Thread by @whstancil

I was told not to tweet this until the houses adjourned for fear of jinxing it, but the Minnesota legislature just completed what is probably the most productive session anywhere in the country since probably the New Deal. Sweeping bills and reforms across every area of life.

Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor part accompanied this monumental session with a six-vote margin in the House and a bare one-vote majority in the Senate. The scale of their achievement cannot be overstated.

With no votes to spare, Minnesota Democrats have implemented vast new social programs, enacted protections for groups threatened by far-right states and the Supreme Court, strengthened unions, poured money into schools, replaced infrastructure, and fed every Minnesota child.

I want to do this justice so tomorrow I’m going to add all the high points to this thread, but with the session ending a few minutes ago I wanted to emphasize that something really incredible has happened here. I hope all the DFL legislators sleep well tonight.

Before I start tweeting about individual policy accomplishments (which frankly seems a bit daunting, given the sheer number of them), a couple of broader points about the Minnesota Dems this year:

First, in addition to having a one-vote margin, this was not a radical left-wing legislature! There are plenty of moderate Dems here.

But the moderates, unlike Dems elsewhere, still wanted to get stuff done and saw progressives as partners in making that happen.

Rather than looking at the November numbers result and imposing some kind of self-limiting narrative about the scope of their mandate, MN Dems looked at their priorities and said “How much of the list can we get done?”

Turns out the answer was “Almost everything.”

It probably also helped that this was a younger legislature, with many first-time committee chairs and newer members who were eager to start governing after years of relative deadlock in a divided statehouse.

But the key here is that the DFL clearly figured, no matter how small their majorities were, it was better, politically and morally, to choose doing good things over doing nothing. And it did, again and again.

As for the GOP, there was just nothing it could do about it. It complained a lot, but the Republicans just didn’t have the votes, and undoing this session is a vast project that requires flipping three branches. Even in a purplish state, that’s a high bar.

Okay, so what did Minnesota Dems actually do? In no particular order (and likely updated throughout the day, since I literally don't have time go through it all in one sitting):

They created a huge new statewide paid family and medical leave program, raising the number of workers receiving paid leave from 25% to 100%. cbsnews.com/minnesota/news…

They fully legalized marijuana. apnews.com/article/mariju…

They made school lunches free for all students, leading to Governor Tim Walz being adorably mobbed by elementary schoolers.

(Special mention to my amazing friend @SydneyJordanMN, a chief author and major proponent of this bill.)

@SydneyJordanMN They created new protections for Uber and Lyft drivers, leading to State Senator Omar Fateh being adorably mobbed by Uber and Lyft drivers.

@SydneyJordanMN They codified Roe v. Wade, ensuring that Republicans can't endanger abortion rights in Minnesota simply by controlling the courts. apnews.com/article/aborti…

@SydneyJordanMN They funded the replacement of all lead pipes in the state (another @SydneyJordanMN law).

This one was so obviously good that it passed with unanimous Republican support, too. mprnews.org/story/2023/05/…

@SydneyJordanMN They banned noncompete agreements and created statewide paid sick leave. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/17/lab…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems enacted a raft of laws to make the state a trans refuge, and ensure people receiving trans care here can't be reached by far-right governments in places like Florida and Texas. mprnews.org/story/2023/03/…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems ensured that everyone, including undocumented immigrants, can get drivers' licenses. apnews.com/article/minnes…

@SydneyJordanMN They made public college free for the majority of Minnesota families. startribune.com/higher-ed-spen…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems dropped a billion dollars into a bevy of affordable housing programs, including by creating a new state housing voucher program. minnpost.com/state-governme…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems massively increased funding for the state's perpetually-underfunded public defenders, which lets more public defenders be hired and existing public defenders get a salary increase. startribune.com/public-safety-…

@SydneyJordanMN Dems raised Minnesota education spending by 10%, or about 2.3 billion. minnesotareformer.com/briefs/dfl-con…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems created an energy standard for 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040. apnews.com/article/politi…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota already has some of the strongest election infrastructure (and highest voter participation) in the country, but the legislature just made it stronger, with automatic registration, preregistration for minors, and easier access to absentee ballots. cbsnews.com/minnesota/news…

Minnesota Dems expanded the publicly subsidized health insurance program to undocumented immigrants. This one's interesting because it's the sort of things Dems often balk at. The governor opposed it! The legislature rolled over him and passed it anyway. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/20/min…

Minnesota Dems expanded background checks and enacted red-flag laws, passing gun safety measures that the GOP has thwarted for years. apnews.com/article/gun-co…

Minnesota Dems gave the state AG the power to block the huge healthcare mergers that have slowly gobbled up the state's medical system. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/21/bil…

Minnesota Dems restored voting rights to convicted felons as soon as they leave prison. apnews.com/article/politi…

Minnesota Dems made prison phone calls free. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/08/min…

I'm not even close to being done, by the way. More to come. Even listing what got done is an all-day project.

Minnesota Dems passed new wage protection rules for the construction industry, against industry resistance. finance-commerce.com/2023/05/new-wa…

Minnesota Dems created a new sales tax to fund bus and train lines, an enormous victory for the sustainability and quality of public transit. Transit be more pleasant to ride, more frequent, and have better shelters, along more lines. minnpost.com/state-governme…

They passed strict new regulations on PFAS ("forever chemicals"). minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/09/law…

Minnesota Dems passed the largest bonding bill in state history! Funding improvements to parks, colleges, water infrastructure, bridges, etc. etc. etc. minnpost.com/greater-minnes…

They're going to build a passenger train from the Twin Cities to Duluth. duluthnewstribune.com/news/minnesota…

I can't even find a news story about it but there's tens of millions in funding for new BRT lines, too. house.mn.gov/sessiondaily/S…

A wonky-but-important change: Minnesota Dems indexed the state gas tax to inflation, effectively increasing the gas tax. startribune.com/minnesota-dfl-…

They actually indexed a bunch of stuff to inflation, including the state's education funding formula, which helps ensure that school spending doesn't decline over time. startribune.com/minnesota-demo…

Okay we're wrapping up, I'm out of things to talk abou...

oh wait no, there's still so much more.

Minnesota Dems made hourly school workers (e.g., bus drivers and paraprofessionals) eligible for unemployment during summer break, when they're not working or getting paid. minnesotareformer.com/briefs/house-a…

Minnesota Dems passed a bunch of labor protections for teachers, including requiring school districts to negotiate class sizes as part of union contracts. (Yet another @SydneyJordanMN special here.) startribune.com/educators-lawm…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems created a state board to govern labor standards at nursing homes. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/17/lab…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems created a Prescription Drug Affordability Board, which would set price caps for high-cost pharmaceuticals. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/09/a-p…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems created new worker protections for Amazon warehouse workers and refinery workers. minnesotareformer.com/2023/04/24/oil…

@SydneyJordanMN Minnesota Dems passed a digital fair repair law, which requires electronics manufacturers to make tools and parts available so that consumers can repair their electronics rather than purchase new items. fox9.com/news/digital-f…

As far as I can tell there isn't a single news story written about it, but Minnesota Dems made huge improvements to the state's Public Employee Labor Relations Act, making it far more labor-friendly (e.g., by making staffing ratios a mandatory subject of bargaining).

Minnesota Dems made Juneteenth a state holiday. duluthnewstribune.com/news/minnesota…

Minnesota Dems banned conversion therapy. minnesotareformer.com/briefs/minneso…

They spent nearly a billion dollars on a variety of environmental programs, from heat pumps to reforestation. startribune.com/minnesota-legi…

Minnesota Dems expanded protections for pregnant and nursing workers - already in place for larger employers - to almost everyone in the state. house.mn.gov/sessiondaily/S…

Minnesota Dems banned price gouging in public emergencies. house.mn.gov/sessiondaily/S…

Minnesota Dems created a new child tax credit that will cut child poverty by about a quarter. startribune.com/rebate-checks-…

Minnesota Democrats dropped a quick $50 million into homelessness prevention programs. sahanjournal.com/housing/minnes…

And because the small stuff didn't get lost in the big stuff, they passed a law to prevent catalytic converter thefts. knsiradio.com/2023/02/21/cat…

Minnesota Dems increased child care assistance. minnesotareformer.com/briefs/minneso…

Minnesota Dems banned "captive audience meetings," where employers force employees to watch anti-union presentations. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/17/lab…

No news story yet, but Minnesota Dems forced signal priority changes to Twin Cities transit. Right now the trains have to wait at intersections for cars, which, I can say from experience, is terrible. Soon that will change.

Minnesota Dems provided the largest increase to nursing home funding in state history. house.mn.gov/sessiondaily/S…

They also bumped up salaries for home health workers, to help address the shortage of in-home nurses. kstp.com/kstp-news/top-…

Minnesota Dems legalized drug paraphernalia, which allows social service providers to conduct needle exchanges and address substance abuse with reduced fear of incurring legal action. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/22/min…

Minnesota Dems banned white supremacists and extremists from police forces, capped probation at 5 years for most crimes, improved clemency, and mostly banned no-knock warrants. minnesotareformer.com/2023/05/12/dem…

Minnesota Dems also laid the groundwork for a public health insurance option. startribune.com/minnesota-lawm…

There's billions of dollars of stuff I'm leaving off - truly, it is overwhelming - but I wanted Sydney to have the final word on this thread. Good session, guys.

A POSTSCRIPT:

I was just talking to @SydneyJordanMN and she goes "At least we got tenant protections done."

And I'm all, wait, what? I did a 50-tweet thread but I never heard about this.

So yeah, Minnesota Dems also passed a huge renters' rights bill. fox9.com/news/tenants-r…