HF 3540 Minnesota House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Protection for veterans provided in the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

HF 3540 amends Minnesota's Human Rights Act to explicitly protect veterans from discrimination. It adds "veteran or military status" to the list of protected characteristics in employment, housing, public accommodations, public services, and education. The bill defines "veteran or military status" to include active/reserve military members and veterans as defined in federal law. This means employers, housing providers, and public services cannot discriminate against individuals based on their military service or veteran status. The change makes existing anti-discrimination protections apply to veterans in all covered areas of Minnesota law.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 19, 2026 Last action May 12, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduction 1st Engrossment · 2 edits · Feb 26, 2026
MINOR
The bill was updated from its introduction to its first engrossment version, reflecting a change in status and a new posting date. The most significant substantive change is the expansion of the definition of 'Veteran or military status' to include veterans of the Secret War in Laos, thereby extending human rights protections to this specific group.
Scope change
The bill's scope of protection was expanded to include a new category of veterans previously not explicitly covered.
DEFINITION

Added 'veteran of the Secret War in Laos' to the official definition of 'Veteran or military status' under the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

TECHNICAL

Updated the document title and posting date to reflect the bill's progression to its first engrossment stage.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
5
Key actions
1
Committee
1
Feb 26, 2026
Lower · Passed
Committee report, to adopt as amended and re-refer to Judiciary Finance and Civil Law
lower
Feb 19, 2026
Introduced
Introduction and first reading, referred to Veterans and Military Affairs Division
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Matt Bliss
Matt Bliss
RRepublican
MN
2B