March 14, 2023
The first committee deadline was last Friday with action required in at least one Chamber to keep policy bills alive for possible inclusion in committee omnibus bills. Deadline weeks are always a busy time of year at the Capitol, and that is especially true when lawmakers have introduced a record amount of individual bills. The culling process is well underway and the scramble to secure hearings on budget bills before the quickly approaching second deadline of March 24th can be felt in the halls of the Capitol.
EDAM’s top legislative priority, increasing the base funding for the Redevelopment Grant program at DEED, will be heard in both House and Senate Economic Development Committees on Wednesday this week, which will ensure we make second deadline in both House and Senate and position the proposal for possible inclusion in the committees’ eventual omnibus bills. We are very excited to have these hearings coincide with EDAM’s Day at the Capitol and are looking forward to seeing many of you in person tomorrow!
After the House passed the bipartisan bonding bill last week with 21 Republican votes, pressure is mounting on Senate Republicans to provide the necessary votes for the bonding bill to pass the Senate and go to the Governor’s desk to be signed into law. The bonding proposals, one general obligation bond bill and one general fund cash bill, both passed out of the Senate Finance Committee late last week and are now poised for a full Senate vote. Because of the supermajority required to pass a bonding bill the DFL majority will need to garner at least 7 votes from their Republican colleagues in order to pass the bill. That support has yet to materialize, but pressure is mounting and a vote on the Floor may be called to see if they are willing to vote down a bill with funding for many projects in Republican districts. Expect to hear plenty more about bonding in the coming weeks as this game of chicken comes to a head.