Here are the new laws taking effect in Minnesota on July 1
MINNEAPOLIS -- A series of new Minnesota laws will take effect on Saturday, after a DFL trifecta at the state capitol led to a sweeping legislative session.
Many of the bills take effect at different times, but some - including laws on college tuition, free universal meals, and health care worker safety, will take effect Saturday:
Taxes on adult-use cannabis
Minnesota became the 23rd state to legalize recreational cannabis, transforming a black market into regulated, state-licensed businesses throughout the state.
Marijuana use and possession will not be legal until Aug. 1, but funds to build the framework for regulating and taxing the drug will begin to flow on Saturday.
A 10% tax will be charged on retail cannabis sales - including hemp-derived THC edibles - with 20% of those funds distributed to local governments. That same gross receipts tax will apply to marijuana products once they're available for sale, which will likely be at least a year.
Gov. Tim Walz's office also opened applications for the director of the Office of Cannabis Management on Friday.
Universal school meals
Starting Saturday, free meals in schools will cover K-12 students in summer academic programs. Those students will be guaranteed a free breakfast and lunch every school day. Starting next school year, the universal meals will impact every school if they are enrolled in the federal free and reduced lunch program. The federal government will still pay for students who qualify based on income, but the state will pick up the tab of covering every other student.
Safety for nurses
One of the most contentious issues in the last days of the legislative session surrounded staffing levels at Minnesota hospitals. What was originally called the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act was gutted of its staffing provision when Mayo Clinic threatened to pull over $4 billion in investments from the state if it was not made exempt from the legislation.
Now called the Nurses and Patient Safety Act, the bill requires all hospitals to combat violence against health care workers. The health professional education loan forgiveness program will expand to include more nurses at nonprofit hospitals.
Free tuition to public colleges
Thousands of Minnesota students are eligible for free tuition at the state's public colleges under the higher education omnibus bill which Walz signed during the session.
The "North Star Promise Program" applies to students with families making under $80,000 a year. The state would fund 100% of tuition and fees and up to half the value of a Pell Grant any student received. Somewhere between 15,000 to 20,000 students will be eligible.
The bill also creates a program to provide tuition and fee-free college education to American Indian students, establishes a paramedic scholarship program, and requests the University of Minnesota provide students access to free menstrual products.
Expanded election laws
New laws expanding access for voters will also go into effect on Saturday. The laws allow voters to be absent from work at any point during the 46-day absentee voting period - and during election day - in order to cast their ballot.
The deadline for absentee ballots to be returned has also been extended until 8 p.m. on election day, and voters will now be able to sign in electronically using e-poll books.
Limiting no-knock warrants
The police shooting of Amir Locke, who was killed in 2022 during a no-knock raid in downtown Minneapolis, renewed scrutiny over the practice. New legislation cuts back on when a judge can issue a no-knock search warrant, as it can now only be used when the premises is unoccupied and those inside the premises "present an immediate threat of death or injury to the officers executing the warrant."
Note: The above video originally aired on May 30
