Breakthrough on Insulin Availability Bill.  In a positive sign that the Legislature is making progress on key issues that were high priorities entering the 2020 legislative session, the conference committee on the insulin availability bill came to agreement yesterday and it is expected that the entire Legislature will vote on the measure when it convenes again next Tuesday.  There were several bills the Legislature deemed necessary to pass this year and the insulin availability bill ranked high on that list, in the eyes of many second only to the bonding bill.  The reaction to COVID-19 has dramatically changed how the Legislature is conducting business and the fact that agreement was reached under these circumstances is clearly a positive sign that necessary items can--and likely will--be addressed as the Legislature continues its work.  

The Legislature must adjourn on Monday, May 19, and it will likely want to pass a bonding bill before it adjourns.  In addition, it will want to put its stamp on policies that have been covered by Governor Walz' Executive Orders.  Both the House and Senate have been working on sets of proposals dealing with education.  As I reported on Tuesday, the House held a remote hearing on its proposal that day and the Senate has also been working on a parallel set of initiatives.  The Senate has been dealing with all COVID-19-related discussions in a working group setting where individual committee chairs are brought into that process to cover issues related to their committees' jurisdiction.  The task force has yet to cover E-12 education issues, but I anticipate that will happen shortly.

Here is a link to the story on the agreement on insulin availability:  House, Senate expected to vote next week on insulin agreement