# Heather Gustafson *Democratic–Farmer–Labor member of the Minnesota Senate for District 36 (2023–present)* Heather Gustafson is a [[Minnesota]] politician and former teacher. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), she has held the District 36 seat in the [[Minnesota Senate]] since January 2023, when the 93rd legislature convened.[^1] District 36 lies in the northern suburbs of the Twin Cities. Its communities are Vadnais Heights, White Bear Lake, Lino Lakes, North Oaks, Gem Lake, Circle Pines, Centerville, White Bear Township, and Birchwood Village.[^1] She won the seat in November 2022 by defeating the incumbent, Roger Chamberlain. Per Wikipedia, hers was the only 2022 Senate campaign to flip a seat.[^1] Wikipedia credits her as chief Senate author of the state's universal school meals law, signed on March 17, 2023.[^1] It also identifies her as chief author of SF856, a bill to create an independent Office of Inspector General, which the Senate passed 60–7 on May 8, 2025.[^1] The record does not settle whether SF856 has since been enacted. Wikipedia lists it as awaiting House action as of 2026.[^1] A Minnesota Senate DFL page's title refers to the governor's signing of her inspector-general legislation.[^2] ## Early life and education Gustafson, the older of two siblings, grew up in a small town in central Minnesota and finished high school at Sartell High School.[^1] At Minnesota State University Moorhead she studied mass communication. She then worked in radio in Moorhead, [[St. Cloud]], and the Twin Cities.[^1] She subsequently obtained a teaching license and a Master of Education from the College of Saint Scholastica.[^1] She spent 11 years in the classroom, most of them in the Centennial School District, and stopped when the 2023 session began.[^1] ## Political career ### Minnesota Senate In the November 2022 election Gustafson won District 36, a suburban seat north of Saint Paul in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, by unseating Chamberlain.[^1] *[[The Minnesota Star Tribune]]* called her a "political player to watch".[^1] ### Committee assignments Wikipedia's committee list names her vice chair of the Senate Education Finance Committee and vice chair of the Senate State and Local Government Committee.[^1] The same list places her on the Agriculture and Rural Development, Veterans, and Jobs and Economic Development committees.[^1] The article's opening section gives the Education Finance vice chairmanship but does not mention the State and Local Government post.[^1] ## Legislative record Gustafson has called bipartisan collaboration a hallmark of her legislative approach.[^1] Wikipedia reports that more than 70% of the legislation she has authored has carried bipartisan co-authors.[^1] ### Food access Wikipedia identifies Gustafson as chief Senate author of the Universal School Meals legislation, which Governor [[Tim Walz]] signed into law on March 17, 2023.[^1] The law guarantees free breakfast and lunch to all K–12 students in Minnesota.[^1] Wikipedia states that the law made Minnesota the fourth state to provide universal school meals. It also states that the law saves families in her district an estimated $1,800 a year on groceries.[^1] The same article credits her with establishing and expanding the state's Farm to School program, which links local farms with school cafeterias (SF2158, 2023).[^1] It also credits her with authoring SF3528 to extend the program to more childcare facilities. It records her continued support for Farm to School funding in the 2025–26 session (SF1559).[^1] She is listed as author of the Minnesota Food Bank Program (SF4185, 2024). Wikipedia also notes her continued advocacy for food bank and emergency food shelf infrastructure in the 2025–26 session (SF3895).[^1] ### Fraud investigation Gustafson is chief author of SF856, a bill to establish an independent [[Office of Inspector General]] empowered to investigate fraud, waste, and abuse in state programs.[^1] The Minnesota Senate passed the bill 60–7 on May 8, 2025.[^1] Wikipedia notes that she partnered with a Republican co-author on the bill.[^1] It also cites a Senate DFL release in which she applauded a House committee's advancement of the legislation.[^1] The sources differ on the bill's status. Wikipedia, retrieved October 26, 2026, states that as of 2026 it awaited action in the [[Minnesota House of Representatives]].[^1] A Minnesota Senate DFL web page, titled as Gustafson's statement on the governor's signing of her Office of Inspector General legislation, indicates enactment. The record here does not date that page or identify an enacted chapter.[^2] ## Personal life Gustafson makes her home in Vadnais Heights with her family.[^1] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Heather Gustafson* (revision 1365581374, retrieved 2026-10-26), CC BY-SA 4.0 — biography, 2022 election, committee assignments and legislative record as stated in the article. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heather_Gustafson [^2]: Minnesota Senate DFL, *Senator Heather Gustafson Issues Statement on Governor's Signing of Her Office of Inspector General Legislation* (undated in the record) — page title reporting Gustafson's statement on the governor's signing of her Office of Inspector General legislation. https://senatedfl.mn/senator-heather-gustafson-issues-statement-on-governors-signing-of-her-office-of-inspector-general-legislation/