On Tuesday, February 17, 2026, the Minnesota Legislature gaveled in and kicked off the 2026 legislative session. They met in an uncommon join session to memorialize the late Speaker Emerita, Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark following their murder last June. Legislators also honored Sen. John Hoffman (DFL-Champlin), who survived an assassination attempt that same evening and recognized the unexpected passing of Sen. Bruce Anderson last fall. No legislative committees met on the first day of session in recognition of the tribute to Rep. Hortman and Sen. Hoffman. 

The next day, however, legislative activity kicked off in full force with committees hearing reports from state agencies, 2025 legislative implementation updates, and recommendations from the governor related to his capital investment proposal. As the week progressed, two clear themes emerged as primary topics of discussion for 2026. Republican legislators continued their push for greater program integrity and fraud prevention with multiple bills to broadly address fraud in state programs. One approach is to create a new, independent Office of the Inspector General to oversee state run funding programs. At the same time, Democrats introduced and began holding hearings on nearly a dozen bills that would seek to prohibit certain immigration enforcement activities or create new forms of civil liability for federal agents in response to recent federal activities in Minnesota. 

These opposite approaches by Democrats and Republicans highlight the difficult political circumstances the 2026 session is taking place under. With all 201 legislators up for reelection in November, there is little incentive to cross party lines and compromise on any issues. These dynamics exist in nearly all budget and policy committees, which have led to fears of a highly unproductive session ahead. 

AASPMN’s priority legislation, SF 2209, is scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee in early March and will coincide with AASPMN’s Day at the Capitol event. 

Important Legislative Dates

Committee deadlines are as follows:

• Friday, March 27 at 5pm: Committees must act favorably on bills in both the house of origin and committees must act favorably on bills, or companions of bills, which met the first deadline in the other body.

• Friday, April 17 at 5pm: Committees must act favorably on major appropriation and finance bills, i.e. omnibus bills.

Legislative leaders also announced the schedule for legislative breaks, including: 

• The Eid break begins on Thursday, March 19 at 8am. The Legislature will resume activities on Friday, March 20 at 8am.

• The Easter/Passover break begins on March 27 at 5pm. The Legislature will resume activities on Tuesday, April 7 at 8am.The legislature must adjourn no later than midnight on May 18, 2026.