by Paul Demko
Published: March 19, 2010
Tags: Bob Fletcher, Mee Moua, Rich Neumeister
But Fletcher insists that all those advances would be threatened if a bill put forth by state Sen. Mee Moua, DFL-St. Paul, becomes law.
by Charley Shaw
Published: March 19, 2010
Tags: Lisa Fobbe, Paul Marquart, Rod Skoe
State lawmakers and agriculture lobbyists are debating how to deal with the escalating property tax bills that are hitting Minnesota farms. And the differences of opinion reach all the way down to House and Senate DFL committee chairs.
by Betsy Sundquist
Published: March 19, 2010
Tags: David Schultz, John Marty
There isn’t a lot you can learn by perusing the state’s annual report on lobbying activity in Minnesota, but here’s what we do know: Special-interest groups, organizations and companies spent more than $52.5 million lobbying the Minnesota Legislature last year. That’s almost $10 million less than they spent in 2008 and the smallest amount since 2004, according to a report from the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board.
by Steven B. Young
Published: March 19, 2010
I've been asked: why trust markets to provide health care when they just don't work fairly? Just look at the Wall Street meltdown if you have any remaining doubts about the efficacy of markets to serve the common good, the counter argument went. There is a point to this objection to reliance on markets, but not a fully persuasive one to me.
by Steve Perry
Published: March 17, 2010
Tags: Larry Pogemiller, Paul Demko, Tim Pawlenty
A few months ago, it looked like Minnesota’s long-deferred confrontation with its structural budget troubles would start in earnest in session 2010. But it won't play out that way.
by Paul Demko
Published: March 17, 2010
Tags: Brian McClung, Dick Cohen, Larry Pogemiller, Lyndon Carlson, Tim Pawlenty, Tom Hanson
When Gov. Tim Pawlenty included $387 million in anticipated federal FMAP (Medicaid) funding in his proposal to solve the state’s budget deficit, Democrats gleefully attacked the move as budget gimmickry. They pointed out — repeatedly — that the money had not yet even been appropriated by legislators in Washington.
by Charley Shaw
Published: March 17, 2010
Tags: Ann Lenczewski, Richard Cohen, Tim Pawlenty, Tom Bakk, Tom Rukavina
DFL legislators are nearly ready with the first portion of their planned “three-tier” solution to Minnesota’s current $1 billion budget deficit.
by Betsy Sundquist
Published: March 17, 2010
Tags: Alan DeKruif, Cy Thao, David Carlson, Debbie Johnson, Jack Baker, Jason White, Jeremiah Ellis, Jeremy Kalin, Jeremy Lindman, Jessica Webster, Jim Carlson, Jim Vickerman, Katie Hatt, Kevin Dahle, Kim Hummel, Lisa Fobbe, Margaret Anderson Kelliher, Marion Greene, Marty Seifert, Michael Brodkorb, Michelle Benson, Mike Garber, Mike Kaess, Pat Pariseau, Patrick Munro, Rena Moran, Rob Lambert, Robert Barrett, Russell Goudge, Sheldon Anderson, Steve Dille, Steve Murphy, Taylor Gronau, Ted Daley, Tom Nordyke, Tony Schmitz, William Paulsen
If it’s possible to judge a legislator’s re-election vulnerability solely on the number of challengers that he or she attracts, then Lisa Fobbe, Jim Carlson and Kevin Dahle should probably watch their backs.
by Dane Smith
Published: March 17, 2010
Tags: Ann Rest, Bush Foundation, Dane Smith, Humphrey Institute, Obama, Paul Marquart, Peter Hutchinson, Sandy Rummel, Terri Bonoff
Bush Foundation President Peter Hutchinson frequently has used the phrase “bowling in the fog” to describe the frustration of community leaders who are forced to make decisions without enough research and evidence.
by Charley Shaw
Published: March 12, 2010
Teachers’ union is a lone — but loud — voice of opposition to omnibus bill The words being used to describe this year’s omnibus pension bill are more dramatic than those from previous legislative sessions. Legislators and lobbyists are referring to it as “shared sacrifice,” and one GOP state representative even used the term “bailout.”
