THEPOLITICSPORTAL
COMMENTARY
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David Strom: There ought (not) to be a law…
It’s almost impossible to argue against tightening the rules intended to prevent hazards. After all, who is in favor of hazardous activity, especially when one person’s hazardous activity can put other people in danger?
ELECTIONS
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Stripped down elections bill passes Senate unanimously
Sen. Katie Sieben, DFL-Newport, removed all controversial provisions from the omnibus elections bill when it came up for a vote on the floor Wednesday evening. The stripped down legislation passed unanimously.
BUDGET / TAXES
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House passes tax bill with $2.1 billion in increased revenues
The House passed a tax bill that includes just over $2 billion in tax increases by a 69-65 vote early Monday morning. The legislation now heads to the Senate and is the lynchpin of the budget deal needed to conclude the legislative session.
EDUCATION
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Higher ed bill headed to Dayton’s desk
The House passed a higher education finance bill that increases spending by $250 million and freezes tuition for two years on 76-56 vote on Friday. Just three Republicans voted for the bill, sponsored by Rep. Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona.
ENERGY / ENVIRONMENT
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Legislature sends environment and ag budget to Dayton
The House and Senate on Saturday night passed their negotiated deal on funding for the next two years for the environment and agriculture. The conference report is the settlement between the opposing viewpoints in the DFL majorities between business and environmentalists.
HEALTH CARE
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Health and human services budget headed to Dayton’s desk
The legislation, which includes a 5 percent rate increase for nursing homes next year and additional spending for mental health services in schools, passed of the chamber floor on a 39-28 vote. At the start of the debate, bill author Tony Lourey, DFL-Kerrick, said the final budget bill was considerably better than a proposal passed earlier in the year. That’s because both chambers originally faced a $150 million targeted budget cut in health and human services, but that number was scaled back to $50 million when leadership reached final budget targets with Gov. Mark Dayton.

















