SF 203 Minnesota Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Omnibus Housing bill

This bill authorizes Minnesota to issue up to $400 million in housing infrastructure bonds to fund housing projects. It establishes annual funding transfers from the state general fund to a housing bond account, with specific annual limits: $6.4 million (2015-2037), $800,000 (2017-2038), and $2.8 million (2019-2040) for different bond series. These funds will support housing infrastructure development across the state. The bill directly affects state housing programs and the state budget through these mandated annual appropriations.

Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 16, 2025 Last action May 11, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

1st Engrossment → 2nd Engrossment · 6 edits · Apr 22, 2026

MODERATE

This bill update shifts the legislative version from the 1st to the 2nd engrossment, incorporating several substantive policy changes. Most notably, it strengthens protections for manufactured home park residents by raising the burden of proof required for owners to justify rent increases beyond 3% and clarifying the definition of 'immediate family' for housing tax credit eligibility. The bill also adds new exemptions for 'lived-experience engagement' income in public assistance programs and introduces transparency requirements for the Housing Finance Agency when transferring funds between programs.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include new exemptions for specific types of income and clarified definitions for eligibility determinations in housing tax credit programs.

REQUIREMENT

Rent increase rules for manufactured home parks were tightened; owners must now prove increases over 3% are reasonable using 'clear and convincing evidence' of health/safety or cost needs, and the presumption of unreasonability was strengthened.

New transparency requirements mandate that the Housing Finance Agency must notify legislative committee chairs and file written notice with the Legislative Reference Library before transferring unencumbered funds between programs.

A new requirement was added for the Housing Finance Agency to treat all state appropriations not designated for the housing development fund under specific accounting provisions (section 16A.28).

ELIGIBILITY

A new exemption was added stating that income from 'lived-experience engagement' is not counted as income or assets for public assistance eligibility or recertification.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'disqualified individual' for housing tax credits was expanded to explicitly include immediate family members (spouse, parents, siblings, children) and their businesses in eligibility restrictions.

TIMELINE

Certain financial provisions regarding the Housing Development Fund and appropriations available until expended were updated to apply to funds appropriated on or after July 1, 2027.

Introduction → 1st Engrossment · 8 edits · Apr 16, 2026

MODERATE

This bill significantly expands the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency's authority to issue housing infrastructure bonds, increasing the authorized limit from $400 million to $500 million and adding new funding streams. It also introduces new grants for capacity building and modifies rules regarding manufactured home parks, including stricter rent increase limits and protections against digital payment discrimination.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of housing funding by adding new bond series and grant programs, while simultaneously tightening regulations on manufactured home park owners regarding rent increases, utility billing, and payment methods.

FISCAL

Increased the authorized housing infrastructure bond limit from $400 million to $500 million to provide more capital for housing projects.

Added a new capacity building grant program to help nonprofit organizations and local governments expand their ability to provide affordable housing and related services.

REQUIREMENT

Limited manufactured home park owners to one rent increase per 12-month period (previously two) and required rent increases to be reasonable, defined as not exceeding three percent annually.

Mandated that park owners offer alternative payment methods (like cash or check) to residents and prohibited charging fees for using these alternatives or for digital payment platform outages.

ELIGIBILITY

Restricted eligibility for certain housing grants to projects located outside of metropolitan counties, excluding single-family and multifamily developments within city limits.

ADDED

Added new safety requirements for manufactured home parks, including a 14-day deadline for tree removal or arborist inspection when a safety hazard is reported by a resident.

TIMELINE

Established a July 1, 2027, cutoff date for certain funding transfer rules and appropriations, with different rules applying to funds appropriated before versus after this date.

ENFORCEMENT

Strengthened enforcement by allowing residents to challenge unreasonable rent increases in court and providing a specific affirmative defense for evictions based on digital payment platform failures.

Floor votes

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Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 22, 2026

Upper · Passed

Comm report: To pass as amended

upper

Apr 16, 2026

Upper · Passed

Comm report: To pass as amended and re-refer to Finance

upper

Jan 16, 2025

Committee

Referred to Housing and Homelessness Prevention

upper

Jan 16, 2025

Introduced

Introduction and first reading

upper

1 primary · 4 co-sponsors