SF 3625 Minnesota Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Educator licensing and standards provisions modifications and appropriation

SF 3625 modifies Minnesota's educator licensing system by establishing a statewide credential for paraprofessionals who assist teachers in classrooms. It requires local assessments for paraprofessionals to meet specific academic criteria in reading, writing, and math, shifting rulemaking authority from the licensing board to the commissioner. The bill also mandates that teacher preparation programs include a supervised early literacy field experience in schools for candidates starting in 2027-2028, with rules for implementation. These changes directly affect paraprofessionals, teacher training programs, and school districts.

Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 17, 2026 Last action Apr 7, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

1st Engrossment → 2nd Engrossment · 5 edits · Apr 7, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was updated from the 1st to the 2nd engrossment, changing the posting date and adding new sections to the table of contents. Substantively, the bill now allows teachers to obtain a Tier 2 license through enrollment in state-approved teacher preparation programs located in bordering states or shortage areas, even if those programs are not offered in Minnesota. Additionally, the required mental health training for license renewal was increased from one hour to five hours, and the deadline for adopting paraprofessional credentialing rules was set to July 1, 2028.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding teacher licensing eligibility was expanded to include out-of-state and shortage-area programs, and the scope of mental health training requirements was broadened.

ELIGIBILITY

Teachers can now obtain a Tier 2 license by enrolling in state-approved teacher preparation programs in bordering states or shortage areas, provided the programs have equivalent student teaching requirements.

REQUIREMENT

The deadline for the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board to adopt rules for a statewide paraprofessional credential was set to July 1, 2028.

Mental health training required for license renewal was increased from one hour to five hours, with specific topics including suicide prevention, trauma, and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.

New limitations were added to clarify that a Tier 2 license obtained through out-of-state programs does not automatically qualify a teacher for a Tier 3 license after three years.

FISCAL

The recipient of an appropriation for the online educator licensing system was changed from the Department of Education to the Professional Educators Licensing and Standards Board.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 7, 2026

Upper · Passed

Comm report: To pass as amended and re-refer to Education Finance

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

Comm report: To pass and re-referred to State and Local Government

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Committee

Withdrawn and re-referred to Judiciary and Public Safety

upper

Feb 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

Comm report: To pass as amended and re-refer to State and Local Government

upper

Feb 17, 2026

Committee

Referred to Education Policy

upper

Feb 17, 2026

Introduced

Introduction and first reading

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors