End of Session Update from Rep. Knudsen: Offense and Defense

Minnesota House GOP sent this bulletin at 05/20/2026 01:10 PM CDT

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Legislative Update

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

The 2026 legislative session officially concluded Sunday night as we worked up to the midnight deadline to finish our work for the year. This session, and the biennium as a whole, was unlike any other in recent memory. As you know, the Legislature was narrowly divided, with Democrats holding just a one-vote majority in the Senate and the House tied at 67-67. That meant Republicans had to work hard to advance our priorities and fight back against harmful proposals. More than anything, this session was defined not only by the good we were able to accomplish, but also by the bad we were able to stop.

The Good We Accomplished

We worked throughout the session to address some of the biggest issues facing Minnesota families: affordability, government accountability, and stopping fraud.

Because Republicans successfully forced divided government at the Capitol, we were able to secure several meaningful wins for taxpayers that likely would not have happened under a full DFL trifecta. In fact, if Democrats had unchecked control of state government again, Minnesotans would very likely be facing even higher taxes and fees today.

This session included important victories such as expanding the property tax refund to provide some relief for homeowners, one-time vehicle tab fee reduction to make car ownership more affordable, and investing in county IT modernization to improve government efficiency and help prevent fraud and system failures.

We also continued pushing for stronger oversight and accountability after repeated fraud scandals exposed serious failures within state government agencies. Minnesotans deserve to know their tax dollars are being protected and spent responsibly. While there is still more work to do, divided government helped stop many harmful proposals and forced a greater focus on the issues that matter most to working families and communities across Minnesota.

Establishing the OIG

One thing we did this session to combat fraud was passing legislation to establish the independent Office of the Inspector General. The bill has now been signed into law by the Governor and the office should be set up soon.

This new office is designed to improve how the state identifies, investigates, and addresses fraud and misuse of public funds. Importantly, it is structured to be independent from the Governor’s office, with its own authority and law enforcement powers. That independence is intended to ensure investigations can be carried out without political influence and with full focus on rooting out wrongdoing wherever it occurs.

I supported the effort to establish this office because stronger oversight is necessary. Taxpayers expect their dollars to be protected, and when fraud occurs, it undermines trust in government and diverts resources away from the people and programs that truly need them.

At the same time, we cannot assume this alone solves the problem. The level of fraud we have seen in recent years has been significant, and it will take sustained focus and tough enforcement to turn that around. This office will need to be held accountable for delivering real results, not just added bureaucracy.

We will be watching closely as it gets up and running. If it proves effective, it will be a meaningful tool in the fight against fraud. If it does not go far enough, we will need to continue evaluating additional reforms and stronger enforcement mechanisms to ensure taxpayer dollars are protected and public trust is restored.

The Bad We Stopped

Just as important as the progress we made were the harmful proposals we were able to stop. If Democrats had full control over the legislature, the outcome would have been a lot different. Not only would the small wins I already mentioned not have happened, but the following legislation would have passed. House Republicans were the one vote that was able to stop this slew of horrible, and in some cases unconstitutional, legislation from becoming law.

Climate Supertax

We successfully blocked efforts to impose a costly climate supertax that would have taxed Minnesota families $35,000 over 5 years. This proposal was supposed to get back at oil and gas companies for "climate change" that they have caused since 1995.

Gun Control

We stopped unconstitutional gun control and firearm ban proposals that would infringe on the rights of law-abiding citizens. Democrat proposals included banning "assault style weapons," magazines over 10 rounds, assembling your firearm more than three times in a year (even to clean it), and so much more. Despite debate on the House floor in which we explained that these proposals would make high-school trap shooters and average hunters into felons, Democrats stood strong in their support for the bills. We did not let them pass.

Vehicle Tab Fee Increases

We stood strong against an idea to quintuple car tab fees, after the DFL controlled government increased tab fees dramatically already two years ago. As I mentioned already, we were able to secure a one-time tab fee reduction, which will provide a little bit of relief to vehicle owners.

5th Tier Tax Bracket

We successfully blocked a proposal to create a new fifth tier tax bracket. This would drive away more high earners by installing the fourth-highest income tax in the nation. I have said this before and I will say it again, our state does not have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem. Increasing taxes again and again will not solve the problem, only cutting down spending will.

Wealth Tax

Another proposal this session would have created a wealth tax on total assets above $10 million, including businesses, investments, real estate, farmland, and other property. While aimed at high-net-worth individuals, it would have had real impacts on family farms, small businesses, and property owners by taxing paper value rather than actual income. That creates serious challenges for asset-heavy but income-variable operations like agriculture, where land values don’t reflect annual cash flow. It also would have increased valuation disputes, administrative costs, and uncertainty for long-term investment. We did not allow this to move forward at all. Again, Minnesota has a spending problem, not a revenue problem. Increasing taxes will not fix the problem and will just stretch families thinner.

With divided government, we were able to provide an important check on one-party control and prevent many costly and extreme policies from becoming law.

Shoutouts

I want to give a HUGE shoutout to the Pequot Lakes High School Robotics team for winning the state robotics tournament for the second year in a row. This was a huge accomplishment and took a lot of hard work and dedication. Congratulations to the whole team!

Thank you!

I want to thank you for all of your support this session as I fought for the great people of District 5A. It is an honor to be your voice in St. Paul and I always appreciate the support from back home while I'm in the cities. If you ever have any questions or concerns about legislation or anything else, I am happy to help or point you in the right direction. Never hesitate to reach out!

Please Reach Out

You can reach my office at Rep.Krista.Knudsen@house.mn.gov or by phone at 651-296-9918. Follow me on Facebook for more frequent updates.

/RepKristaKnudsen

2424 Centennial Office Building 658 Cedar St.
Saint Paul, MN 55155 rep.krista.knudsen@house.mn.gov 651.296.9918

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