Honoring Melissa Hortman: MN House passes bill to rename state solar garden program

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota House lawmakers voted unanimously to name the state's community solar garden program after Minnesota House of Representatives Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman.

READ MORE: Minnesota's solar garden program could be renamed after Melissa Hortman

Melissa Hortman solar garden program

Big picture view:

As chair of the House Energy Finance and Policy Committee when she was a representative of the House at the time, Hortman promoted the state’s community solar garden program as an alternative way for Minnesotans to meet their energy demands.

What they're saying:

Rep. Patty Acum (DFL-Minnetonka) recalled Melissa's contribution to clean energy in the state during the bill's presentation on the house floor.

"She traveled the country and the world sharing about the benefits of this program, and it's held up as a model for other states to emulate," Rep. Acum said. "Melissa was proud of this program, and naming it in her honor is the least we can do to ensure her passion and commitment to distributed energy, to distributed renewable energy is not forgotten."

Rep. Larry Kraft (DFL-St. Louis Park) spoke about the impact she had on the lives of the people who benefited from her policies. 

"They can point to one person that has created 5,000 plus jobs in the solar industry here," Rep. Craft said. "They have many names for her representative, speaker, champion, fiercest ally, defender, five-star general and solar godmother."

Rep. Harry Niska (GOP-Ramsey) addressed the deep respect that Melissa carried herself with while carrying out the work of the office. 

"Speaker Emerita Hartman was a fierce defender of the House of Representatives, this institution, and the vital role that it plays in our democracy," Rep. Niska said. "And she really understood something fundamental about this chamber. In our job, we are the people's representatives of every institution in our state government. We stand the closest to the people that we serve and that we answer to."

What's next:

The bill still needs to pass the Minnesota Senate, and be signed by Gov. Walz, before it can ultimately be adopted.

Dig deeper:

A community solar garden, or CSG, allows a subscriber to participate in a solar energy system along with others, who then share the electricity generated by the project as a credit on their electric bill.

Supporters of CSGs tout benefits such as predictable electricity rates, potential utility bill savings and increasing renewable energy resources.

Minnesota lawmaker shootings

The backstory:

Rep. Hortman and her husband Mark, along with their dog, were fatally shot in their Brooklyn Park home on June 14, 2025.

Shortly after, Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were also injured in their Champlin home.

The suspect, Vance Boelter, also went to two other Democratic lawmakers' homes that night disguised as a police officer during the attack.

At the Hortman home, authorities say they confronted Boelter and exchanged gunfire with him, forcing him to flee on foot and leave behind his vehicle, which resembled a police cruiser.

In the aftermath, Boelter was indicted on six counts, including murder. He has since entered a not guilty plea to all charges against him, but could potentially be sentenced to the death penalty if convicted.

Minnesota lawmakers have since sought increased security measures around the state capital complex for upcoming legislative sessions.