Rep. Bobbie Harder

Maddy summaryHF 3453 amends Minnesota Statutes section 152.027 to raise the legal age for possessing kratom from 18 to 21 years. It makes it a gross misdemeanor to sell kratom to anyone under 21 and a misdemeanor for anyone under 21 to possess it. The bill directly affects minors under 21 and businesses selling kratom, prohibiting sales to this age group and restricting their possession. The change applies to crimes committed on or after August 1, 2026. This is a substantive policy change altering age restrictions under Minnesota's controlled substances law.

Maddy summaryHF 3718 amends Minnesota's veterinary medicine statutes by adding and updating key definitions. It creates a new definition for "accredited program of veterinary technology" (requiring AVMA-CVTEA accreditation) and expands "animal" to include fish and reptiles (removing poultry exclusions). The bill also adds definitions for terms like "consulting," "consent," "dispensing," "donor," "emergency stabilization," and "extra-label use" to clarify veterinary practice standards. These changes primarily affect licensed veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and veterinary practices by standardizing terminology in the state's regulatory framework. The bill does not impose new practice requirements but refines existing legal definitions.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes a constitutional amendment to modify how Minnesota's permanent school fund is invested, managed, and distributed to school districts. The key change would require the fund to be managed as a perpetual resource that preserves its purchasing power over time while providing annual distributions to support schools without raising individual taxes. The amendment establishes a board of investment led by the governor, state auditor, secretary of state, and attorney general, and prohibits the use of state funds to underwrite municipal securities. If approved by voters in 2026, the new policy would take effect on July 1, 2027, with specific rules for calculating distributable amounts and handling investment gains and losses.

Maddy summaryThis bill repeals existing affirmative action requirements for state agencies in Minnesota, removing the mandate for the state to establish specific goals and programs to increase the employment of members of protected groups. While the legislation eliminates these targeted initiatives, it retains the policy that state hiring and performance evaluations must be based on merit and free from discrimination based on race, gender, disability, or other protected characteristics. The law also keeps in place a requirement for agency managers to receive training on identifying and mitigating bias in the hiring and evaluation processes. Ultimately, the bill shifts the state's approach from proactive affirmative action plans to a focus on equal opportunity and nondiscrimination without setting numerical targets for diverse representation.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes adding a new section to the Minnesota Constitution that explicitly states a preborn child has a right to life. It defines a preborn child as a living human fetus from fertilization until live birth and requires voter approval at the 2026 general election for the amendment to take effect in 2027. The text includes specific language ensuring that medical treatment to save a pregnant person's life or the removal of a nonviable or deceased fetus remains allowed.

Maddy summaryHF 3563 requires Minnesota licensing boards to automatically suspend or revoke licenses, or deny license applications, when a licensee or applicant is convicted of specific theft or fraud crimes listed in Minnesota law (including offenses under sections like 609.23, 609.496, and 609.52). This directly affects licensed professionals - such as healthcare providers, contractors, and financial advisors - who face criminal convictions for these offenses. The bill mandates that boards take formal action upon conviction, rather than allowing licenses to remain active despite criminal findings. It amends Minnesota Statutes 214.10 to establish this requirement, effective immediately after enactment.

Maddy summaryHF 82 clarifies the scope of practice for licensed athletic trainers in Minnesota. The bill defines "athletic training" to include specific activities like injury prevention, emergency care, assessment, rehabilitation, and clinical decision-making within the trainer's expertise. It requires athletic trainers to work under a primary physician's direction, with documented protocols updated yearly, and limits initial treatment of undiagnosed injuries to 30 days (or less as specified by the physician). This directly affects athletic trainers, primary physicians, and healthcare facilities employing them, ensuring clear boundaries for their practice while preventing overlap with other licensed professions like physical therapy or medicine.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows Minnesota counties to create official lists of agricultural lands that should be protected from electric power facility development. Counties can designate parcels as agricultural priority land if they have high crop productivity ratings or have been classified as prime farmland by the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Once a county submits its list to the state Public Utilities Commission, the commission cannot issue site permits for large power plants on those designated lands unless the county board specifically approves an exception. Landowners have the right to opt out of having their property included on the list before the county submits it to the state. The new rules would take effect on January 1, 2027.

Maddy summaryThis bill authorizes the state to issue up to $3.5 million in bonds to fund improvements for the public safety facility in Belle Plaine. The funds will be used for site preparation and to renovate, expand, furnish, and equip the existing building to address safety, security, and operational needs. The state commissioner of management and budget is responsible for selling the bonds and distributing the money to the city through a grant. The legislation becomes effective the day after it is fully enacted.

Maddy summaryThis bill makes it a felony to force or coerce a pregnant minor under 18 into seeking or obtaining an abortion, defining coercion broadly to include threats, isolation, financial pressure, and exploiting vulnerabilities. It requires hospitals and other facilities to screen and report suspected cases of human trafficking involving minors. Additionally, the law adds wrongful death as a cause of action for deaths resulting from abortions and mandates the creation of specific rules by the state health commissioner.