Hello from the State Capitol,
The 2026 session ended late Sunday night, and there are numerous accomplishments to share.
TAX RELIEF FOR MINNESOTANS
Minnesotans have felt the strain of rising costs and higher taxes for far too long, and many of the financial challenges families face today stem from decisions made by an all Democrat-led state government two years ago. That’s why I was pleased all sides came together to support $400 million in tax relief, including $125 million in property tax cuts and $250 million in car tab fee reductions.
FRAUD PREVENTION
Restoring accountability and protecting taxpayer dollars were major priorities this session, and lawmakers took important steps to crack down on fraud and abuse. A number of anti-fraud prevention measures were addressed this session, but the most important is the creation of an independent Office of the Inspector General (OIG), which is tasked with investigating state agencies, grant recipients, and contractors involved in fraud or other criminal misuse of public funds.
COUNTY TECHNOLOGY UPGRADES
For far too long, Minnesota counties have been stuck relying on outdated human services software that creates inefficiencies, wastes valuable staff time, and leaves our system vulnerable to fraud and abuse. Legislation approved this session will provide funding to modernize these systems, improving efficiency, reducing costly administrative burdens, strengthening security protections, and helping address issues related to error rates, eligibility verification, and new work requirements—making sure government works better for both county employees and the taxpayers they serve.
INCREASING SCHOOL FUNDING WITHOUT RAISING TAXES
Legislation was approved this session to strengthen long-term funding for schools without increasing taxes. The bill updates how Minnesota’s permanent school trust funds are managed and distributed, with the goal of providing more consistent and sustainable funding to school districts across the state. By adjusting how earnings from the fund are calculated and distributed, we can increase support for classrooms using existing resources rather than new taxes.
PROTECTING KIDS FROM SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION
This session, I authored a new law that requires verifiable parental consent for children under the age of 16 to have social media accounts. When consent is given, the social media account will have none of the addictive features like infinite scrolling and push notifications. This law will protect our kids online by removing additional features and empowering parents.
PAYMENT TRANSPARENCY ACT
I also carried the new Payment Transparency Act law. This proposal increases payment transparency on public construction projects for everyone on the job, and when subcontractors aren’t being paid on time, it gives them the information they need to use existing laws to change that. When a Minnesota subcontractor finishes their work on a public project, they shouldn’t have to guess when, or whether, they’ll be paid. This new law will fix that problem.