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The Minnesota Legislature passed dozens of laws this spring. Many go into effect July 1 — the start of the state’s fiscal year — including social media restrictions, money for infrastructure projects across the state and safety requirements for schools.

A law that requires boards of school districts or charter schools to adopt anonymous threat reporting systems goes into effect this July. However, schools have until June 30, 2027 to adopt a policy to implement a system and until July 1, 2028 to actually implement the system.

Schools can either use the Department of Public Safety’s 

 or implement their own systems. Systems must allow for 24-hour reporting of anonymous tips regarding “dangerous, violent, harmful, or potentially harmful activity that occurs, or is threatened on, school property or relates to an enrolled student or school personnel” using a mobile application, website and toll-free hotline.

Police must notify the appropriate licensing board when a teacher is criminally charged with an offense that triggers automatic license denial. The crime of grooming is added to that list of offenses as well. This requirement is part of a larger law effective Aug. 1 that 

Grooming is defined as when a person 18 years or older “expresses to a child the desire or intent to engage in sexual conduct with that child” and “engages in a deliberate pattern of conduct to methodically develop a false trusting relationship with the child that is intended to strategically manipulate the child to engage in sexual conduct with the person at a future time, regardless of whether any sexual conduct occurs.”

Combatting ‘ghost students’ in higher ed

College administrators say “ghost students” are fraudsters, often overseas, who enroll in schools using fake or stolen identities to steal student benefits or financial aid. Effective July 1, the Legislature appropriated $3 million to help the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system implement identity verification systems.

A health and human services law passed in 2025 includes a provision that starting July 1, 2026, social media platforms have to display mental health warnings whenever a user accesses the platform. 

The Minnesota Department of Health drafted a long list of warnings that social media companies could display to users, like: “Warning: The app may repeatedly show similar or upsetting content, which may negatively affect your mental health. Use tools (mute, unfollow, ‘not interested’) to change what you see. Support is available: Call/text 988 or visit 988Lifeline.org.”

 to stop the law from going into effect. That lawsuit is still working its way through the courts.

Mental health grant program for young children

Lawmakers established an early childhood mental health grant program designed to identify and support the mental health needs of children under five years old. Advocates of the program say early intervention can help prevent children from experiencing long, expensive hospital stays or stints in juvenile detention later in life.

The Legislature passed a $1.2 billion borrowing bill to fund infrastructure projects around the state, but most of that legislation went into effect already. Lawmakers also passed a $46.5 million projects bill paid for in cash. The cash bill is funded by money the government already has on hand. Several provisions go into effect July 1 that free up money for 

Minnesota administers human services programs like Medicaid and SNAP at the county or tribal level, but the technology staff use to get those dollars in people's pockets dates back decades. 

 to modernize local information technology systems across the state. Included in the package is $15 million to improve fraud detection technology.

A large safety and security law includes appropriations for public and lawmaker safety for fiscal year 2027, which begins July 1. Some key provisions:

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Cait Kelley

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Many new laws go into effect in Minnesota starting July 1. Here’s how those laws could affect you.

Cait Kelley | MPR News

grooming bill final session days, group 2 

Here are the Minnesota laws that go into effect on July 1

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