$776 million Legacy finance bill heads to Ways and Means Committee

In a time of tight budgets, the House Legacy Finance Committee found itself in an enviable position.

On Wednesday, the committee approved a budget proposal that would appropriate $776.12 million during the 2026-27 biennium from funds established through the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment.

“We're so lucky as a state to have these funds,” said Rep. Leon Lillie (DFL-North St. Paul). “You know as the budget tightens, let’s be clear. I mean, this stuff that was passed in this constitutional amendment would very easily be left on the sidelines. … So as a state, you know, to have the vision to pass this, you know, 15, 16 years ago or whatever to do it, put it on the ballot. It really showed a lot of vision.”

Sponsored by Rep. Samantha Vang (DFL-Brooklyn Center), a delete-all amendment to HF2563 was subsequently amended and amended again, before approval. Its next stop is the House Ways and Means Committee.

[MORE: Written testimony, fiscal spreadsheet]

“I was never a big Legacy guy to begin with,” said Rep. Joe McDonald (R-Delano), a committee co-chair with Vang. “I voted against it in 2008 and only voted for one Legacy bill of my 14 years here. I am now a believer of the great things that this Legacy money has done over the years and particularly this session.”

Since July 1, 2009, a constitutional amendment has raised the state sales tax by 0.375% and dedicated that additional revenue to four funds: 33% for the Clean Water Fund; 33% for the Outdoor Heritage Fund: 19.75% for the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund; and 14.25% for the Parks and Trails Fund.

Outdoor Heritage Fund

The Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council recommends $162.11 million to fund 51 projects throughout the state in fiscal year 2026.

Outdoor Heritage Fund dollars include: $77.65 million for habitats, $33.43 million for prairies, $29.03 million for wetlands, $19.96 million for forests and $2.04 million for administration.

Clean Water Fund

The Clean Water Fund would receive $144.63 million in fiscal year 2026 and $159.3 million in fiscal year 2027. Allocations include $139.34 million to the Board of Water and Soil Resources, $49.2 million to the Pollution Control Agency; $33.35 million to the Department of Agriculture, $30.14 million to the Department of Health, $28.8 million to the Department of Natural Resources, $16.54 million to the Public Facilities Authority, $4.15 million to the Metropolitan Council, and $2.4 million to the University of Minnesota.

Parks and Trails Fund

The Parks and Trails Fund would receive $130.17 million for fiscal years 2026-27. The DNR would receive $78.59 million and $51.32 million would go to the Met Council.

Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund

The Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund would receive $179.91 million for fiscal years 2026-27. This includes $85.46 million for the Minnesota State Arts Board, $38.51 million for the Minnesota Historical Society, $24.84 million for the Minnesota Humanities Council, $19.25 million for the Department of Administration, $6 million for the Department of Education; $2.35 million for the Minnesota Zoo, $2 million to Indian Affairs Council, and $1.5 million for the Department of Agriculture.

Policy changes

The bill’s policy changes would:

• require Clean Water Council recommendations submitted to the Legislature be broken out by fiscal year instead of a biennium total;
• require an arts and cultural heritage grant requestor to provide their most recent 990 tax form;
• prohibit arts and cultural heritage funds to be spent on capital construction costs. Historical site preservation, accessibility modifications, and exhibits and art installations that require construction costs would be allowed.

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The following are bills that have been incorporated in part or in whole into the omnibus Legacy finance bill:

• HF114 (Lillie)
• HF116 (Pérez-Vega)
• HF119 (Hussein)
• HF489 (Skraba)
• HF1019 (Skraba)
• HF1259 (Burkel)
• HF1281 (Johnson, P.)
• HF1328 (Igo)
• HF1386 (Long)
• HF1441 (Nash)
• HF1560 (Finke)
• HF1679 (Lillie)
• HF1797 (Hussein)
• HF2026 (McDonald)
• HF2209 (Agbaje)
• HF2321 (Frazier)
• HF2979 (Sencer-Mura)