SF 4075 Minnesota Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Secret War in Laos veterans benefits availability modifications and eligibility process establishment by the commissioner of veterans affairs requirement provision

This bill modifies Minnesota veterans benefits to include veterans of the Secret War in Laos, a group that includes both naturalized Hmong veterans and those who served with special guerrilla units or irregular forces in Laos between 1961 and 1975. It directs the commissioner of veterans affairs to establish an eligibility verification process and issue certificates of eligibility for these veterans to access existing state benefits. The legislation also requires the creation of a fee schedule for burial services and allows fee waivers for indigent eligible applicants. Changes take effect on July 2, 2025, for naturalized veterans and after verification for those who served in guerrilla units, with a driver's license designation option becoming available on November 1, 2026.

Issues: ✓ Veterans

Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Mar 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Mar 4, 2026 Last action Mar 26, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

1st Engrossment → 2nd Engrossment · 4 edits · Mar 26, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was renumbered from the 1st to the 2nd Engrossment, indicating a revision in the legislative process. The primary substantive change is the addition of a new effective date of November 1, 2026, which delays the implementation of the act's provisions. Additionally, the specific appropriation amount for the commissioner of public safety was finalized at $141,000, and the bill's description was updated to remove the mention of establishing an eligibility process, suggesting that process details may have been finalized elsewhere or the language was refined for accuracy.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains focused on veterans' affairs and benefits for veterans of the Secret War in Laos, but the timeline for these benefits has been pushed back to November 1, 2026.

TIMELINE

A new effective date of November 1, 2026, was inserted, delaying when the bill's provisions take effect.

TECHNICAL

The bill title and summary were updated to reflect the change from 1st to 2nd Engrossment and removed the phrase 'directing the commissioner... to establish an eligibility process' from the description.

The bill was renumbered throughout, shifting section numbers from 1-7 to 1-6 to accommodate the new effective date section.

FISCAL

The appropriation for the commissioner of public safety was updated to specify an exact amount of $141,000 and explicitly labeled as a one-time appropriation.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 26, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

Comm report: To pass and re-referred to Transportation

upper

Mar 17, 2026

Committee

Withdrawn and re-referred to State and Local Government

upper

Mar 17, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Committee

Referred to Agriculture, Veterans, Broadband, and Rural Development

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Introduced

Introduction and first reading

upper

1 primary · 4 co-sponsors