On Thursday, the Senate Veterans and Military Affairs committee held a hearing on Sen. Bruce Anderson’s SF 2358, the Veterans and Military Affairs finance and policy bill. It was approved by the committee and re-referred to the Finance committee. The bill is expected to be combined with the State Government Finance omnibus bill.

The first part of the bill provides agency funding for MDVA and Military Affairs. It funds MDVA at its base level, but does not include operating adjustment funding for the Programs and Services division, State Veterans Cemeteries and the Minnesota Service C.O.R.E. program administered by Lutheran Social Services. 

The bill also provides refurbishment funding for the Armed Forces Service Center at the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport so that they can purchase new furniture and beds as they move to a bigger space at Terminal 1. The final piece of funding is for the Medal of Honor Memorial that will be built on the Capitol Complex.

There are three new Veterans appreciation days established in the bill. POW/MIA Day would take place each year on the third Friday in September. Veterans Suicide Awareness Day would take place the first Saturday in every October moving forward. Finally, American Allies Day would take place on June 30 each year.

The bill also authorizes a change to the World War I plaque in the Court of Honor in the Capitol Complex. The change seeks to honor all Minnesota Veterans who have served during The Great War at home and abroad. There would be no cost to the state to make this change as it would be funded privately.

Finally, the last piece of the bill clarifies the duties of the commissioner to implement the programs of MDVA, Programs and Services, and the Minnesota Veterans Homes. This is solely a technical change.