Minnesota Agencies

The board shall formulate, establish and maintain plans to encourage and reward unusual and meritorious suggestions and accomplishments by state employees promoting efficiency and economy in state government; appoint committees to consider suggestions and accomplishments of state employees, make recommendations thereon to the board; and render merit awards to state employees in accordance with such plans.

The Board manages a state employee suggestion system for approximately 30,000 classified and unclassified state employees in order to provide tangible and intangible savings to the state, increase employee morale, and increase the safety of the employees and public. 

The State Employees Merit Award Board was established by the legislature in 1955 (Laws of Minnesota 1955, chapter 753) to encourage and reward unusual and meritorious suggestions and accomplishments in promoting efficiency and economy in state government. The board originally had five members - all state employees appointed by the governor to two-year terms.

Laws of Minn. 1976, chap. 149, sec. 7 changed the name of the State Employees Merit Award Board to the State Employees Suggestion Board and increased the membership to seven. 

The board was eliminated in 1987 (see Laws of Minn. 1987, chap. 365, sec. 25). That same legislation included language allowing the commissioner of administration to establish an "endowment fund to reward state agencies and their employees for improving productivity and service quality" (see Minn. Stat. 16B.39, subd. 1a).

As of 1982, the board was comprised of seven members appointed by the Governor.