Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session

Minnesota Senate Bill SF3303 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1.1 A bill for an act
2	2	1.2 relating to education finance; creating an education empowerment account program;
3	3	1.3 requiring a report; appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
4	4	1.4 Statutes, chapter 124D.
5	5	1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
6	6	1.6 Section 1. [124D.0905] EDUCATION EMPOWERMENT ACCOUNTS FOR
7	7	1.7STUDENTS.
8	8	1.8 Subdivision 1.Definitions.(a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have
9	9	1.9the meanings given.
10	10	1.10 (b) "Available federal funds" means federal elementary and secondary aid paid to the
11	11	1.11state through a block grant or otherwise not required by federal law to be used for a specific
12	12	1.12purpose.
13	13	1.13 (c) "Eligible education expenses" include:
14	14	1.14 (1) tuition and fees;
15	15	1.15 (2) textbooks, curricular materials, and other instructional materials and supplies;
16	16	1.16 (3) registration fees for nationally standardized achievement tests, advanced placement
17	17	1.17and international baccalaureate tests, and any other examination related to postsecondary
18	18	1.18admission;
19	19	1.19 (4) educational therapies, including individualized observation and instruction to students
20	20	1.20who may be struggling in a specific academic subject area;
21	21	1Section 1.
22	22	25-04080 as introduced03/03/25 REVISOR CR/LJ
23	23	SENATE
24	24	STATE OF MINNESOTA
25	25	S.F. No. 3303NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
26	26	(SENATE AUTHORS: DRAZKOWSKI)
27	27	OFFICIAL STATUSD-PGDATE
28	28	Introduction and first reading04/07/2025
29	29	Referred to Education Finance 2.1 (5) pupil transportation services to and from school, unless transportation is provided
30	30	2.2under sections 123B.84 to 123B.87; and
31	31	2.3 (6) computer hardware, software, and connectivity devices and expenses necessary for
32	32	2.4a student to participate in an educational program.
33	33	2.5 (d) "Eligible student" means any student who resides in Minnesota and is eligible to
34	34	2.6enroll in a public school for prekindergarten through grade 12 programming.
35	35	2.7 (e) "Individual education empowerment account" means an education empowerment
36	36	2.8account established on behalf of an eligible student according to subdivision 4.
37	37	2.9 (f) "Participating student" means an eligible student who has enrolled in the education
38	38	2.10empowerment account program.
39	39	2.11 (g) "Postsecondary institution" means an eligible institution under section 124D.09,
40	40	2.12subdivision 3, paragraph (a).
41	41	2.13 (h) "Student education empowerment amount" means the statewide average general
42	42	2.14education revenue per pupil unit under section 126C.10.
43	43	2.15 Subd. 2. Education empowerment account program created.(a) An education
44	44	2.16empowerment account program is created.
45	45	2.17 (b) A student qualifies to participate in the program if the student is an eligible student
46	46	2.18under subdivision 1, paragraph (d).
47	47	2.19 (c) A parent must only use the money deposited in a participating student's education
48	48	2.20empowerment account for tuition and fees.
49	49	2.21 (d) Upon a participating student's graduation from high school, any money remaining
50	50	2.22in a participating student's individual education empowerment account may be applied to
51	51	2.23tuition and fees charged for courses taken from a postsecondary institution in the school
52	52	2.24year immediately following the year of graduation.
53	53	2.25 (e) If, at any time after the creation of a student's individual education empowerment
54	54	2.26account, the participating student re-enrolls in a Minnesota school district or charter school,
55	55	2.27the student's individual education empowerment account must be closed, and any remaining
56	56	2.28money in the student's individual education empowerment account must be returned to the
57	57	2.29state general fund.
58	58	2.30 Subd. 3.Individual education empowerment account funding.(a) The commissioner
59	59	2.31must create an individual education empowerment account for each participating student
60	60	2.32upon request of the student's parent.
61	61	2Section 1.
62	62	25-04080 as introduced03/03/25 REVISOR CR/LJ 3.1 (b) Each student's education empowerment amount equals the student education
63	63	3.2empowerment amount for that school year times grade-level weighting under section 126C.05
64	64	3.3for the eligible student's grade.
65	65	3.4 (c) On July 30 of each year, the amount determined under paragraph (b) is appropriated
66	66	3.5from the general fund to the commissioner for placement into each participating student's
67	67	3.6education empowerment account. The amount transferred to each account equals the product
68	68	3.7of the pupil's grade-level weighting for that year and the basic formula allowance for that
69	69	3.8year.
70	70	3.9 Subd. 4.Application information.(a) The commissioner must create an application
71	71	3.10form, ensure that the application is readily available to interested students and families, and
72	72	3.11post the form to the Department of Education's website. The commissioner must provide
73	73	3.12information to participating students and families explaining (1) the obligation of the parent
74	74	3.13to document the appropriate expenditure of account funds, and (2) the duties of the
75	75	3.14commissioner to oversee the spending of the funds. The information must also be made
76	76	3.15available on the department's website.
77	77	3.16 (b) By October 1 of each year, the commissioner shall annually notify all students who
78	78	3.17are eligible to participate in the education empowerment account program of the existence
79	79	3.18of the program.
80	80	3.19 Subd. 5.Special revenue fund; education empowerment account.(a) An account is
81	81	3.20established in the special revenue fund known as the "education empowerment account."
82	82	3.21 (b) Available federal funds must be deposited into the education empowerment account.
83	83	3.22If the commissioner estimates that the available federal funds are in excess of the amount
84	84	3.23necessary to fund the educational empowerment accounts, the remaining available funds
85	85	3.24may be used as otherwise provided by law.
86	86	3.25 (c) State funds appropriated for the education empowerment account must be transferred
87	87	3.26to the education empowerment account in the special revenue fund.
88	88	3.27 (d) Money in the account is annually appropriated to the commissioner for transfer into
89	89	3.28participating students' individual education empowerment accounts.
90	90	3.29 Subd. 6.Effect on nonpublic schools.Nothing in this section authorizes the Department
91	91	3.30of Education or any school district in this state to exercise any additional control or
92	92	3.31supervision, other than that set forth in this section, or to impose any additional requirements
93	93	3.32or restrictions, other than those set forth in this section, over any nonpublic school, nonpublic
94	94	3.33school student, or parent of any nonpublic school student.
95	95	3Section 1.
96	96	25-04080 as introduced03/03/25 REVISOR CR/LJ 4.1 EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment and
97	97	4.2applies to eligible students enrolling in an eligible school for the 2026-2027 school year
98	98	4.3and later.
99	99	4.4 Sec. 2. APPROPRIATIONS; EDUCATION EMPOWERMENT ACCOUNTS.
100	100	4.5 Subdivision 1.Department of Education.The sums indicated in this section are
101	101	4.6appropriated from the general fund to the Department of Education for the fiscal years
102	102	4.7designated.
103	103	4.8 Subd. 2.Development of education empowerment accounts.For development of
104	104	4.9education empowerment accounts under Minnesota Statutes, section 124D.0905:
105	105	2026............4.10 $
106	106	4.11 Subd. 3.Education empowerment accounts.(a) For transfer to the education
107	107	4.12empowerment account in the special revenue fund under Minnesota Statutes, section
108	108	4.13124D.0905, subdivision 5:
109	109	2027............4.14 $
110	110	4.15 (b) By March 15 of each year, the commissioner must annually estimate and report to
111	111	4.16the chairs and ranking minority members of the legislative committees with jurisdiction
112	112	4.17over education the state aid, when added to the available federal funds, necessary to fully
113	113	4.18fund the education empowerment account for the following school year.
114	114	4Sec. 2.
115	115	25-04080 as introduced03/03/25 REVISOR CR/LJ