MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Senate has approved a renewed Republican attempt to rescind Democratic Gov. Tim Walz’s emergency authority to close schools amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The GOP-controlled Senate passed the bill 40-27 on Thursday.
It came one day after the Democratic governor announced a plan to speed up the return of students to school for in-person classes.
The vote was largely symbolic. The Democratic-controlled House rejected a similar proposal last week.
It's rebuffed all previous Republican attempts to revoke the governor's emergency powers.
But it was a sign of the continuing deep partisan divisions over how the state should respond to the pandemic.
Just wrapped up on the Senate floor where we passed my bill to give local school districts the authority to make their own decisions about how to best conduct instruction future emergencies or pandemics.
Grateful for the support from both sides of the aisle! #mnleg pic.twitter.com/Vf4F7Ydzl8
— Carla Nelson (@CarlaNelsonMN) February 18, 2021
