The Minnesota House and Senate have moved into the final phase of the legislative process. No new bills can be introduced, and most bills that have not yet been passed are now being folded into omnibus bills. Omnibus bills, which combine multiple policy and budget bills into a single bill, are now being voted on by the House and Senate, and/or being modified by conference committees before receiving a floor vote to approve final passage. If a bill is rejected by either body on the floor, it may be returned to the conference committee for more changes before advocates seek a second vote. After passage by the House and Senate, a bill must be signed and made law by the Governor, left unsigned (in which case it becomes law), or vetoed after three days, in which case the legislature may override the veto by a two-thirds vote.
CACSW takes a deeper dive into these and other state and national legislative developments below. To stay abreast of child welfare legislation, check out our regularly updated Bill Tracker. (Note: the inclusion of bills does not indicate a position for or against a particular policy.)
If you don’t see a news item or bill listed that you think should be, please contact Matthew Dooley, Outreach Graduate Assistant, at [email protected].