With Alicia Lane, Government Relations Director
8/29/2025 7:38:00 AM
[Video begins with the Commission’s logo. Scene changes to title screen, “2025 Legislative Wrapup”. Scene changes again to Alicia Lane standing in the right corner. The top left has Alicia’s PPT. PPT text: “2025 Legislative Wrapup, Alicia Lane, Government Relations Director.” Alicia begins to sign.]
>> Alicia: Hello! I’m Alicia Lane, government relations director for the Minnesota Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing.
Here’s a visual description: I’m a white Hispanic woman with dark hair pulled up. I’m wearing a black top and standing in front of a black background.
In this 2025 Legislative Wrapup, I will be giving brief summaries of what happened with legislators this session, the laws that were passed, and a status update on remaining items on the Commission’s legislative agenda.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Budget Forecast for FY202-2029
>Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: Every two years, Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) releases a budget and economic forecast for the next four years to help the governor and legislators plan the next budget. This covers fiscal years 2026 through 2029. MMB looks at many different factors, such as revenue trends, spending trends, inflation, how the economy is doing, and shifts in federal policies. This year, the budget forecast showed that in the short term, for the next two years, Minnesota still has a surplus, although it’s smaller. In the long term, however, the forecast showed that revenue and spending trends had shifted, meaning that the state was now at risk of running a deficit. The report from MMB pointed specifically at disability services and special education as “cost drivers.”With this challenging budget forecast, the governor and legislators had to make some hard decisions in adjusting the state’s budget.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “2025 Legislative Regular Session
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: The 2025 legislative regular session started January 14 and ran until May 19. Minnesota became the first state in history to begin a new session without a clear majority in either the House or the Senate. Why is this important? The majority party decides who will chair the committees and pick which bills are heard by each committee. The majority also decides who leads floor sessions where all legislators meet to vote, and which bills are brought to the floor. The majority is key.Without a majority, a power-sharing agreement had to be created instead. This impacts how quickly bills can move through the system.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Power-Sharing in Each Chamber
House
Senate
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: With the power-sharing agreements in the House and Senate, committees in both chambers had co-chairs – one Republican and one Democrat - for at least part of the session.
The House had a 67-67 split for most of the session, and a significantly delayed start due to a disagreement about quorum. Once it started, for most of the session, committee control alternated between the two chairs.
The Senate was split 34-34 at the beginning due to a DFL vacancy, and during that time, the committees had co-chairs. Once the vacancy was filled, the DFL gained a one-seat advantage and finished the session with majority control.
This generally meant that opportunities for advocates to help move bills forward in the House were significantly reduced, compared with the Senate.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “2025 Legislative Special Session
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: The 2025 regular session ended May 19 with much unfinished work, requiring a legislative special session. Before this special session, legislators set up temporary working groups to negotiate the remaining budget agreements. Much of this work happened during private discussions. Then the one-day special session was convened, and the remaining bills were passed. The special session adjourned on Tuesday, June 10, 2025.[Slide changes. PPT text: “Commission Overall Goals
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: The Commission’s overall goals during this challenging legislative session were to protect existing services, monitor for federal impacts, and to invest in policy work beyond legislation.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Commission Involvement Tiers
This year, heavy on T3 due to goal of protecting existing services.”
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: The Commission’s involvement with bills includes a fairly wide range of activities, so we created a tier system to help better convey our role.
Tier 1, or T1 for short, means we lead. This can mean we wrote a bill draft ourselves and brought it to a legislator. Or it can mean we saw that a legislator had an idea and introduced a bill, and we approached them with suggested amendments, and then became the sole organization advocating for a bill. Or, we may be the sole lead for a portion of a large bill with multiple portions being led by others. Being the lead is usually a time-consuming process because we support the chief author in gathering more support, bringing on testifiers, talking with legislative staff to make sure the bill is getting to the places it needs to be, and so on.
Tier 2, or T2 for short, means we are actively supporting. Another organization is leading, but we may be meeting with legislators, providing consultation, bringing on testifiers, writing letters of support, or attending hearings.
Tier 3, or T3, means we are monitoring and/or reporting on a bill because it is relevant to deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing Minnesotans.
In progress means that we’re working on an issue but no bill has been introduced yet.
This year, we saw a lot of T3 bills because of our goal to protect existing services. Bills for existing services tend to be led by the government relations or legislative affairs liaisons for those services.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Advocacy
Service Dog Trainers (T2, Law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the Advocacy category, we successfully advocated for a new service dog trainers law that enables trainers to train service or assistance dogs in a home environment without being penalized by landlords or homeowner associations. Another organization was already leading this bill, making this a Tier 2 bill, and we joined forces to include DeafBlind owners, educate a wider network of stakeholders, and garner more support.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Aging
Healthy Aging Subcabinet (T2, Inactive)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the Aging category, we engaged with the chief author of the Healthy Aging Subcabinet bill (T2) beginning last year and gave a presentation to a legislative task force on aging. Our recommendations were incorporated into the task force’s report, and the bill was created based on that report. This bill would have established a cabinet to provide centralized multisector guidance on aging, including community strategies to prevent, delay, or adapt to disability. Though this bill did not pass and is now inactive, MMB agreed to develop a healthy aging plan by April 1, 2027.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Communication Access
IEP Process Accommodations for Parents (T2, Law)
State Services Grants for Interpreter Development (T3, Law)
Always-On Captioning in Public Places Statute Clarification (in progress)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the Communication Access category, first is the IEP process accommodations for parents. This new law, with Tier 2 involvement from us, adds disability to a district’s language access plan, to ensure families with a disability can meaningfully participate in their child’s individualized education program (IEP) process.
Second is maintaining current funding levels for State Services grants for interpreter development. This was enacted into law with Tier 3 monitoring by us. An increase is needed, but the governor did not include this in his proposed budget.
Last is an issue that is in progress, to clarify that captioning in public places needs to always be on. We had meetings and gathered information for a potential policy bill.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Education (1 of 3)
READ Act DDBHH Recommendations (T1, Law)
Metro Deaf School Birth-3 Early Learning Funding Renewal (T1, inactive)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: As usual, education is a large category for us, and this is slide 1 of 3.
First up is the new READ Act Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing recommendations enacted into law. We led these provisions as part of a larger bill. Last year, a working group met to develop recommendations for making the READ Act inclusive of deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing students. The READ Act was initially enacted in 2023 with the goal of pulling up overall literacy levels in Minnesota schools, and some of the original language was heavily audio-centric. We successfully identified more instances of “oral language” and expanded them to “expressive or receptive language.” This is just a start. More amendments are planned based on the working group’s recommendations.
Next is the funding renewal for Metro Deaf School (MDS) Birth-3 Early Learning program. We led this as a T1 bill with the goal to secure a grant of $150,000 per year. This was a very difficult budget climate with special education being one of the biggest targets for spending cuts. Though legislators chose not to renew this grant, MDS has a waiting list for this program and has secured donations to cover part of the cost. They are also seeking additional grants elsewhere with the intention of remaining operational.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Education (2 of 3)
Master's Degree Tax Credit for Deaf/HH Education (T1, Inactive)
Adult Basic Education Rate Increase (T2, Inactive)
IDEA Complaint Process (T2, Law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: We are now on education slide 2 of 3.
First is the master’s degree tax credit for Deaf/Hard of Hearing Education, a Tier 1 bill that we led to add Deaf Education to the list of teacher licensure fields that qualify for a tax credit of up to $2,500 towards a master’s degree. Once again, in this difficult budget climate, legislators chose not to pass this.
Next is the Adult Basic Education rate increase, which we lent T2 support. The goal was to increase rates paid to adult basic education providers such as ThinkSelf. This bill did not pass, but current rates were preserved.
For the IDEA complaint process provisions, which received T2 support from us, a new state process was signed into law for filing a complaint if a provider is believed to have violated Part B or Part C of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Education (3 of 3)
Minnesota State Academies Funding (T3, Law)
Minnesota State Academies Bonding Requests (T3, law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: Here’s slide 3 of 3 in the Education category.
We closely monitored (T3) the funding levels for the Minnesota State Academies. They received a $2.2 million, or 6%, increase for the MSA’s FY25-26 operating expenses. Again, in this difficult budget climate, this was welcome news. They also received some of their bonding request for asset preservation - $1 million. This was a bit lower than their original ask of $1.227 million, plus they did not receive funding for pre-designs for a new student center or replacement of their therapy pool.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Education, in Progress
Held planning meetings, gathered information for future bills:
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: We also have a couple of education items in progress.
We held planning meetings and gathered information for future bills related to, first, requiring emergency plans on the form for a student's IEP. If student is deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing, this is where the IEP would describe what needs to be done in an emergency. The second bill would specify that the Minnesota Department of Education require child count reports on all disability categories. Right now, MDE requires counts only of a student’s primary disability, which means students who do not have deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing listed as their primary disability are not included in the statewide counts of deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing students.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Special Education Cuts
Special education transportation (T3, Law)
School support personnel aid (T3, Law)
Blue Ribbon Commission (T3, Law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: Before we move on to the next category, I want to share some updates on special education cuts.
We monitored (T3) all these due to their relevance to deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing students. When state funds are cut in special education, districts are still required to provide each student with a free and appropriate public education (FAPE), so that means they will need to get the money elsewhere. But districts may also shift policies to reduce special education expenses, so we urge families of those students to be alert for any service or placement changes.
First, legislators decided to reduce the reimbursement for special education transportation. This means districts will get less money for transporting special education students. We anticipate this may impact placement decisions.
State aid for school support personnel was also cut. We are still investigating the potential impacts. Right now, we think this cut would primarily affect students in general education (mainstream) settings.
Legislators feel still more cuts are needed, so they decided to set up a Blue Ribbon Commission on Special Education. “Blue ribbon” typically means a group attempts to bring in top experts in related fields. This commission would create an action plan for increasing efficiencies and reducing expenses in special education while still providing each student with FAPE as required by federal law.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Employment
Vocational Rehabilitation Services Funding (T3, Law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the employment category, we closely monitored vocational rehabilitation services funding. Legislators moved VR services to a different fund and increased the amount by $5 million per year. This increase will help maintain current service levels as the agency recovers from recent shortfalls.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Government (1 of 2)
Central Accommodations Fund (T2, Law)
Commission Funding (T3, Law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: This is slide 1 of 2 for the government category.
We lent T2 support to maintain current funding levels for the Central Accommodations Fund, which pays up to 50% of the cost of accommodations for state employees with disabilities. An increase is needed, but the governor did not include it in his proposed budget.
We also monitored (T3) to ensure our own funding would remain at current levels.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Government (2 of 2)
Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing State Services Grants Funding (T2, Law)
LCC Accessibility Funding (T3, Law)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In slide 2 of 2 of the government category, we start with the Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing State Services Grants funding which addresses needs such as DeafBlind services, interpreter training, technology access, and family mentor services. We lent T2 support in urging an increase, but the governor did not include the increase in his proposed budget and instead maintained current funding levels.
We also monitored (T3) funding levels for the Legislative Coordinating Commission (LCC), which is responsible for providing accommodations for members of the public to access the legislative process. The LCC’s funding was maintained at current levels.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Government, in Progress
Potential Federal Impacts Preparation
Fraud Prevention Accountability for Preserving Service Access and Quality
Artificial Intelligence Appropriate Usage
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the government category, we are also watching several in-progress issues that have not yet arisen in specific bills. For example, we expect preparation for potential federal impacts once the federal budget is finalized this fall. If federal grant cuts are significant enough, state legislators may have another special session at that time.
Legislators this session spoke often on fraud prevention, and we are monitoring for opportunities to ensure accountability for maintaining service access and quality. We request that you, as community members or our partners, help us by letting us know of any problems with getting services due to new fraud prevention rules.
Likewise, we ask for your support in alerting us to any use of artificial intelligence that is harmful to deaf, deafblind, or hard-of-hearing Minnesotans.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Healthcare
Prescription Container Accessible Labels Report Recommendations (in progress)
Telehealth Accessibility Monitoring (in progress)”
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the healthcare category, we reviewed reports from the Minnesota Department of Health with recommendations related to the accessible prescription labels law passed last year. We are investigating whether to pursue further legislation.
We are also monitoring telehealth accessibility and exploring ways to improve this access.
[Slide changes. PPT text: “Hearing Technology
Hearing Aid Reimbursement Policy Improvements (in progress)
Alicia continues.]
>> Alicia: In the hearing technology category, we have received multiple reports of high out-of-pocket costs for hearing aids and are gathering information on potential improvements for hearing aid reimbursement policy.
That concludes our 2025 legislative wrapup. This year was eventful and challenging in many ways for Minnesota legislators and everybody who works with them. We thank you for your support as we and your legislators attempt to navigate those difficult times to make our state an even better place for deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing Minnesotans.
[Video changes to ending credits.
Featuring Alicia Lane, Government Relations Director. The Minnesota Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing thanks:
Daisy Jo Shuda for voiceover.
Keystone Interpreting Solutions for film production.”
Video ends.]
