Minnesota lawmakers discuss bills related to impacts of immigration surge in the state

The Minnesota Legislature quickly began discussing proposals in response to the federal immigration crackdown in the state on Wednesday when lawmakers began their work in earnest after pausing to honor the late Rep. Melissa Hortman on day one. 

Addressing the impacts of Operation Metro Surge, which federal officials say is nearing its end, is a top priority for Democrats at the state capitol this year and they wasted no time bringing some of those bills before the first committee meetings of the session. 

In the Minnesota House, DFL Rep. Sydney Jordan introduced a proposal that would limit federal immigration agents' access to schools unless they have a judicial warrant and show identification.

"Every child in Minnesota has a right to an education, but lately it has been impossible not to notice the profound impact of [U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement], [the Department of Homeland Security] and the federal government has had on Minnesota school children's ability to learn," Jordan told the Education Policy committee Wednesday. 

The goal, she said, is to model what used to be ICE policy deeming schools as sensitive locations before that was repealed when President Donald Trump took office last January.

Some school districts and the largest teachers' union are suing to block immigration enforcement within 1,000 feet of schools except with a judicial warrant or emergency circumstances. 

Rep. Peggy Bennett, a Republican representing Albert Lea and other southern Minnesota communities, said she and Rep. Ron Kresha, who co-chairs the Education Finance Committee, wrote a letter asking that the Trump administration reconsider its police reversal.

"It should be a rare occurrence that schools are involved in these situations," she said of immigration enforcement. 

But she said she believes the Jordan proposal won't solve the problem of fear of ICE agents in Minnesota communities keeping kids from school and worries that it could potentially put school staff in legal jeopardy. 

She thinks that better cooperation between local and federal authorities would de-escalate situations. 

"I understand the fear. It is real. But let's pass bills that will actually solve the issue," Bennett said. 

School leaders, students and teachers testified before the panel Wednesday about this proposal and also shared their experiences to a separate Minnesota Senate committee. 

They said impacts of the immigration enforcement operation will be felt long after the influx of agents leave the state.

"For many that trauma will last a lifetime," said MJ Johnson, executive director of Partnership Academy, a charter school in Richfield with a student body that is 92% Hispanic. 

Students aren't showing up to class, districts said, or have switched to remote learning. Schools fear what the surge will mean for funding, since dollars are tied to enrollment, and for student achievement because of the learning loss. Columbia Heights Public Schools estimates they could lose $2 million next school year on top of existing budget gaps. 

Bill Adams, superintendent of Willmar Public Schools, said at its peak last month, there were 1,000 students absent out of 4,000 in the district on a single day

"Even as attendance began to recover by late January we experienced a major operation shift— approximately 430 of our students transferred to our online learning platform," Adams said. "When staff contacted families, parents explicitly cited fear as the primary driver across all demographics."

Meanwhile, nonprofits that provide legal advice for renters say calls for financial help spiked in January during the thick of the surge. Separately Wednesday, a Minnesota committee focused on housing discussed DFL-backed bills that would earmark $50 million dollars in emergency rental assistance and extend pre-eviction notice from two weeks to 30 days. 

"We cannot GoFundMe our way out of this structural housing crisis," said DFL Rep. Liish Kozlowski, noting the grassroots efforts to help people make rent. "Minnesotans are telling us loud and clear that it is time for the state to step up."

House Republicans have said they plan to revive an effort that would require cooperation between local governments and federal immigration authorities, including that county attorneys notify ICE if they have arrested an undocumented immigrant for a violent crime. 

"The root of what we saw this past winter with with Operation Metro Surge — we can disagree about maybe some of the tactic that was used — I think at the core of the issue was that we did have local municipalities who were being overtly uncooperative with federal immigration authorities," said GOP Rep. Max Rymer in a news conference on Monday. "I think my bill would have prevented, quite frankly, some of the chaos that we saw this past winter."

Any bill will need bipartisan support to pass the Legislature this year because of the tied Minnesota House. Republicans and Democrats co-chair committees in that chamber, so even advancing to a floor vote requires buy-in from both parties to advance.