Senate adopts higher‑education omnibus with anti‑fraud and student‑support provisions

The Minnesota Senate passed House File 4252 on May 11, an omnibus higher‑education measure containing technical updates and several policy provisions senators highlighted on the floor.

Sponsor Sen. Fouad Fateh emphasized a mix of administrative improvements and student‑facing measures, including a provision empowering the Office of Higher Education (OHE) to deny grants to students found to have committed fraud, a measure allowing certain employees paid leave when donating blood, a bar on for‑profit institutions controlling medical‑school curricula, and a priority registration policy for pregnant and parenting students.

Floor activity included multiple amendments. The A5 amendment restored pregnant/parenting student language inadvertently excluded from committee, A18 adjusted a sunset date and was adopted, and the A4 amendment addressing fee structures at universities was accepted as friendly. The A3 amendment — a proposal to prohibit state funding for undocumented noncitizens attending higher education — failed on roll call (33 nays, 34 yeas reported in the debate) and did not become law.

Proponents described the bill as largely technical with targeted improvements to student access and institutional accountability; opponents focused on cost and policy tradeoffs. On final passage the Senate recorded 36 yeas and 31 nays.

The bill moves forward under the normal legislative process for any conference or enrollment steps.