Minnesota voters have an opportunity in the Nov. 3 election to send more funding to the state’s public schools – without raising taxes – by voting “yes” on a proposed amendment to the state’s constitution.
With high-profile races for governor and U.S. Senate dominating the media cycles and control of the statehouse up for grabs, the ballot question is, perhaps, flying under the radar this fall.
But its potential impact is significant, with benefits extending to every public school district in the state.
Education Minnesota, representing about 80,000 educators and school employees statewide, has endorsed a “yes” vote, as has the Minnesota AFL-CIO.
The amendment, if passed, would increase distributions from the state’s Permanent School Fund, a trust created in 1858 that pays public schools each year using revenue from timber sales, mineral leases and investment returns on public land.
Since 2010, the fund has grown from about $675 million to more than $2.3 billion, but a law passed in the 1800s still governs how the fund’s investment gains are distributed.
Last year, districts received a combined $58 million from the fund, or about 2.5% of its value. The proposed amendment would increase distributions to 4.5% of the fund’s three-year rolling average value, a rate agreed upon by a non-partisan task force of investment, trust, legal and education experts appointed by the Legislature in 2024.
The proposed rate is more in line with practices used by university endowments and charitable foundations across the country, supporters say.
The immediate impact depends on investment returns, of course, but had the amendment passed last year, school districts would have seen an increase of about $33 per pupil from the fund.
For example, in the White Bear Lake School District, it would have meant nearly $275,000 in added revenue. For Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, it would have drawn nearly $1 million in added funds.
The change won’t impact the state’s general fund or require any new taxes.
Votes in the Legislature to put the amendment on the Nov. 3 ballot drew bipartisan support, including a 134-0 vote in the House. Sen. Mary Kunesh, a DFLer and chief author of the amendment, called it “a responsible path forward.”
“As a former public school educator and chair of the Senate Education Finance Committee, I know how vital it is to secure additional funds and support for our public schools, and this is one way to provide that support without asking taxpayers to pay one penny more,” Kunesh added.
DFL and Republican leaders have voiced support for the ballot question, but advocates remain concerned on two fronts.
First, voters need to locate the proposed amendment on their ballot – it could be on the back side – and cast a vote. Minnesota constitutional amendments require a majority of all voters to mark the “yes” box, which means leaving the question blank counts as a “no” vote.
And educators, in particular, are concerned that the presence of the amendment question, which makes clear that the outcome will not raise taxes, could hurt the chances of local school funding questions that might also appear on the ballot, like a levy or bonding request.
While increased funding from the Permanent School Fund will help schools, Education Minnesota Vice President Marty Fridgen said, it won’t solve all their financial struggles. Many districts will still need to pass levies this fall to avoid cuts.
“For some people, they’re going to be going into the booth and also have an operating levy for their district,” Fridgen said. “Thirty dollars extra from this fund is not enough for some of our school districts to alleviate the other needs they have. So we’re nervous that people will vote yes on the amendment because it’s not going to raise their taxes, but on the other question they’re going to say no.”
Public school districts received, on average, $13,333 per pupil in state funding in the 2025 fiscal year, but a report issued by the nonpartisan North Star Policy Action in August found that, when adjusted for inflation, state funding continues to lag 2003 levels.
A historic investment during the 2023 legislative session cut the per-pupil aid gap by 56%, according to researchers. But 2025 funding remained 8.6% lower than the inflation-adjusted amount from 2003, a difference of about $1,249.
Learn more about the constitutional amendment at voteyesmnstudents.org.
– Michael Moore, UA editor