DIGGING DEEPER: House bill aims to help Minnesota schools facing financial problems

ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – Taxpayers in southeastern Minnestoa have collectively turned down thousands of dollars in per pupil spending increases, following four local failed referenda in 2024.

Byron, Dover-Eyota, Fillmore Central, and Cannon Falls are now facing difficult budget decisions and possible future cuts.

Over the past two years, leaders in St. Paul have imposed more than 65 new educational mandates, as some schools in the area are not receiving the funding they need for these from voters or state dollars.

Republican Representative Peggy Bennett of Albert Lea proposed a bill in late January to give school districts an opportunity to better their finances without seeking support from taxpayers.

Bennett said the bill could relieve school districts with options to postpone state mandates.

“If you talk to schools, they are crying out for relief right now,” Bennett said. “They can’t afford it right now, and we need to be focusing on important things like literacy when half of our kids can’t read at grade level in our state.”

Bennett felt schools' financial problems should not be falling on the back of taxpayers.

“Education should be funded fairly throughout the state, and you shouldn’t have one district that gets all this money because their property tax can afford it, and others can’t,” Bennett said.

Minnesota School Boards Association Executive Director Kirk Schneidawind said costs of future paid leave policies is one mandate schools will need to meet in 2026. He added the future mandate is lacking state funding to do so.

“We’re spending more time on the administrative side dealing with some of the new requirements that we didn’t have to two years ago,” Schneidawind said.

Albert Lea Area Schools Finance Director Paul Durbahn said the Freeborn County district has difficulties paying for employee summer unemployment.

“That mandate came out without appropriate funding,” Durbahn said. “That pool is going to run dry and it’s going to leave schools scrambling to figure out how to fund that.”

Durbahn mentioned another financial problem area the bill could help with is uplifting restrictions and requirements from the use of state dollars.

“You can’t always use each bucket to fund something else. They’re restricted to that one unique need. If the money set for curriculum, you can’t use that for teacher training,” Durbahn stated.

Bennett hopes this bill will make a change with many district financials hands tied.

“We’re not saying ‘repeal the mandates’,” Bennett said. “We’re saying allow school boards to postpone, as needed, the implementation. So they can do it right, and so they can afford it.”

Bennett said the bill has awaited, hoping for bipartisan votes, on the house register.

Many school districts across the state await the outcome of this year’s legislative session as the state potentially faces a $5 billion deficit in the future according to recent house forecasts.

Find stories like this and more, in our apps.