West Twin Cities

Minnesota State Representative Dawn Gillman provided an update following the adjournment of the 2025 legislative session on May 19, noting that lawmakers left without passing a state budget. Gillman criticized House Democrats for not attending the first three weeks of session after one of their candidates was disqualified, resulting in a temporary Republican majority. She stated, "The first three weeks of session were stalled completely when House Democrats refused to show up for work. Their absence came after one of their candidates was disqualified for not living in the district he ran in, giving Republicans a temporary one-seat majority. Rather than working through it together, they walked out—for 23 days. That lost time set everything back, and we’ve been trying to make up ground ever since."

Gillman also expressed frustration with the breakdown in budget negotiations: "After weeks of bipartisan negotiations and long hours hammering out agreements, Democrats abandoned several budget deals at the last minute—caving to pressure from political allies and special interest groups. These were not radical proposals. They were thoughtful, responsible compromises. It was disappointing to watch that progress get tossed aside."

As a member of the Human Services Finance and Policy Committee working group, Gillman described efforts to create a responsible financial plan: "I’ve been putting in a lot of late nights with our Human Services Finance and Policy Committee working group, trying to get a smart, responsible plan ready to go. The work isn’t always glamorous—but it matters. Every decision we make impacts real lives, and I don’t take that lightly."

Key unresolved issues include health care funding for undocumented immigrants—a program whose projected costs have tripled—and concerns about paid family and medical leave implementation affecting small businesses.

On education policy, Gillman noted progress extending unemployment benefits for seasonal school workers by redirecting funds from another project: "After far too much delay, we finally reached a solution to extend unemployment benefits for seasonal school workers. The hang-up? Some special interest groups didn’t want to admit that most schools can’t afford year-round benefits for nine-month jobs. We got creative and redirected funds from a stalled train project to Duluth—and got the job done."

Regarding transportation funding disputes over environmental regulations remain unresolved: "We were nearly there, but last-minute disagreements over environmental regulations held it up. These new mandates would raise the cost of road projects at a time when we need every dollar to count."

Despite these challenges, Gillman remains optimistic about completing remaining legislative tasks during an anticipated special session: "The good news? Much of the heavy lifting is done. We’re just waiting on leadership to finalize a date for a special session so we can finish what we started."

Gillman's update also included personal reflections on Memorial Day activities with her family and reminders about honoring those who served.