Today marks the end of the fifth week of the 2021 regular session. Legislative activity was focused on committee work this week. Committees continued to hear presentations from various state department officials and took action on legislative priorities.
Today marks the end of the fifth week of the 2021 regular session. Legislative activity was focused on committee work this week. Committees continued to hear presentations from various state department officials and took action on legislative priorities.
Committee Deadlines
The leadership for the House and Senate have announced the committee deadlines for the 2021 legislative session. There is no deadline for the introduction of bills; however, each year the legislature establishes deadlines for committee action on bills.
- The first committee deadline is Friday, March 12. This deadline is for committees to act favorably on bills in the chamber of origin.
- The second committee deadline is Friday, March 19. This deadline is for committees to act favorably on bills or companion bills that met the first deadline in the other chamber.
- The third committee deadline is Friday, April 9. This deadline is for committees to act favorably on major appropriation or finance bills.
This third deadline is the most relevant to the University of Minnesota, since our biennial budget appropriation will be included in an omnibus higher education finance bill. A bill that doesn’t meet the deadlines can always reappear in an omnibus bill later in session, but that is a limited occurrence.
The deadlines do not apply to the House or Senate capital investment (or bonding) committees, the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee, the House or Senate taxes committees, and the House or Senate rules and legislative administration committees.
The spring recess will begin at the end of the day on Friday, March 26, and go through Monday, April 5. Legislative activity may resume at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 6.