On Wednesday, Feb. 12, Senate Republicans, including Senator Jordan Rasmusson (R-Fergus Falls), rolled out a comprehensive plan consisting of eight bills to hold government accountable and stop waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars. The plan is part of the group’s Minnesotans First agenda for the 2025 legislative session.
“There is bipartisan agreement that the Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) does excellent work in making recommendations for ways state agencies can prevent waste, fraud, and abuse,” Sen. Rasmusson said. “However, we must ensure that agencies not only receive their recommendations but also turn them into action. That is why I introduced a bill with Representative Jim Nash—Senate File 263 and House File 3—to strengthen the role of the OLA and improve accountability across state agencies. This will help prevent future waste, fraud, and abuse by ensuring state agencies adopt best practices and eliminate their root causes.”
The plan features SF 263, which Sen. Rasmusson is championing to encourage House and Senate committees to hold hearings where the OLA reviews agency compliance with its recommendations to better address fraud, waste, and abuse. Too often, the OLA’s recommendations are ignored, with little to no meaningful action taken by commissioners or their staff to implement the necessary changes. This added layer of oversight is intended to hold agencies accountable. Sen. Rasmusson’s bill was heard in the Senate State and Local Government Committee on Tuesday, Feb. 11, and it was laid over for possible inclusion in a larger bill package.
“We know that stopping fraud is not just a legislative priority, recent polling shows that it’s a top issue for Minnesotans too,” Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson (R-East Grand Forks) said. “That’s why we are making it a priority to hold government accountable for protecting taxpayers’ money. Minnesotans work hard, and they are generous people, but with at least half a billion dollars in fraud over the last six years, they are tired of being in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.”
Bill List
Senate Republicans’ comprehensive plan to hold government accountable to stop the waste, fraud, and abuse includes the following Republican-championed bills:
Oversight
- SF TBD: Increase penalties on state employees who don’t follow the law to report suspected waste, fraud, or abuse
- SF 475: Whistleblower protection laws for state employees who report suspected waste, fraud, or abuse (Heard in State and Local Government Committee on Feb. 11, 2025)
- SF 1219: Create a centralized state Office of Inspector General
Transparency
- SF 730: Transparency in the Attorney General’s office (Heard in Judiciary and Public Safety Committee on Jan. 29, 2025)
- SF 263: OLA review on agency compliance based on OLA recommendations to relevant House and Senate committees (Heard in State and Local Government Committee Feb. 11, 2025)
Grant Reforms