Office of School Trust Lands Accomplishments Report (2023)
This report highlights OSTL's significant accomplishments over the past year.
Asset Management Plan - Phase One (2023)
Phase One of the first-ever Asset Management Plan includes foundational information about school trust lands and how they are managed, recommended systems to improve strategic decision making and facilitate robust management, a situational and risk analysis, and a series of recommendations to successfully complete the plan.
The latest infographic from the Office of School Trust Lands displaying ten years of revenue distribution, ten-year growth of the Permanent School Fund, and other fun facts and figures.
This report analyzes carbon sequestration opportunities on school trust lands, and concludes that they have the potential to substantially increase forest carbon sequestration and provide forest carbon revenue for the Permanent School Fund.
Office of School Trust Lands Five Year Accomplishments Report (2020)
This report highlights OSTL's significant accomplishments and their impacts over the past five years.
School Trust Land Management and Oversight (2020)
This report by the Office of the Legislative Auditor asked the following questions:
The report recommends that DNR develop a comprehensive set of measures to help assess the management of school trust lands and the revenue they generate, and the Legislature compensate the Permanent School Fund for instances in which state policies or legislative actions have prohibited school trust lands from generating revenue. A number of statutory changes and clarifications are also recommended.
Minnesota Management and Budget Permanent School Fund Report to the Legislature (2020)
This annual report to the legislature details the amount of the permanent school fund transfer and information about the investment of the permanent school fund provided by the State Board of Investment.
DNR School Trust Lands Management (2019)
This document describes the guiding principles that inform DNR’s management of school trust lands, explains how DNR implements the statutory goal of the Permanent School Fund and outlines the procedures DNR utilizes when clarifying guidance is needed to achieve consistent natural resource management on school trust lands.
Asset Management Plan FAQ (2019)
This document answers frequently asked questions about the current school trust lands asset management plan project.
Asset Management Plan White Paper (2019)
This paper serves as an introduction to the development of an asset management plan for school trust lands. It explains the purpose of a plan, the processes and considerations that go into its development, and discusses the plan's construction, adoption, and implementation.
Minnesota State Board of Investment Permanent School Fund Report (2019)
This annual report details the Permanent School Fund’s investment objectives and management, asset allocation, and investment performance.
This Management Analysis and Development (MAD) report researches how the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) assigns and recovers its costs for managing school trust lands, examines uncompensated costs to DNR, offers detailed information on a variety of school trust land topics, and explores potential areas and recommendations for improvement.
School Trust Lands Funds and Accounts (2018)
This Management Analysis and Development (MAD) report researches how the state of Minnesota manages the flow of school trust revenues in state accounts before the revenues are transferred to the Permanent School Fund for investment, and offers recommendations to increase transparency, efficiency, and fiduciary duty to trust beneficiaries.
Minnesota School Trust Lands Strategic Plan (2018)
This first-ever strategic plan for Minnesota's school trust lands identifies strategic goals, strategies, and planned actions, and serves as the Office of School Trust Lands' strategic vision from 2018 to 2028.
Minnesota's School Trust Lands Valuation Report (2017)
This MN DNR report provides an update on the proposed compensation plan for DNR to compensate the Permanent Schoo Fund for the prohibition or restriction of revenue generation in four types of natural resource designations on Minnesota’s School Trust Lands.
Minnesota Fuels for Schools Concept Paper (2017)
This report explores utilizing low-grade wood from Minnesota school trust lands to heat public schools in northeastern Minnesota. The objectives of this program are to lower and stabilize energy costs for schools converting to modern biomass heating systems, retain local wealth, and support local jobs in the forest products industry.
This Management Analysisinne & Development (MAD) study for the Office of School Trust Lands explores the costs of forest certification to the trust, the impacts of forest certification on prices paid for school trust timber, and the need for certified timber from the trust to meet the demands from customers of Minnesota’s primary forest products industry.
Minnesota's School Trust Lands Valuation Report (2016)
This MN DNR report provides information on the valuation methodology, sampling and actual valuations carried out by the DNR to compensate for the prohibition or restriction of revenue generation in four types of natural resource designations on Minnesota’s School Trust Lands.
Minnesota DNR Forest Management Evaluation Report (2014)
This report by the Office of the Legislative Auditor analyzed DNR’s overall forest management. It discusses how changes to management practices on school trust land could affect timber sale on other DNR-administered forest land and how emphasizing economic returns on school trust land might make it difficult for the state to reach other forest management goals. The report did not evaluate the degree to which DNR is fulfilling its fiduciary responsibility with regard to school trust land.
Minnesota DNR School Trust Fund Risk Assessment Internal Audit Closure Report
This internal audit reviewed risks related to school trust land financial and land management activities. In particular, the audit reviewed risks related to compliance with statute and agency policy, forest certification, and funding the operational expenses of trust management.
Minnesota Forest Resources Council (MFRC) Voluntary Site-Level Forest Management Guidelines (2012)
This publication addresses Minnesota's timber harvesting and forest management guidelines including the management, use, and protection of historic and cultural resources, riparian areas, soil productivity, water quality and wetlands, wildlife habitat, and visual quality. These guidelines are used to ensure that forest management on school trust lands are conducted according to sound natural resource management and conservation principles.
The Permanent School Fund - Background and Issues (2001)
This paper from the MN House of Representatives Fiscal Analysis Department provides background information and examines a number of issues involving the Permanent School Fund,
Minnesota School Trust Land: A Program Evaluation Report (1998)
This report by the Office of the Legislative Auditor asked the following questions:
School Trust Land Management Report (1983)
This report from the DNR Office of Planning provides an overview of school trust land legal authorities and historical administration, description and distribution of the lands, administration and management of the lands, planning activities, and major issues, actions, and needs for further study.
The Public Lands and School Fund of Minnesota (1911)
This is a published address by the Honorable Samuel G. Iverson to the Minnesota House of Representatives on February 13, 1911.
Minnesota DNR School Trust Lands Reports
Includes biannual and biennial reports, forestry cost certification reports, and other DNR-produced school trust lands reports through 2019.
State Trust Lands in the West: Fiduciary Duty in a Changing Landscape (2016)
Prepared by Western Lands and Communities, (a joint program of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and the Sonoran Institute) this report presents specific examples of initiatives and trends to help land managers fulfill their multiple trust responsibilities while producing larger, more reliable revenues for trust beneficiaries, accommodating public interests and concerns, and enhancing the overall decision-making environment for trust management.
Investment Management Concepts (2016)
This publication by RVK Consulting discusses the ideal input to gauge intergenerational equity: asset valuations, total return expectations, yield expectations, inflation expectations, governance, and investment flexibility.
Principles of State Trust Portfolio Management (2016)
This Western States Land Commissioners Association (WSLCA) publication provides an understanding of state trust asset portfolios, and identifies a set of tools for managing portfolios in support of increasing returns for trust beneficiaries and reducing financial risks over an intergenerational timeframe. A Power Point presentation summarizing the findings can be found here .
Conserving State Trust Lands: Strategies for the Intermountain West (2015)
This Lincoln Institute of Land Policy report examines mechanisms and strategies to satisfy both the fiduciary mandate of the trust and the goals of conservation. Tools and concepts, such as conservation sales and leases through outright fee-simple purchases or through acquisition of easements; contributory value and nonmonetary value; ecosystems services markets; and land tenure and exchange are presented and critiqued. The authors offer recommendations to improve the function of these tools and strategies.
A Magnificent Endowment: America’s School Trust Lands (2013)
This “School Trust Lands 101” publication was produced by Project LEARN at the Center for the School of the Future at Utah State University. Project LEARN is a collaborative effort with the Children’s Land Alliance Supporting Schools (CLASS). It seeks to educate and support decision-makers regarding the effective management and use of School Trust Lands, funds, and distributions.
State Trust Lands: Static Management and Shifting Value Perspectives (2011)
This Article examines recent litigation over state trust land management and discusses the implications of these decisions for future management of the trust lands. It provides a brief history of the state trust lands, including the evolution of enabling act requirements, and looks at the specific requirements in the Arizona–New Mexico Enabling Act because the Supreme Court relied on this statute to establish a federal trust in state trust lands. It also examines the nature of the trust formed by these requirements, and includes a discussion of the role of trustees, beneficiaries, and the trust corpus.
Public Schools and the Original Federal Land Grant Program (2011)
This background paper from the Center on Education Policy (CEP) examines the origins, history, and evolution of federal land grants for public schools, as well as their significance as an early example of the federal role in education.
The title of this study says it all.
Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act (2006)
Drafted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, this document provides modern articulations of the prudence standards for the management and investment of charitable funds and for endowment spending.
Trust Lands in the American West: A Legal Overview and Policy Assessment (2005)
This Lincoln Insitute of Land Policy/Sonoran Institute Joint Venture on State Trust Lands Report provides a comprehensive history of trust land grants, detailed information and trust and trust responsibilities, state-by-state trust lands management comparisons, and an analysis of opportunities for improving trust lands management.
Changing the Focus: Managing State Trust Lands in the Twenty-First Century (1999)
This article explores some of the creative management techniques or strategies that a number of states are currently employing to better manage school trust lands. Additionally, it analyzes some of the new philosophies emerging from ecosystem and stewardship management theories in order to illustrate what principles are motivating states to explore new management solutions.
The Federally Granted Trusts: What Makes Them Unique (1999)
Prepared by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, this report discusses the history of federally-granted trust lands, trust lands compared to other public lands, and trustees' fiduciary obligations.
This article examines the history and elution of the modern school trust land doctrine and suggests four means by which states, despite the obligation to maximize revenues, can, and in some instances are required to, incorporate conservation and preservation goals into the management of school lands.
National Association of State Trust Lands Conference Presentations (2016-21)
All agendas and presentations from the association's annual summer and winter conferences dating to 2016 can be found here.
Minnesota School Trust Lands Overview (updated 2024)
This interactive (GIS) map shows all Minnesota school trust land parcels (surface and mineral estate).
Federal Purchase of School Trust Lands in the BWCAW (2024)
This printable (PDF) map shows all school trust purchase candidate parcels in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
Minnesota School Trust Lands - Permanent School Fund Distributions (2023)
This interactive (GIS) map shows 2023-24 Permanent School Fund distributions to each Minnesota school district and charter school.
Minnesota Department of Education - Public School Districts (2022)
This printable (PDF) map shows the location of all 329 Minnesota Public School Districts.
Minnesota School Trust Lands Overview (2021)
This printable (PDF) map shows all Minnesota school trust land parcels (surface and mineral estate).
Minnesota School Trust Mineral Assets (2017)
This printable (PDF) map shows active ferrous, nonferrous and industrial mineral leases, terminated mineral leases, and highest and best school trust mineral parcels.
Minnesota School Trust Forestry Assets (2017)
This printable (PDF) map shows school trust forestry assets within 50 miles of primary forest products industry facilities. It also indicates forest cover types for aspen, black spruce, and pine, and highest and best use school trust forestry parcels.
Minnesota School Trust Parcels Larger than 650 Acres (2017)
This printable (PDF) map highlights all school trust parcels with contiguous areas larger than 650 acres.
Minnesota School Trust Metro Area Parcels (2017)
This printable (PDF) map shows all school trust parcels in the ten county Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area.
MN IT Services - Geospatial Information Office School District Maps
View and download GIS and PDF statewide and individual school district maps.
