This week Senate Democrats passed a partisan, mandate-heavy education policy omnibus bill. The legislation fails to address the three areas where schools need the most support: increasing academic success, providing mandate relief and improving school safety. 

 

“Democrats again have passed an education bill that fails to address shortcomings in our state’s education system, and instead creates additional mandates that further tie the hands of local school boards,” said Senator Andrew Lang (R-Olivia). “We’re facing some serious issues in Minnesota: slipping graduation rates, and fewer than half of Minnesota students performing at grade-level in math and reading. Every piece of education legislation should focus on our students and setting them up for success – this bill does nothing to address any of that, and doubles down on mandates without funding to pay for them. Our schools were funded at record levels last year and still found themselves in deficits due to all the mandates.” 

 

The education policy bill increases mandates on schools, even after more than 60 mandates were passed in the 2023 session. A letter on March 14from various education groups requested the legislature refrain from passing new mandates in 2024, citing the negative impacts to their budget, workforce, local control, and innovation efforts. Senate Republicans recently presented a bill to give local school districts more options with state funding, which was offered as an amendment during the floor debate. 

 

The amendment sought to allow school boards to transfer the new funding from one use to another by passing a resolution indicating the amount and purpose of the funds they want to transfer. These relief measures would be in place for the next three school years and only apply to mandates in the 2023 education omnibus bills plus any new mandates that are anticipated in 2024 education legislation. Democrats refused to accept this amendment. 

 

In the midst of slipping graduation rates and fewer than half of Minnesota students performing at grade-level in math and reading, the premiere component of this legislation is a controversial “Book Banning Prohibition” mandate, which would put book selection decisions in the hands of approved librarians with no room for input from parents in the community. 

 

Other notable portions of the education policy omnibus bill include the following:

 

·       SF 1318 – Require schools to consult with union representatives regarding paraprofessional training
·       SF 2998 – Allowing smudging in public schools
·       SF 3924 – Increasing training required for Tier I and Tier II special education teachers
·       SF 3974 – Requiring notice to parents and record-keeping if a student is pulled out of class for more than 10 minutes
·       SF 3998 – Permitting student journalism with minimal restrictions