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Ron Latz

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Ron Latz
Member of the Minnesota Senate
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 8, 2013
Constituency46th district
In office
January 3, 2007 – January 8, 2013
Preceded bySteve Kelley
Succeeded byTerri Bonoff
Constituency44th district
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from the 44B district
In office
January 7, 2003 – January 3, 2007
Preceded byredrawn district
Succeeded byRyan Winkler
Personal details
Born (1963-08-09) August 9, 1963 (age 63)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
PartyDemocratic (DFL)
SpouseJulia Shmidov
Children3
RelativesBob Latz (father)
EducationUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison (BA)
Harvard University (JD)

Ronald Steven Latz (/ˈlæts/ LATS;[1] born August 9, 1963) is an American attorney and politician serving as a member of the Minnesota Senate. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), he represents District 46, which includes parts of Hennepin County in the western Twin Cities metropolitan area.

Early life and education

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Latz attended Golden Valley High School in Golden Valley and Lindberg High School in Hopkins, graduating in 1981. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1985 and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School in 1988.

Political career

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Latz was a Minnesota assistant attorney general for the Public Safety and Human Services Division under Attorney General Hubert Humphrey III from 1989 to 1995, then became a partner in the St. Louis Park law firm of Latz and Latz.[2][3]

Latz has been active on various government and community councils and boards. He was a member of the St. Louis Park City Council from 1994 to 2003, also serving as mayor pro tem from 1999 to 2003. He is a former member of the Minnesota Attorney General's task forces on Health Care and Privacy. He is also a former state advocacy chair of the American Cancer Society, a former member of the Anti-Defamation League's Civil Rights and Education committees, and a former member of the Metropolitan Interfaith Council on Affordable Housing.[3]

Minnesota legislature

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Latz was first elected to the House in 2002, and reelected in 2004. He was elected to the Senate in 2006, and reelected in 2010, 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2022.[2]

Before being elected to the Senate, Latz was a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, representing District 44B (before the 2002 legislative redistricting, the area was District 44A). He was first elected to the House in 2002, and reelected in 2004. In the House, he served on the Capital Investment, Civil Law, Education Policy and Reform, and Higher Education Finance committees.[2] His father, Robert Latz, also served in the House, representing the old districts 35 and 39 from 1959 to 1967.[4]

He served as a majority whip from 2007 to 2011.[5]

Latz served on the following committees for the 2025–26 legislative biennium:[6]

  • Chair of the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee
  • Commerce and Consumer Protection

Political positions

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His special legislative concerns are criminal and civil justice, public safety, consumer protection, and education.[6]

Latz supports gun control and a bill banning assault weapons.[7]

Housing

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Latz has supported legislation related to affordable housing, tenant protections, homelessness prevention, and manufactured home parks. He supported $100 million in housing infrastructure bonds to finance affordable housing units statewide and $14.275 million for Greater Minnesota workforce housing. He authored a bill increasing funding for the Bring It Home rental assistance program, and supported $13 million for supportive housing serving seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, and survivors of domestic violence.[8][9][10][11] He also supported $40 million for Family Homelessness Prevention programs and advanced a housing project in Hopkins creating hundreds of affordable and senior housing units.

As chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Latz gave hearings to SF 3565, which requires prospective tenants to be allowed to inspect their rental unit before signing a lease, and SF 4104, which expanded landlords' obligations to provide heat during Minnesota winters; both bills were enacted into law.[12][13] He was a strong supporter of emergency rental assistance legislation.[14]

Latz also supported the Manufactured Home Park Residents' Bill of Rights (SF 2691), which gives residents the first opportunity to purchase their park when it is sold, strengthens protections against excessive rent increases, and increases accountability for park owners.[15][16] During the bill's hearing in the Judiciary Committee, he helped defeat an amendment that would have removed the bill's 3% annual cap on rent increases.[17]

Palestine

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On November 29, 2023, during a press conference to condemn a movement that seeks to boycott or divest from Israel ahead of a meeting of the State Board of Investment, Latz said, "Palestinian children are taught at UNRWA schools that Jews should be killed. They attend summer camps that teach young kids how to be terrorists. They play 'kill the Jew' on the streets of Gaza. Children's television shows glorify the killings of Jews, and UNRWA-run elementary school playground toys are plastic AK-47s. Palestinian youth dream of the opportunity to achieve glory and even martyrdom by killing as many Jews as possible."[18][19]

After he was called out for his statements, he said they were taken out of context and referred to earlier comments about Gaza youth, education, and schools that allegedly train terrorists, citing various videos and news sources he had seen.[20] He invited his colleagues "to sit down and talk about the Middle East and the respective roles of Hamas and Israel in the ongoing conflict and the terrible loss of innocent lives".[21]

Personal life

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His father, Bob Latz, served in the House from 1959 to 1967 and was the DFL-endorsed candidate for Attorney General in 1966.[22] His grandfather, Rubin Latz, was president of the Minneapolis Council of Business Agents in the 1930s and 1940s, coming out of the Laundry and Dry Cleaners Union.[23][24] He is Jewish.[2]

References

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  1. ↑ Press Conference: Previewing Public Safety Conference Committee Report - 05/12/23. Minnesota State Senate Media Services. May 12, 2023. Event occurs at 00:29. Retrieved August 23, 2024 – via YouTube.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Minnesota Legislators Past & Present - Legislator Record - Latz, Ronald Steven". Leg.state.mn.us. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
  3. 1 2 "Project Vote Smart - Senator Ronald Steven 'Ron' Latz - Biography". Votesmart.org. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
  4. ↑ "Minnesota Legislators Past & Present - Legislator Record - Latz, Robert". Leg.state.mn.us. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
  5. ↑ "Senator Ron Latz DFL District 44". Senate.leg.state.mn.us. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
  6. 1 2 "MN State Senate". www.senate.mn. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  7. ↑ "Gun bills move past prior chokepoint in Minnesota Senate". 23 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  8. ↑ "SF 4784 Status in the Senate - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  9. ↑ Port, Senator Lindsey (2026-05-13). "Senator Lindsey Port Celebrates Passage of Bipartisan Housing Legislation | Minnesota Senate DFL". Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  10. ↑ "HF 1141 Status in the House - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  11. ↑ "New Laws - Minnesota House Public Information Services - Minnesota House of Representatives". www.house.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  12. ↑ "SF 3565 Status in the Senate - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  13. ↑ "SF 4104 Status in the Senate - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  14. ↑ "SF 4327 Status in the Senate - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  15. ↑ "SF 2691 Status in the House - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  16. ↑ Boldon, Senator Liz (2026-04-22). "Senator Liz Boldon Ushers Manufactured Home Park Residents' Bill of Rights to Senate Passage | Minnesota Senate DFL". Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  17. ↑ "scs2691a18". www.senate.mn. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  18. ↑ "DFL Senator draws heat for 'inflammatory' comments about Palestinians". 30 November 2023.
  19. ↑ Minnesota Senate Media Services (2023-11-29). Press Conference: Condemning the Anti-Israel Boycott, Divest, Sanctions (BDS) Movement - 11/29/23. Retrieved 2026-06-30 – via YouTube.
  20. ↑ "State senator responds to rebuke from colleagues over comments on Palestinians". December 2023.
  21. ↑ Latz, Senator Ron (2023-12-01). "Senator Ron Latz Responds to Statement by Senate Colleagues | Minnesota Senate DFL". Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  22. ↑ Minnesota Legislators: Past & Present-Robert "Bob" Latz
  23. ↑ Mordecai (2022-05-08). "Editorial: Three remarkable lives". American Jewish World. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  24. ↑ Mordecai (2022-04-22). "Jews and the Civil Rights Movement in Minnesota". American Jewish World. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
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