The legislature is in its final days as the State’s budget and policy bills hang in the balance of negotiations between Speaker Daudt, Majority Leader Bakk, and Governor Dayton. There are still substantial differences in the budget’s size, transportation package, tax relief and pre-K Education funding. But fear not, brinkmanship is a time-honored tradition at the legislature and it’s still likely that they will adjourn on-time.
In industry news, here’s what you need to know:
1. Sprinkler Mandate Repeal – BATCs sprinkler language remains alive in two budget-bill conference committees. Our marquee issue is in its fifth year and well-supported by legislators. Like last session it will come down to the whether BATCs language can be agreed upon by Bakk, Daudt, and Dayton.
2. Met Council Governance – The House has pushed through governance and legislative oversight provisions for Met Council activity, while the Senate has proposed a study of governance. Given all of the battling over the budget, it’s possible that just a study emerges from the session.
3. Flame Retardant Bill Moving – After passing the Senate with overwhelming support, the MN Fire Fighters union’s initiative to ban several flame retardants in furniture was stalled in the House. Yesterday the bill was amended and moved out of committee and could be headed for a floor vote soon. LINK: http://www.startribune.com/minnesota-ban-on-fire-retardants-would-be-toughest-in-nation/303357821/?recirculation=section§ion=politics
4. Future Code Cycles – The effort to create a six-year code adoption cycle has moved forward in a Department of Labor and Industry technical bill and is likely to pass. Recent code cycles have been roughly every six years, this effort will establish this detail in statute for future codes beginning after the 2018 cycle.
Stay tuned for updates!
