Committee deadlines have been set
The House and Senate released committee deadlines for the 2019 legislative session. The first deadline, Friday, March 15, is for committees to act favorably on bills in the house of origin. By March 29, committees must act favorably on bills, or companion bills, that met the first deadline in the other body. This is the second deadline. Appropriation and finance bills, the third bill deadline, must be approved by committee by April. 12.
As a reminder, the 2019 Easter/Passover break will begin Saturday, April 13, and go through Monday, April 22. Legislative activity will resume Tuesday, April 23.
House Education and Labor Committee announces new members
In Washington D.C. last week, the House Committee on Education and Labor held its first organizational meeting and announced committee and subcommittee members for the 116th Congress.
Under the leadership of committee Chairman, Bobby Scott (D-VA) the Democrats added a number of additional committee members, including Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, from Minnesota Congressional District 5.
Additionally, leaders of subcommittees were announced. For the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment, the Chair is Rep. Susan Davis (CA-53) and the Ranking Member is Rep. Lloyd Smucker (PA-11). Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, District 5, is also a member of this Subcommittee. A full list of committee and subcommittee members may be viewed HERE.
Minnesota State scheduled to present legislative requests this week
Minnesota State will share the system’s $246 million biennial budget request, as well as the system’s $150 million higher education asset preservation and replacement (HEAPR) request this week in committee.
Tomorrow, the House Capital Investment committee will hear from Minnesota State at 8:00 a.m. in room 10 of the State Office Building regarding the system’s 2019 bonding request, as well as an update on the 2017 and 2018 bonding projects and an update on asset preservation.
Later that day (see details below), the Senate Higher Education Finance and Policy committee will receive a presentation from Minnesota State regarding the system’s bonding needs.
On Wednesday afternoon (see details below), Minnesota State will be before the House Higher Education Finance and Policy committee to present the system’s biennial budget request.
The system’s $246 million request, includes $169 million to fund the campus inflationary costs at three percent. The investment will support the financial health of every campus, protect access and affordability, improve student success, reduce economic and racial disparities and help meet Minnesota’s critical need for talent.
The other components of Minnesota State’s budget request includes $37 million for critical technology replacement of the twenty year-old outdated ISRS data system. Across the state, the system processes more than 100,000 financial transactions each business day, as well as more than one million student logins that take place at the start of each semester. The system’s technology infrastructure is used daily by 400,000 people, including faculty, staff and students.
In order to strengthen access through tuition strategies and address the workforce opportunity gap, the remaining request includes $25 million for two new grant programs for students to help them advance and succeed. There is also $15 million in Minnesota State’s budget request to address the workforce gap through innovative career, technical, and professional programming serving business and industry. Funding will help strengthen and expand the K-12 career and technical pipeline and grow K-12 collaborative programming, and develop new teacher education pathways in career and technical education in support of K-12 and higher education programming.
Questions?
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