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Robbins 2025 Updated Header




*May 16, 2025*






Dear Friends and Neighbors,  

Joint House and Senate Budget targets were finally agreed to on Thursday, and we will be working through the weekend to pass as many bills as possible before the constitutionally required adjournment date of Monday, May 19.  

Unfortunately, because Democrats chose to boycott the start of session for the first 23 days, a *special session is still very likely*. We are likely to run out of time for conference committees to exchange offers and to pass final versions off both the House & Senate floor by Monday at midnight.  

*My hope is that IF a Special Session is required, it will be called immediately so committees and floor sessions can keep going, starting at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, May 20**th**. *We don’t want to lose the momentum we have finally started to see by letting everyone go home for a few days – we should push through and finish the state budget before Memorial Day, so everyone knows what they have to work with when the fiscal year starts July 1st. 

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Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the communities in Northern Minnesota who are battling wildfires. My colleagues from the affected areas are keeping us in the loop and are driving back and forth almost every night to try to help.    

We are grateful for all of the fire departments around the state that are sending firefighters and equipment to help!  We are also grateful to Gov. Walz for calling in the National Guard and for all of the Guard members who are up there battling these fires to save homes, communities and our beautiful forests. *You can see my remarks [ [link removed] ] on the wildfires here.* If you would like to donate to help the affected communities, Rep. Zeleznikar and Rep. Skraba recommend you use the reputable sites using the QR codes above.







Executive Summary

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Budget Agreement Reached

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Why Special Session is Likely

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National Police Week - Honoring Officer Jamal Mitchell

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Budget Agreement Reached 

This week, legislative leaders and Governor Walz announced joint budget targets, marking a key step forward in the process of passing this year’s supplemental budget. These targets represent high-level funding agreements and will now guide the final negotiations in conference committees. While the targets set the spending parameters, the specific policy decisions and detailed work still lie ahead. Our goal is to pass the majority of the budget bills by Monday at midnight, with the remaining items expected to wrap up late next week or shortly thereafter.  

It’s important to note that *this agreement reflects a dramatic course correction from the unsustainable spending path Democrats set in motion during one-party control. *Just two years ago, they increased government spending by an unprecedented 38% and raised taxes by $11 billion, creating a $6 billion deficit.  

Thanks to the persistence of Republican lawmakers, this budget includes the *largest spending reduction in state history* and eliminates nearly half of that structural deficit. We’re restoring responsible budgeting and, just as critically, *not a single Minnesota family will see a tax increase* as part of this budget.  

There are also several other important wins that will have a direct and meaningful impacts on families, students, and job creators across the state.  


* We successfully protected non-public pupil aid, ensuring religious schools, charter schools, and homeschool students won’t face cuts to critical support. This preserves the educational choices many families rely on.   

* Republicans negotiated a near-total rollback of the expansion of state-funded healthcare for undocumented immigrants. Under the agreement, new enrollment in the program will freeze the day after enactment, and adults currently enrolled will be removed by January 1, 2026. Only children under 18 will remain eligible. This change respects our limited resources and ensures that benefits are focused on legal residents.  

As you may recall, the state paid 100% of the cost for healthcare for undocumented immigrants, since they are not allowed to get Medicaid under federal rules. The original estimates of enrollment projected 5,700 people in the first year. Instead, we’ve seen nearly 21,000 applicants in just the first four months, dramatically increasing projected costs.

Just this week, CA Governor Gavin Newsom rolled back CA’s program for undocumented immigrants as it was bankrupting their state. Since we are already facing a $6 billion deficit due to the reckless spending of the last two years, I am thankful that Minnesota reversed course on this before we found ourselves in an even larger fiscal crisis.


* Republicans also were able to reduce the cap on the payroll tax for the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program from 1.2% of payroll to 1.1%.  Although this change in the percentage may seem small, *it will actually save employers and employees an expected $215 million tax hike due to the program’s growing costs. *Rep. Dave Baker continues to work on broader reforms to improve the program's sustainability and affordability.   

* In healthcare, *we stopped a proposed increase in the provider tax and extended important programs that help keep individual insurance premiums affordable*, which is especially critical at a time when many families are struggling with rising costs.   

* *We secured a major win for counties and local governments by blocking cuts to County Program Aid and Local Government Aid in the tax bill. We also put $40 million toward upgrading the outdated Social Services Information System (SSIS)*. These technology upgrades will not only improve the delivery of human services but also result in long-term savings for local governments.   

* Finally, we protected taxpayers by ending the Northern Lights Express, an expensive and unnecessary high-speed rail project to Duluth that would have cost hundreds of millions of dollars with questionable benefit.  

In addition to securing positive outcomes, Republicans were also successful in stopping several other harmful proposals, including: 


* A new tax on social media use  

* A new fifth-tier income tax on top earners  

* Governor Walz’s proposed sales tax increases  

* Massive new fee hikes from state agencies  

* Millions in Legislatively-named earmarks to nonprofits  

* Expensive health mandates that would have driven up insurance premiums  

While many details still need to be worked out in conference committees, *this budget framework reflects an important pivot away from unchecked spending and a renewed commitment to fiscal responsibility.* I’ll continue working to ensure the final agreements deliver real value to Minnesotans and protect the freedoms, choices, and economic opportunities that families across our state rely on.  






Why Special Session is Likely 

Even though budget agreements have been reached, a special session is almost inevitable, as noted in the opening. The decision by House Democrats to boycott more than three weeks at the beginning of session were a missed opportunity to build momentum, vet bills in committee hearings, and work across the aisle on shared priorities.  

Even as the session progressed, efforts to govern responsibly were further slowed by Governor Walz’s refusal to engage in serious budget negotiations. The governor did not meet with Republican Speaker Lisa Demuth for most of the session, and only recently agreed to sit down with her. That lack of collaboration from the executive branch created unnecessary delays and made bipartisan progress much harder to achieve.  

To make matters worse, more than a month ago, House Democrats walked away from a signed bipartisan agreement on education funding, which had already passed multiple committees. By reopening and rejecting previously negotiated deals, they’ve risked unraveling months of hard work and cast doubt on whether other bipartisan agreements can be trusted. This is a terrible precedent – if we cannot rely on signed agreements and trust each other’s word, it is hard to get bipartisan work done. 

While these delays have been frustrating, *I am optimistic we will be able to move forward now that budget targets have been agreed to. *We will be working around the clock and through the weekend, likely to midnight on Monday, to pass any conference committee bills that are ready for floor debate.  

As easy as that sounds, there is still a lot of work to do. There are at least three major budget bills (Taxes, Children and Families, and Education) that still need to pass out of the House before conference committees can be formed. In addition, all the other bills that have passed still need to be readjusted to the new budget targets and the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bills still need to be ironed out. Finally, conference committee reports will need to be debated and passed by both chambers before being signed by the Governor. 

There is no alternative to getting it done. It is our job to pass a budget so hospitals, schools, law enforcement, cities and counties, and all the other areas of state work can continue! I know we will get it done. 






National Police Week - Honoring Officer Jamal Mitchell

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This week, we had the opportunity to honor our local and state law enforcement heroes for National Police Week. Thank you to all men and women, both retired and currently serving, for keeping our communities safe.  

On Thursday, we also had the chance to honor and remember all 311 Minnesota police officers who have given their lives in the line of duty since we became a state, including Officer Jamal Mitchell, who lived in our district. 

Office Mitchell served as a Minneapolis Police Officer and was killed in an ambush by a criminal pretending to be a victim of a crime. He was honored at the Capitol on Thursday night at the Minnesota Law Enforcement Memorial (LEMA) service and in Washington, D.C. with Burnsville Officers Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge.   

Please join me in praying for Office Mitchell’s family as they face the first anniversary of his death on May 30th.







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"Great to see Congressman Tom Emmer at the Capitol today! Thanks for all you do for our state and our country!"

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"Great to see our friend & former colleague, Bob Dettmer, back in the House today!"






Please Contact Me

Many of you have already been in touch to discuss your thoughts on the issues that matter most to you. Thank you for sharing your ideas! Please continue to contact me to discuss any matters to which I can be of assistance.

The best way to reach me is by email: [email protected]. For occasional updates, you can follow my Facebook Page at @RepKristinRobbins. You can also leave a voicemail on my office number, 651-296-7806, which is checked every weekday while we are in session.

Of course, if you are coming to the Capitol, I’d love to meet you! Please reach out if you would like to set-up an in-person meeting. 

Have a great weekend!

 

Kristin











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