SAINT PAUL — The 2026 legislative session convenes on Feb. 17, 2026. While the AMSD Board recognizes that the biennial budget was adopted last legislative session, the reality is that inflation continues to outpace general education revenue, recent legislative changes have created instability in key funding streams, and some new programs and requirements adopted in recent years have been underfunded or not funded at all.
That background is the impetus behind the AMSD 2026 Legislative Platform approved last month. Identifying AMSD’s priorities is no casual matter. Each summer, the AMSD legislative committee begins the process by surveying AMSD Board Members and district staff asking them to share their highest priorities for the upcoming legislative session.
Based on that feedback, the legislative committee drafts a platform reflecting the priorities of our member school districts. In budget years, the platform focuses on funding school districts’ needs; and in alternating years, the focus is on policy priorities.
However, with school districts continuing to face budget challenges, the 2026 platform identifies both funding and policy priorities. Several factors have contributed to the challenging fiscal environment. The Safe Schools levy and Local Optional Revenue have been frozen for a decade, changes to the compensatory formula have created a funding cliff for many school districts, and the 2025 education bill included a contingent $250 million cut to special education cross-subsidy reduction aid.
The Minnesota Management and Budget Office reported in November that the state’s short-term fiscal outlook is positive with a projected surplus of $2.465 billion in the current biennium and budget reserves totaling $3.771 billion. However, the FY28-29 planning estimates project a structural imbalance of $2.960 billion. An updated forecast will be released at the end of February and that is the one the Governor and legislators will use to make any adjustments to the biennial budget.
Given the state’s uncertain fiscal position, AMSD has identified both immediate and ongoing priorities for consideration in the 2026 session.
Immediate Priorities
Enhancing School Safety. Ensuring safe learning environments is a perennial priority for AMSD member school districts. The AMSD Board updated its position paper on this important topic in November. The platform specifically calls on state policymakers to increase the Safe Schools levy to $100 per pupil for school districts and $35 per pupil for intermediate and cooperative districts. The Safe Schools levy has been frozen at the same level for over a decade. The platform also advocates for allowing limited removal time within non-exclusionary discipline, as well strengthening secure gun storage requirements.
Stabilizing Compensatory Funding. Recent changes to how the state calculates compensatory funding has created a funding cliff for many districts. The platform calls on legislators to hold school districts harmless from revenue losses resulting from the formula change until recommendations from the Compensatory Revenue Task Force can be implemented.
Reevaluating Minnesota’s Assessment System. AMSD urges the Governor and legislators to establish a blue-ribbon commission to redesign Minnesota’s assessment system, focusing on balanced, student-centered measures and explore replacing the high school MCAs with a nationally recognized college entrance exam. The platform also calls on legislators to provide greater flexibility with current hours-of-instruction requirements to include non-traditional learning opportunities.
Modernizing Permanent School Fund Distributions. AMSD supports a constitutional amendment to modernize distributions from the Permanent School Fund. Moving to a reliable and consistent allocation model would better allow school officials to budget and plan.
Ongoing Priorities
Stabilizing the education funding system is another perennial legislative priority for AMSD members. To that end, AMSD calls on legislators and the Governor to:
- Repeal the contingent $250 million cut to special education cross-subsidy reduction aid scheduled for the 2028–29 biennium.
- Increase Local Optional Revenue to $979 per pupil to restore purchasing power lost to inflation and index it to the general education formula.
- Strengthen the PSEO program to ensure financial stability, academic rigor, student support, and preparation for success after high school.
Likewise, reducing mandates and restoring local control remain high priorities. Specifically, AMSD supports: repealing the requirement that school boards negotiate e-learning days, student testing, and student-to-staff ratios; allowing school boards to renew a capital project levy at the existing rate following a public hearing, and providing a permanent funding for summer unemployment for nonlicensed staff, and for employer premiums and substitute staff costs associated with the Paid Leave program.
AMSD Board Members and staff stand ready to work with state policymakers to address these important issues in the 2026 legislative session.
Link: View the AMSD 2026 Legislative platform
