This week, the Senate State Government committee heard two key bills authored by Senator Jeff Howe (R-Rockville).

SF-2181 is a bipartisan bill that provides appropriations necessary for staffing and services for the Minnesota Military and Veterans Museum located at Camp Ripley. This bill would allow the museum to fund the hiring of staff and engage in outreach with veterans throughout the state.

“This is a bipartisan bill that simply helps fund the museum’s efforts to staff and provide direct services to veterans and their families,” said Howe. “Projects like this are helpful when reintegrating veterans back into civilian society because they allow veterans to meet fellow soldiers, see and hear the stories of others, and have events that connect them with the community.”

SF-1290 appropriates additional money for post-9/11 Veterans bonuses. Language providing the bonuses was originally passed in 2022, and the payments started being processed in July of last year. After the payments began, it was discovered that the funding was insufficient to reach all the veterans that applied. This bill expands eligibility to ensure every Veteran is compensated for their service. 

“Minnesota has a historic and time-honored tradition of providing post-service bonuses to Veterans that have served in major conflicts, and we continued this tradition by funding post-9/11 service bonuses last year,” continued Howe. “This year’s bill adds additional funding, so that we can ensure every Veteran is fairly compensated for their years of service. These are the folks that have given so much to serve our state and country, and it’s incredibly important that we ensure no veteran is left out of receiving this benefit.”  

Both bills were laid over for inclusion in a future budget bill.