, and schools with the resources they need to get the job of in-person education done well. Our schools, teachers, and students are emerging from the unprecedented stress and strain of a pandemic and ill-advised emergency measures. This is not the time for new state mandates and the costs it takes to comply.

As always, if you have questions or comments about issues we are working on here, please contact me. Call or email: 651-296-1253. Roger Chamberlain Roger Chamberlain