Minnesota Session Laws--Tally and Printed Page Count, 1973-present

The Legislative Reference Library tracks many statistics related to the legislature, including the number of laws enacted each session. There has been a steady decline in the number of laws enacted in the years since flexible sessions were put in place in 1973.  (Prior to 1973, the Legislature met every other year, making the the number of laws less comparable.)

However, in looking at the number of pages in the published version of Minnesota Session Laws since 1973, it appears that though the number of pages of laws has fluctuated, the number of pages hasn't declined in the same way as the number of laws enacted.  Additionally, the average number of pages per law has increased over the same period of time.

This analysis doesn't control for all variables.  Font size in printed volumes of Session Laws isn't always consistent, which may affect page count.