Just before midnight on Sunday, May 17, lawmakers completed their work for the biennium, passing a stabilization package for Minnesota’s largest safety-net hospital, approving a $1.2 billion borrowing package, and updating Minnesota’s tax code. Absent an unlikely special session convened by Gov. Tim Walz, lawmakers will not resume legislative work until Jan. 12, 2027.

The results for Minnesota Farmers Union’s grassroots priorities this session were mixed, leaving significant work to a new group of legislators who will be elected on Nov. 3. That said, a deal on anything could not be taken for granted with an historically divided legislature. And Minnesotans—including MFU members—will undoubtedly be better for leaders’ work to come together around urgent needs.

A headline for agriculture was Senate Agriculture Chair Aric Putnam’s, DFL-SD14, work to lift the cap on total state funding for Minnesota’s Beginning Farmer Tax Credit (BFTC). The legislature expanded the credit in 2023—increasing the max credit for sales $50,000 and allowing family members to participate for sale of land—but lowered the overall amount of money available to go out in credits. This resulted in a significant portion of applicants being turned away due to lack of funding.

For the the past three sessions, MFU members and staff made the case that beginning farmers need to be able to rely on the credit in negotiations, and the same for retiring farmers and others. A tool you can’t count on is less helpful. Together with 20 agriculture organizations, we made the case for lifting the cap.

“Lifting the cap as in your bill and helping more new farmers get on the land is a win not just for those families, but also our communities and state,” we wrote in a joint letter to the Senate Tax Committee. “Beginning farmers mean new commerce in rural communities, more money spent at main street, and new kids in schools.”

Senate Tax Chair Anne Rest, DFL-SD43, carried this provision into conference committee and ultimately the House agreed to a one-year change that will lift the cap only in 2026. While this win is qualified, it will give our organization the opportunity to build the case for a more long-term change to help new farmers achieve the dream of farm ownership. If you’re planning to use the credit—or if you’re hoping to sell your farm—please be in touch with the MFU legislative team.

This reflects the Special Order of Business delegates to MFU’s State Convention passed in November, calling on lawmakers to “Invest in the Next Generation of Farmers.”

The final tax deal also extended Minnesota’s tax credit for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

MFU Vice President Anne Schwagerl testified numerous times in support of this legislation, joining a broad coalition to champion the extension through multiple committee stops. Each time, she shared what this new value-added market could mean for her as a grain farmer. Schwagerl and her family are pioneers in growing winter camelina. This serves as a cover crop that protects her soil from wind and water erosion and it can also be marketed, crushed and refined for use in SAF.

“We feel this is a win-win-win opportunity—we’ve got a new market and are improving our farm,  we’re protecting our environment, and we’re helping lower the carbon intensity of a difficult-to-decarbonize sector of a transportation industry, helping meet our state’s climate goals,” Schwagerl said.

Unfortunately, a supplemental budget deal for agriculture did not clear the evenly divided House, a move that will result in consequences for programs serving beginning farmers and small meat processors. As we described in April, House Agriculture Co-Chair Rick Hansen, DFL-HD53B, committed his caucus to withholding their votes from any agriculture omnibus package that did not include a ban on paraquat, following public testimony from advocates and those living with Parkinson’s, a disease which studies link to its use.

A deal offered in both bodies and worked on by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture would have barred sale starting in 2028 and use in 2029. House Republicans would not agree to bring this ban to the floor and ultimately an agriculture omnibus bill did not advance in that body.

Putnam did lead both an agriculture finance and an agriculture omnibus through to passage in the Senate—you can read about those here and here. But without House action, neither will become law.

In an effort to advance some agriculture provisions, House Ag Committee Co-Chair Paul Anderson, R-12A, offered an amendment to an unrelated labor file that would have made a fix to Down Payment Assistance Grants, extended grants for small meat processor workforce development, and provided limited new funding to both Minnesota’s Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) program and the wolf and elk depredation account. Ultimately—and with a call to oppose from Hansen—the amendment failed with all DFLers and select GOPers voting ’no.’

Minnesota budgets on a biannual basis and is still operating under the agreement passed in 2025, so inaction on an agriculture omnibus won’t result in the agriculture department being shut down or limiting services. However, the lack of an agriculture omnibus could result in as much as a million dollars revolving back the general fund.

Last year, more than half of the money (around $800,000) allocated to the Down Payment Assistance program was returned to the general fund, because recipients couldn’t use the funding in the time allotted. A fix—negotiated between Anderson and Rep. Samantha Vang, DFL-38B,—would have added common-sense readiness requirements and extended the timeline, ensuring that the funding would get to as many as 40 new producers to help purchase their first farm.

Similarly, a proposal from Vang would have extended the appropriation for MDA’s Meat Processing Train and Retain grants, which MFU worked to establish in 2023. The grants, which are administered by regional economic development organizations, help people transition to new communities and establish careers in meat cutting. Unfortunately, the organizations are not through administering their grants, so a significant portion of the funding allocated to the program could be returned to the general fund if they do not complete their projects by June 30.

Legislators also missed the opportunity to reauthorize the Farmer-Lender Mediation (FLM) program and provide predictability to a program that helps farmers in bankruptcy or otherwise facing a lender who is enforcing a debt. Putnam carried the bill in the Senate, stated it as his top priority, and ushered it through the necessary committee stops. In the House, Rep. Andy Smith, DFL-25B, led the bill and Anderson made time to hear it early in session. The House bill did not advance through committee stops beyond Agriculture.

The Farmer-Lender Mediation (FLM) program expires in June 2027, so the legislature will need to act next session.

Similarly, and despite being part of the governor’s proposal and an early draft in the Senate, the legislature did not approve new bonding authority for Minnesota’s Rural Finance Authority (RFA), which offers low-interest loans to farmers facing financial distress, beginning farmers, and others. MFU President Gary Wertish, Executive Committee Chair Carol Anderson, and Mille Lacs County Treasurer Eric Sannerud have long served on the RFA Board and will be joined by Pine County President Hannah Bernhardt.

Funding is not predicted to run out until next year, so the legislature can act to prevent a shortfall when they return in January.

MFU worked to make the case for action on mediation and the Rural Finance Authority as a no-cost way the state could take action to address the economic challenges in farm country.

“While the federal government continues to create uncertainty, acting on these programs early next session will demonstrate Minnesota’s commitment to creating certainty and maintaining our part in the farm safety net,” Wertish wrote in a letter to the governor before session.

The bonding bill does include funding for $175 million for the University of Minnesota, including to revitalize their St. Paul Campus and continue to ensure they lead through their land grant mission. You can find a full list of bonding projects and search for the funded work in year area here.

Lawmakers also acted on select, relatively small updates to current policy. Those MFU supported include Sen. Rob Kupec, DFL-SD4, and Rep. Nathan Nelson’s, R-11B, bill to allow new farmers to participate in Minnesota’s Dairy Assistance, Investment, Relief Initiative (DAIRI) (SF3832; Session Law 54). Applications closed on April 9, but this law will ensure that new farmers who applied will still be eligible.

Second, Kupec and Anderson led bills to update Minnesota’s Veterinary Technician licensing (HF3718; Session Law 53), ensuring that the expanded scope of practice functions properly for veterinarians and farmers across the state.

Even beyond bonding, a budget deal couldn’t be taken for granted and the deal they did reach does important work for Minnesotans.

Lawmakers reached a deal to save Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) from closure. The hospital serves as the state’s largest public safety-net hospital and a level-one trauma center for patients across the upper Midwest and helps stabilize the hospitals across the state by taking on expensive and often uncompensated care. At MFU’s People’s Town Hall in Willmar, a flight nurse spoke up about her work to fly people with urgent injuries from rural areas for care at HCMC. And another at the Town Hall in Kittson County talked about how HCMC saved a family members’ life after they were flown to the hospital following a farm accident.

The deal provides an immediate $205 million cash infusion for the hospital and allows access to a $500 million reserve account for the next five years. It also invests $30 million in helping stabilize safety-net hospitals across the state.

While this work is important, it does not near address the current financial stress on our healthcare system, including from cuts to Medicaid, which largely go into effect next year.

Similarly, Minnesota counties got $75 million to assist with IT modernization. While this won’t nearly offset the cost of SNAP and Medicaid cuts, it will help counties implement new eligibility requirements. Outdated software—which hasn’t been updated since the era of the computer game Oregon Trail—has long put added stress and expense county budgets.

As many county commissioners have pointed out in the last year, new requirements and expenses pushed onto counties by H.R. 1 passed last July leave them with little choice but to raise property taxes on farmers, homeowners, and others.

The legislature also made new, additional investments in hunger assistance, including a new $5 million for food banks and $5 million for food shelves.

Finally, there were many other issues left on the table. This included relief for small businesses affected by ICE Metro Surge in the early months of the year.  MFU’s Mike Seifert helped share stories members shared at People’s Town Hall meetings this spring, building the case for action to help businesses, including those in greater Minnesota.

In all, the results for our legislative priorities were mixed. And as with so many issues, much of the reality facing Minnesotans is the result of federal action. That said, Minnesotans—including MFU members—will be better off for the deal reached by lawmakers and at a time when bipartisan action in a closely divided legislature cannot be taken for granted.

As always, if you have questions, thoughts or concerns, please reach out to Stu at stu@mfu.org or (320) 232-3047.