June 6, 2025 update: The Governor has confirmed a Special Session is set for Monday at 10:00 AM, we assume the education policy bill will get voted on. It does not appear to include the problematic homeschooling amendment. 

May 29, 2025 update: The regular session of the Minnesota Legislature has adjourned, leaving significant work to be completed in a special session. A special session is unlikely to convene until early June at the earliest. If a budget agreement is not reached by July 1st, the government will face a shutdown. While there has been progress on various budget bills, there is currently no public information available regarding multiple bills, including education.

The K-12 Education Working Group convened last week to advance budget negotiations, reviewing the proposed policy changes put forth by the Education Policy Conference Committee for public preschool through high school programs. The bill did not include the homeschool provisions. 

The House website has established a page to track the working group documents, and meetings for these working groups are posted on the combined legislative schedule.

The K-12 Education Working Group is currently engaged in discussions to reach a consensus on an education bill. Once an agreement is achieved, they will draft a final version, which will then be presented during a special session to both the House and Senate for a vote. For the bill to be enacted into law, it must successfully pass through both chambers and receive the signature of Governor Walz.

What Can I Do?

Right now, pray. Our current action should focus on praying that the harmful restrictions on homeschooling are not included in the final education bill. 

May 22, 2025 update: The joint working group met to discuss several bills, including the Education Policy Bill. The language as currently being discussed does NOT include the problematic homeschool definition! However, it could get added back in so we are still encouraging vigilance. 

May 20, 2025 update: Although the Minnesota legislative session officially ended yesterday, the legislature failed to reach consensus on the education policy bill (which includes the bad homeschool language.) However, we expect that the governor will call a special session to deal with the budget and some of these other bills that did not reach resolution yet. We'll update once we know when that session will start. In the meantime, please keep praying!

May 16, 2025 update:  The House of Representatives officially removed the bad homeschool language from SF 1740 and then passed the bill! However, the Senate did not concur with these changes and so it will now go to conference committee. 

May 15, 2025 update: Now that Governor Walz and Legislative leaders have announced a bipartisan budget agreement, there is a good chance that both the Education Finance and Policy bills will be voted on tomorrow during the House floor session. There isn't a floor schedule yet, but legislators will likely convene at 11:00 am. However, they typically recess immediately for the Rules Committee and other meetings. They will reconvene at some time in the afternoon. We will do our best to announce on our Facebook page as soon as we confirm an afternoon meeting time. But, no votes on bills will take place at 11:00 am.

Working Group Members:

House Education Finance Committee Members:

• Representative Cheryl Youakim, Co-Chair
• Representative Ron Kresha, Co-Chair
• Representative Ben Bakeberg, Co-Vice Chair
• Representative Mary Frances Clardy, Co-Vice Chair
• Representative Pam Altendorf
• Representative Kristin Bahner
• Representative Peggy Bennett
• Representative Tom Dippel
• Representative Elliott Engen
• Representative Julie Greene
• Representative Josiah Hill
• Representative Walter Hudson
• Representative Pete Johnson
• Representative Krista Knudsen
• Representative Bryan Lawrence
• Representative Liz Lee
• Representative Patricia Mueller
• Representative Maria Isa Perez-Vega
• Representative Duane Quam
• Representative Lucy Rehm
• Representative Kari Rehrauer
• Representative Max Rymer
• Representative Samantha Sencer-Mura
• Representative Bianca Virnig

Senate Education Finance Committee Members:

• Senator Mary Kunesh, Chair
• Senator Heather Gustafson, Vice Chair
• Senator Jason Rarick, Ranking Minority Member
• Senator Doron Clark
• Senator Steve Cwodzinski
• Senator Robert Farnsworth
• Senator Karin Housley
• Senator Michael Kreun
• Senator Andrew Lang
• Senator Eric Lucero
• Senator Erin Maye Quade
• Senator Clare Oumou Verbeten
• Senator Bonnie Westlin

May 15 Key Information About SF1740 in the House:

Multiple amendments have been pre-filed for SF1740. We are hearing that the first move, once the Omnibus Education Policy bill comes to the floor, will be to adopt the DEA1306 - delete-all amendment, remove the Senate language, and insert the House language.

Once the delete-all amendment is adopted, no Senate language will remain, this includes the homeschool provision. The bill will keep the Senate file number of SF1740, but it will have the House (HF1306) language. 

How You Can Show Support:

• Attend the floor session in person if you're available – your presence matters!
• Wear yellow as a visible sign of support for the homeschool community.
• If you plan to sit in the House gallery:
  • Signs are not allowed.
  • Visitors must remain silent.
  • Gallery rules apply, so please be respectful.
• If you plan to stand outside the House chambers:
  • Show support for the lawmakers who have committed to opposing the homeschool language in SF1740.

Signs are allowed but should be respectful and appropriate.

What's Next?

When the House passes a bill received from the Senate, it returns the bill to the Senate with details of its actions. At that stage, both the Senate and the House have passed the bill. However, a second constitutional requirement exists: the bill's content must be identical as passed by each body.

A bill returning from the second house to the originating house can follow three paths: 

• The legislative process is finalized if the second house returns the bill to the original house without any changes.
• If the second house amends the bill and the original house agrees with the changes, the bill is passed with the amendments.
• If the second house amends the bill and the original house disagrees with the changes, an impasse occurs, and a conference committee is formed to resolve the dispute.

More than likely, SF1740 will take the conference committee route.

May 7, 2025 update: SF 1740 is currently "laid on the table" (or in normal language, "on hold"). The Minnesota House of Representatives can vote to pick it back up whenever they are in session. We're watching closely and will keep you updated on any movement with this bill! 

May 1, 2025 update: Minnesota SF1740 is scheduled for the calendar on Monday, May 5, 2025. We have learned that there is uncertainty about whether it will be heard on that day, or laid on the table to be heard on another day. Please check in regularly as we will post an update as soon as we know for sure.

We currently anticipate that the House of Representatives will move to delete the language in SF 1740 and replace it with their own Education Policy bill language. If that occurs, the new language will effectively delete the harmful homeschool language on the House side. If this does happen, the bill will go back to the Senate side. (So make sure to reach out to both your representative and senator!)  However, there are lots of different ways this can go, so we'll keep you updated as the process unfolds! 

WHAT'S HAPPENING?

Late on April 24, the Minnesota Senate amended and passed its Education Policy Bill that would fundamentally alter the state’s homeschool law. Senate File 1740 now proposes homeschool restrictions that would severely limit who and where parents can homechool. 

Because this was a floor amendment, it denied homeschooling parents the opportunity to testify on the bill.

The Minnesota House of Representatives has already heard testimony on its own version of the Education Policy Bill, but has not passed it yet. 

Even if a similar amendment is not introduced, the Senate bill will go to conference committee where it has the opportunity to be enacted into law. We will update you as this legislation moves forward.

Meanwhile, please reach out to your state representative and tell them that you oppose any amendment to the House Education Policy Bill at this time. 

WHY IS THE SENATE VERSION SO BAD?

The amendment to S.F. 1740 significantly limits who can homeschool and where they can homeschool.

Limiting Who Can Homeschool

The first way this bill limits who can homeschool is by defining a homeschool as a group of students related by a parent or legal guardian. This limitation fails to take into account the variations in homeschooling families who may include extended relatives such as stepsiblings, nephews and nieces, or grandchildren.

The second way this bill limits who can homeschool is by prohibiting parents from educating their children if they, or any adult in the home, were ever convicted of a broad list of felonies, gross misdemeanors, or misdemeanors. 

While HSLDA opposes child abuse, adding provisions like this to a state's homeschool statute is unnecessary. Under existing law, if a parent has committed a crime, a judge will determine whether or not they are allowed to have custody of their children, and parents who lose custody cannot homeschool. Nothing in this bill will change any child abuse offenses or punishments in Minnesota law. And rejecting this proposed amendment will not disturb the laws that already punish child abuse and related crimes.  

Additionally, these amendments do not provide any kind of appeals process or method for reviewing extenuating circumstances. Instead, its one-size-fits-all approach targets homeschool families indiscriminately. Proposals like this, which may deprive families of basic due process rights, should be carefully and fully weighed by legislators during the entire legislative term, not rushed through via last-minute amendments on the floor. 

Limiting Where You Can Homeschool

As currently written, the amendment needlessly restricts homeschooling by requiring that “The homeschool primary address must be a residence in Minnesota.” Combined with the bill's requirement that all members of a homeschooling family must be closely related, this residency requirement fails to account for the realities of modern homeschooling. 

As any homeschooling parent knows, homeschooling does not exclusively take place at home. It can happen on the road, at grandma’s house, at your co-op, or at the park. Limiting homeschooling to a residential address is an antiquated understanding of how homeschooling works, and it eliminates much of the flexibility that makes homeschooling so great. This bill would prevent families from taking advantage of that flexibility. 

Nor is homeschooling restricted just to instruction between parents and children. Co-ops with other homeschooling families, online classes, and dual enrollment in private or public school courses can be wonderful additions to a homeschool program. Unfortunately, the drafters of these amendments failed to consult with the homeschool community about the impact they would have on families. And if their vague language is adopted, many families will lose opportunities that could be critical to their children’s education. 

To put these amendments in perspective, only four states (Georgia, Michigan, Montana, and Wyoming) have restrictions along these lines, and none are this strict. These changes are unnecessary and will reduce what educational activities a homeschooling family can participate in.

Oppose This Provision Now

Please call or email your representative today and let them know you oppose the Senate’s restrictions on homeschooling.

Thank you for standing with us!