Minnesota House passes Jobs Budget Bill

(ABC 6 News) — The Minnesota House of Representatives passed the Jobs Budget Bill on Friday, preserving worker protections enacted in 2023-2024 biennium.

The vote was 115-19 in favor of the bill.

The Jobs budget maintains Minnesota worker protections such as Paid Family and Medical Leave, Earned Sick and Safe Time, and safeguards for meatpacking and warehouse workers, while delivering targeted investments in vocational rehabilitation services, teacher apprenticeships, worker misclassification protections, and child care and early learning initiatives.

In addition to funding operations for the Department of Employment and Economic Development, the Department of Labor and Industry, Explore Minnesota, and the Bureau of Mediation Services, the budget includes key investments such as:

• $3 million for a new registered apprenticeship program for teachers
• $5 million in new funding for Vocational Rehabilitation Services at DEED
• $1 million in new funding for initiatives to increase the number of child care and early learning providers in the state
• $7.3 million in new funding for competitive grant programs at DEED for workforce and economic development