Legal cannabis, family and medical leave progressing at Minnesota Capitol

Several major pieces of legislation continue to make progress at the Minnesota Capitol.

Representatives in the Minnesota House discusses a couple of those bills Thursday, as committee hearings were held for a bill to legalize recreational marijuana and for paid family and medical leave legislation.

The two have been closely watched by many Minnesotans this year now that DFL lawmakers control both chambers of the legislature and have prioritized the legislation.

The Education Finance Committee became the ninth committee to approve the cannabis bill while the Human Services Finance Committee was the fifth to approve the family leave legislation.

Also at the Capitol on Thursday, state lawmakers and gun safety advocates rallied for their annual Advocacy Day, urging the legislature to pass gun safety measures this session. Several gun safety bills have already been introduced by lawmakers but are still working their way through committees.

Lawmakers and supporters of a bill to expand earned sick and safe time also spoke out before the full Minnesota House was scheduled to take up the bill Thursday evening. That bill also still needs to be approved by the Senate before it could go to Gov. Tim Walz’s desk.

Track all of those bills and many others as they progress at the Capitol with KSTP’s Legislative Tracker.