ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Agriculture
budget and policy bill passed through both the House and Senate on Sunday, May 18, and was signed into law on May 23 by Gov. Tim Walz.
The $164 million funding package will take effect on July 1. Its passage was celebrated by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture commissioner, Thom Petersen.
“We worked closely with lawmakers throughout the session to craft a bill that invests in Minnesota agriculture and our farmers and ranchers,” said Petersen in a news release. “The bill also provides food to those in need, supports mental health and farm safety resources, and protects our natural resources. It is a major win for our ag community and sets us all up for success now and into the future.”
Here’s a breakdown of some of the largest items in the budget:
$115 million for the Department of Agriculture.
$13.5 million for the Board of Animal Health.
$8.7 million to the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute.
$2 million to the Office of Broadband Development to increase high-speed internet access across the state.
$400,000 for grants to combat the spread of livestock and poultry diseases.
Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle were pleased with the bill's passage.
“Minnesota is a powerhouse in agriculture and, overall, this is a good bill that will help the industry and be good for farmers,” said House agriculture committee co-chair Rep. Paul Anderson, R-Starbuck. “We had to make a few revisions from what the House had previously proposed because the spending total was reduced during the process. I’m particularly pleased we were able to maintain increased funding for the Board of Animal Health to help address outbreaks in our flocks and herds.”
Likewise, co-chair Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, appreciated the support the bill was able to provide.
“DFLers were focused on passing an ag budget that feeds kids and families, helps small farmers get ahead, and protects Minnesotans from bird flu. Our final negotiated budget does that,” Hansen said in a news release.
The Senate Agriculture, Broadband, and Rural Development Chair Aric Putnam, DFL-St. Cloud, said the bill responds to federal cuts with state support for local food purchasing, farm to school program funding, avian influenza response and farmer mental health and safety support.
“Food shouldn’t be political,” said Putnam in a news release. “But at a time when the federal government is slashing support for families who are struggling, Minnesota is choosing to invest in our communities and in the farmers who feed us.”
The House passed the ag budget and policy bill with a vote of 130-4. The Senate passed the bill 58-8, sending it to the governor. The $164 million budget covers the years 2026-27.
Other funded items
A “non-negotiable” Senate proposal in this bill includes an increase in grain license inspection and storage fees. This is a fee Republicans largely pressed back on in an effort to reduce the increasing costs on grain elevators. The new fee for any license issued or renewed after June 30, 2025, is $500. In addition to the license fee, a grain buyer must pay an examination fee for each licensed location, with a charge of $.0035 per bushel of capacity, not less than $350 and not more than $4,000. Increases are not to exceed 150% more than the previous year.
Looking to bolster the agricultural emergency fund for handling responses to disease outbreaks like avian influenza, the passed bill transfers $1.5 million from the General Fund in fiscal year 2026 to the ag emergency account.
An appropriation of $3 million is included for design, engineering, construction, equipping and furnishing a wastewater treatment project at First District Association in Litchfield. Anderson wrote that the dairy processor is facing regulatory hurdles and could be forced to reduce production without wastewater improvements. First District Association processes about 40% of the state’s dairy production.
The bill includes a new state-level Local Food Purchasing Assistance Program that is meant to fill in following the federal program that was terminated in March. It provides $700,000 per year in fiscal years 2026-29. The funds are meant to help farmers build markets and provide food to food shelves around the state.
Similarly, it provides funding for the Farm to School and Early Care Program, an additional $550,000.
The funding package also supports milk purchases to Minnesota food shelves; rural mental health and farm safety; increases funds for wolf depredation and elk damage; increases funding for Farm Business Management; funds an evaluation of the Olmsted County Soil Health Program; increases meat inspection funding; creates a biofertilizer efficiency pilot program; and funds county ag inspectors.