Photo: MN Senate

By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - March 18, 2025


Minnesota Senator Grant Hauschild will host a Community Town Hall at the Cook County YMCA on Friday, March 21, from 12:00 - 1:30 p.m. The Senator will be traveling to the area for a closed legislative visit with community leaders earlier in the day before meeting with the community at large to provide updates on the current Minnesota Legislative session. At the Town Hall, community members will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss issues that are impacting the area. In a release, Hauschild stated,"From state policies most important to Northern Minnesota to concerns about federal budget decisions affecting our communities, this is your opportunity to ask questions, share your thoughts, and engage in an open and respectful conversation. Come be part of our democracy and make your voice heard."

So far during the 2025-2026 Legislative session, Senator Hauschild has co-authored/co-sponsored multiple bills that could impact District 3, which include Cook, Lake, and Kooching Counties, as well as the northern portions of St. Louis and Itasca Counties.

The following are some key pieces of legislation that have been introduced during the 2025-2026 session as a standalone bill or as amendments to previous statutes. These bills were selected from a long list due to their potential impacts on Cook County (and nearby areas), and are listed in alphabetical order based on topic. To see a full list, click here. 

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Land Sale Prohibition

Minnesota Senate File(SF)1702, sponsored by Senator Grant Hauschild, proposes to establish a prohibition on the sale of state-owned lands located within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW), including in Cook, Lake, and St. Louis Counties. The bill, if passed, would repeal the private sale of surplus state land within the BWCAW in the above-listed counties under Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 92.82. 

A companion bill, co-authored by MN House Representative Skraba, has been introduced into the House. 

Cook County Schools

Minnesota SF1617 proposes a refundable sales tax exemption for construction materials used in Cook County ISD 166 school construction projects. A similar bill, authored by MN Representative Skraba, has been introduced into the House of Representatives. The legislation also includes an appropriation to fund these tax refunds. The bill aims to reduce the financial burden during construction by allowing them to recover sales taxes paid on eligible materials purchased after May 31, 2025, and before January 1, 2028. Eligible projects include those proposed in the Cook County ISD 166 Levy Referendum Question One, which was passed by voters in 2024. 

Hospital Swing Beds

Minnesota SF1861 proposes changes to the licensing conditions for hospital swing beds, specifically creating a special exception in Cook County, Minnesota. The bill, if passed, states that any hospital located in Cook County that is classified as a critical access hospital and has an attached nursing home can use swing beds to provide "nursing facility services without requiring a prior hospital stay."

Currently, North Shore Health uses swing beds, but due to Medicare and other insurance requirements, they can only be used if a patient is hospitalized as an "Acute Care Inpatient (not an observation patient)" for three consecutive midnights within 30 days, according to the hospital facility. 

A similar bill, co-authored by Representative Skraba, has been introduced in the Minnesota House of Representatives. 


Property taxes and small, family-run lake resorts

Senator Grant Hauschild co-sponsored Minnesota SF2076 (companion HF1829), which proposes changes to how property taxes are figured for small, family-run lake resorts in Minnesota. The bill focuses on adjusting the value ranges used to calculate property taxes for these businesses, which offer seasonal rentals and activities. The bill has been reviewed by the Committee on Taxes and was added as an amendment to another larger tax bill, SF132 (companion HF506). 

Soil and Water Conservation Districts

An amendment (under SF2663) to Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 477A.23, subdivision 6, has been proposed, which currently allocates money to local Soil and Water Conservation Districts. If passed, the proposed amendment would allocate $20 million (versus $12 million) from the clean water fund (previously the general fund). This change would apply to payments beginning in 2025 and after. 

Volunteer Fire and Rescue

SF1640 (and companion HF2120) proposes exemptions from certain motor vehicle taxes and fees for individuals serving as volunteer firefighters. Additionally, Hauschild is a co-sponsor of SF431 (and companion HF741), which aims to establish an income tax subtraction of $10,000 for volunteer fire and rescue workers who meet certain criteria. 

Wetlands and other public waters

Senator Hauschild has co-authored two wetland-related bills, which have to do with wetlands and other public waters.

The first bill, Minnesota SF570, proposes to improve the efficiency of the Wetland Conservation Act determinations. According to the bill's authors, the legislation would "recognize the need to retain and grow the state's economy and vital infrastructure to keep Minnesota competitive on a national and global level. This growth requires innovation and creativity, which will be achieved while protecting our environment and natural resources as prescribed under current law. It is, therefore, the intent of the legislature in enacting this bill that the state will meet or exceed efficiency goals, modernize existing regulatory systems, and communicate clearly to permit applicants and stakeholders to ensure a predictable, transparent, and fair permitting and environmental review process." Multiple amendments to existing state statutes are included in this bill. 

The second bill, MN SF1715, proposes changes to the definition of "public waters" in Minnesota law. Under the proposed legislation, "public waters" means (text as written in the original proposed legislation): 

(1) water basins assigned a shoreland management classification by the commissioner
under sections 103F.201 to 103F.221;

(2) waters of the state that have been finally determined to be public waters or navigable
waters by a court of competent jurisdiction;

(3) meandered lakes, excluding lakes that have been legally drained;

(4) water basins previously designated by the commissioner for management for a
specific purpose such as trout lakes and game lakes pursuant to applicable laws;

(5) water basins designated as scientific and natural areas under section 84.033;

(6) water basins located within and totally surrounded by publicly owned lands;

(7) water basins where the state of Minnesota or the federal government holds title to
any of the beds or shores, unless the owner declares that the water is not necessary for the
purposes of the public ownership;

(8) water basins where there is a publicly owned and controlled access that is intended
to provide for public access to the water basin;

(9) natural and altered watercourses with a total drainage area greater than two square
miles;

(10) natural and altered watercourses designated by the commissioner as trout streams;
and

(11) public waters wetlands, unless the statute expressly states otherwise.

(b) Public waters are not determined exclusively by:

(1) the proprietorship of the underlying, overlying, or surrounding land; or

(2) whether it is a body or stream of water that was navigable in fact or susceptible of
being used as a highway for commerce at the time this state was admitted to the union

The passage of MN SF1715 and the companion MN House bill 1008 would also remove the allocation of $1,000,000 from the general fund to the public waters inventory, managed by the Department of Natural Resources. 

Additionally, the text "The commissioner must develop and implement a process to update the public water inventory" from a 2024 Minnesota Statute has been crossed off in the original 2025-2026 bill text.