First Bills of 2019 Introduced.  It's that time of year again when the first set of bills are introduced in the House and Senate.  31 bills were introduced in the House on Thursday and 91 were introduced in the Senate.  One new wrinkle in the House this year is that all funding bills will first be referred to the Ways and Means Committee from which they will be re-referred to the appropriate budget divisions within the Ways and Means structure.  This change raised a few complaints on the first day of session when the House rules were being debated, as the minority believes the new method of bill referral will be less transparent than the practice of previous years when the budget bills were referred to the funding division or committee directly after introduction.  I don't know if this makes the process less transparent, but the possibility exists that an introduction later in the session could be slowed down by the need for an extra referral.  We'll just have to see how it plays out.

With no further adieu, here are the education-related bill introductions with the link to the bill language embedded in the file number:

Senate

SF 7--Nelson--Increases school safety revenue with greater flexibility

SF 14--Wiger--Requires students to take a nationally-normed college entrance test as a requirement for graduation.

SF 15--Goggin--Requires school districts to provide certain access to career options in the military, skilled trades, and manufacturing.

SF 17--Cwodzinski--Requires students take a government and citizenship course in order to graduate.

SF 19--Cwodzinski--Requires students take a personal finance course in order to graduate.

SF 24--Wiger--Increases basic formula by 3% in each year of the coming biennium and additionally ties formula growth to inflation.

SF 25--Wiger--Allows school districts to bond for certain security equipment.

SF 26--Wiger--Increases EL formula (basically doubles formula amount).

SF 27--Wiger--Expands access to innovation zone pilot program.

SF 28--Wiger--Requires school districts to pay cost of college entrance examination for all 11th and 12th grade students.

SF 29--Wiger--Increases equalizing factor for local option revenue program.  No amount designated in bill.

SF 30--Wiger--Increases equalizing factor for operating referenda.  No amount designated in bill.

SF 31--Wiger--Increases equalizing factor for debt service program.  No amount designated in bill.

SF 32--Wiger--Allows districts to use long term facilities maintenance revenue for building modifications that improve school safety.

SF 33--Wiger--Requires assessment for learning readiness for children entering kindergarten.

SF 37--Wiger--Appropriates money for full-service community schools.

SF 49--Wiger--Provides a digital student achievement backpack.

SF 50--Wiger--Proposes $230,000,000 in bonding for school facility safety improvements.

SF 55--Wiger--Increases special education funding and makes changes to special education formula.

SF 81--Wiger--Establishes a Minnesota Reads task force to review literacy programs for children and adults.

House

HF 2--Edelson--Increases revenue for school-linked mental health services, support our students grant program, collaborative urban educator program, full-service community schools, and homework starts at home program.

HF 19--Erickson--Modifies world's best workforce measurements and reports.

HF 20--Erickson--Renumbers statutes for intermediate school districts.

HF 21--Erickson--Surveys teacher preparation programs.

HF 22--Erickson--Modifies student testing provisions.

HF 23--Erickson--Codifies teacher code of ethics in statute and repeals related rule.