by Tom Anderson | Director of Government Relations & Zac Spohn | Advocacy Intern
As we move into the next phase of the state legislative process at the state capitol, there are several bills that fit within the scope of the legislative priorities set forth by our Students United Board of Directors. In this piece, we will lay out the bills Students United is tracking, and how these bills might affect students. We’ll also describe the legislative process moving forward and how to contact your representatives if you wish to reach out to them directly!
The deadline for bills to get a hearing in committee has passed. The Senate has set its budget target for higher education at $44 million. Whereas, the House of Representatives has set a budget target of $120 million for higher education. The House is proposing an overall spending target of $52.5 billion for the 2022-23 biennium for all government-funded programs. The Senate, with a slightly lower target, has an overall budget framework proposal of $51.9 billion over the biennium. The House of Representatives and the Senate will need to work together to overcome the differences in spending priorities to avoid the need for another special session.
Governor Tim Walz has recently adjusted his budget request to the legislature, signaling that he supports fulfilling $75 million of the Minnesota State system’s request for campus responsiveness and stabilization efforts, which would go to support increases in campus expenses resulting from the pandemic and inflationary costs over the biennium. His revised budget takes into consideration the recent economic forecast, which now projects a $1.6 billion surplus, rather than the $1.3 billion deficit previously projected. It is not uncommon for a Governor to adjust their budget proposal if there is a significant change between forecasts from the Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner.
Going forward, the House and Senate higher education committees will work to put together their omnibus finance bills, with the intention of passing them out of their respective committees by April 9th. Omnibus bills are large bills with a bunch of small bills within it. This an all-or-nothing approach to legislating will bundle the Minnesota State system’s funding bill with other higher education financing items that the committees agree to pass. Now, onto the bills we’re tracking that may be a part of the higher education omnibus bill.
A senate bill, SF 2101, calls for Minnesota State system students to be refunded any fee they paid for online differential tuition for online courses during the 2020-21 academic year that was not offered as an online course during the previous academic year. Online differential tuition is a fee that students pay for classes that are delivered online, either synchronously or asynchronously at most schools in the Minnesota State system. Students United’s platform calls for the elimination of online differential tuition at our institutions.
Another senate bill, SF 1977, would provide emergency assistance grants to college students. You can learn more about the program here. The funds in this program are allocated by the Office of Higher Education (OHE). Institutions apply for grant funds from the OHE, and then the funds are dispersed to students from the institution. Governor Walz has proposed a dramatic expansion of this program for the next biennium. The Governor recommends $825,000 for each year in the 2022-23 biennium to be allocated to the program. This dramatic expansion of aid would benefit students in our system greatly.
In the house, representatives are working on amending what constitutes a hunger-free campus in our state and the incentives for getting there. HF 1708 allows schools to apply for grants through OHE in order to fight hunger on our campuses and expands the program from MinnState colleges to MinnState universities and the University of Minnesota system.
Another piece of legislation working its way through the legislative process that Students United is supporting is HF 1493. Commonly known as the Student Borrowers Bill of Rights, the bill would enshrine protections for student borrowers into law in order to combat predatory and misleading lending. This is of the utmost importance as the student debt crisis in this country reaches a critical juncture. If you’d like to learn more about the bill check this story out.
One last piece of legislation that Students Untied has been tracking is, HF 14 or its companion bill, SF 22. This bill would provide a large line of funding to a broadband grant program known as the border-to-border grant program. While not directly related to higher education, this piece of legislation would provide an essential service to students that need it across Minnesota. The border-to-border grant program was established in 2014 and it provides broadband infrastructure to underserved populations. You can learn more about the program here.
In the current climate it is important that our representatives do not forget our higher education and the needs of our students. If you want to reach out to your legislators in support of any of the bills listed above, you can find them here. You can also reach out directly to our Advocacy Intern Zac Spohn with any questions.