SF 3616 Minnesota Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Child care center facilities access limitation

This bill requires licensed child care centers in Minnesota to restrict access for certain federal immigration agents. Specifically, it prohibits DHS, ICE, CBP, or USCIS agents from entering child care facilities without a valid judicial warrant, written purpose statement, identification, and approval from the center's license holder. If access is granted, centers must limit agents to areas where children are not present. The law directly affects all licensed and certified license-exempt child care centers operating in Minnesota, aiming to protect children's safety during federal immigration enforcement activities.
Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 17, 2026 Last action Mar 17, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduction 1st Engrossment · 4 edits · Mar 17, 2026
MODERATE
The bill was updated from its introduction to its first engrossment version, incorporating significant substantive changes to how child care centers handle immigration enforcement. The text was reorganized to include new definitions for key terms and expanded the restrictions on federal agents, requiring a judicial warrant for entry rather than just a standard warrant. Additionally, the scope of the law was broadened to include state and local officials engaged in civil immigration enforcement, not just federal agents.
Scope change
The bill's scope expanded to cover state and local officials in addition to federal agents, and it now explicitly includes certified license-exempt child care centers under chapter 142C.
DEFINITION

New definitions were added for 'child care center,' 'employee,' and 'judicial officer' to clarify who and what the law applies to.

REQUIREMENT

Entry requirements for federal agents were modified to require a warrant signed by a judicial officer and approval from the license holder, with access to children restricted.

A new requirement mandates that on-duty employees must immediately notify the license holder if an immigration enforcement official enters the center.

ENFORCEMENT

New provisions were added to limit consent for entry by state and local officials engaged in civil immigration enforcement unless a judicial warrant is provided.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
7
Key actions
1
Committee
3
Mar 17, 2026
Upper · Passed
Comm report: To pass as amended and re-refer to Judiciary and Public Safety
upper
Feb 23, 2026
Committee
Withdrawn and re-referred to Health and Human Services
upper
Feb 17, 2026
Committee
Referred to Education Policy
upper
Feb 17, 2026
Introduced
Introduction and first reading
upper
1 primary · 4 co-sponsors

Sponsors