House, Senate give green light to Legacy funding agreement

The conference committee report for the omnibus went from conferee approval to a trip to the governor’s office in less time than many folks may have spent on their boat on a sun-soaked Sunday.

The Legacy Amendment increases the state sales tax by three-eighths of 1% from July 1, 2009 until 2034. That additional revenue is dedicated 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.

Rep. Samantha Vang (DFL-Brooklyn Center) sponsors HF2563. A conference committee walked through the $776.9 million omnibus legacy bill mid-afternoon, before being passed 113-21 by the House and 37-30 by the Senate before sunset. It now awaits action by Gov. Tim Walz.

“Not everyone is going to be happy,” said Rep. Joe McDonald (R-Delano), who co-chairs  the House Legacy Finance Committee with Vang. “Unfortunately, not everybody got everything that they wanted. There was winners and losers and that’s what happens in the Legislature. Compromise, especially with the tie that we have.”

Sen. Found Hawj (DFL-St. Paul), the Senate sponsor, agrees “The bill, as I see now, is better than how it left the Senate floor. I know it’s not a perfect bill to individual liking.”

The package would allocate $162.11 million to the Outdoor Heritage Fund for 51 projects in fiscal year 2026 and $303.93 million to the Clean Water Fund, $130.17 million to the Parks and Trails Fund and $179.91 million to the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund for fiscal years 2026-27.

[MORE: Download the spreadsheet]

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. The Board of Water and Soil Resources would receive the biggest chunk of the Clean Water Fund allocation at $139.34 million, including $88.1 million for watersheds.

[MORE: House passes $777 million omnibus Legacy finance bill]