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Endorsement: Vote yes with confidence for more school funding
The amendment would raise annual school fund payouts from 2.5% to 4.5%, which analysts said would have added $28 million in 2025.
On November 3, Minnesota voters will decide on a constitutional amendment to modernize the Permanent School Fund's distribution process by shifting to full market-value payouts.
The Permanent School Fund Task Force, created by the Legislature in 2024, found the 168-year-old distribution process "archaic," prompting modernization efforts led by task force member Denise Dittrich of the Minnesota School Boards Association.
Minnesota's outdated method cost students $28 million in 2025; had these changes been in place, distributions would have reached $86 million instead of $58.6 million, yielding $33 more per student.
Republican Rep. Spencer Igo and DFL Sen. Mary Kunesh authored the legislation, with Kunesh stating the funding boost is "not chump change" for protecting teachers and school programs across districts.
Officials emphasized the amendment strengthens guardrails to ensure funds remain available in perpetuity without draining the principal; voters should note that leaving the ballot measure blank counts as a vote in opposition.