Minnesota Agencies

The Minnesota Legislature established the 12 member Legislative Permanent School Fund Commission to advise the Department of Natural Resources and the school trust lands director on the management of permanent school fund land, which is held in trust for the school districts of the state and to review legislation affecting permanent school fund land.

By January 15 of each year, the Commission shall submit a report to the legislature with recommendations for the management of school trust lands to secure long-term economic return for the permanent school fund.

The Permanent School Fund (PSF) is a trust that consists of two parts: lands granted to the state by the federal government, and the principal of the fund generated by those lands. A variety of lands have been consolidated into the PSF including school trust, swamp, and internal improvement lands. The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) manages these lands. The principal or corpus of the trust includes cash and investments generated from land sales, mining royalties, timber sales, lakeshore and other leases, gifts to the fund and any other sources. The State Board of Investment (SBI) is responsible for investment of the principal.

The Legislative Audit Commission, in a report issued in 1981, pointed out a number of areas where management of the PSF could be improved. In response to this the 1982 K-12 Education Finance Bill established the Permanent School Fund Advisory Committee. The PSF Advisory Committee is also designated, by state law, as the temporary trustee for PSF land that is involved in a land exchange. (From: MN House Research publication, "The Permanent School Fund - Background and Issues", 2001.)

2012 Minn. Laws Chap. 249 Sec. 2 Subd. 11 changed the Permanent School Fund Advisory Committee into a legislative commission. The new name is the Legislative Permanent School Fund Commission and is effective July 1, 2013.

As of 2012, 12 members now serve on the commission. In 2011 the Advisory Committee was made up of 17 members, including the chairs of the House and Senate Education Committees, the chairs of the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committees, the Commissioner of Children, Families, and Learning and two school superintendents.