by Charley Shaw
Published: April 24, 2013
Tags: Bob Barrett, Bob Gunther, Charlie Weaver, Chuck Wiger, David Olson, Dean Urdahl, Denny McNamara, finance bill, Glenn Gruenhagen, Greg Davids, Jim Abeler, Jim Bartholomew, K-12 education, Kathy Brynaert, Kelby Woodard, Mark Uglem, Minnesota House of Representatives, Paul Anderson, Paul Marquart, Ron Kresha, Session 2013, Sondra Erickson, Tony Cornish
K-12 education finance bills that account for roughly 40 percent of the state’s general fund spending are moving through the House and Senate floors this week.
by Briana Bierschbach
Published: November 9, 2012
Tags: Bill Glahn, Charlie Weaver, Cindy Pugh, Cristine Almeida, Eliot Seide, Geoff Michel, Gregg Peppin, Jay McNamar, Keith Downey, King Banaian, Kurt Zellers, Matt Dean, Melisa Franzen, Mike Dudley, Mike Kennedy, Paul Thissen, Roger Erickson, Ron Erhardt, Roz Peterson, Ted Lillie, Tim Faust, Tom Bakk, Vicki Jensen, Zach Dorholt
Rumblings about the marriage amendment’s unpopularity in the western suburbs came early in the campaign season. Orange and blue “vote no” signs vastly outnumbered “vote yes” ones, particularly in places like Edina, and Republican candidates running for the Legislature avoided the issue at the doors and in debates at all cost.
by Charley Shaw
Published: October 31, 2012
Tags: Alliance for a Better Minnesota, Bob Cummins, Brita Sailer, Carolyn McElfatrick, Charlie Weaver, Chris Gerlach, Coalition of MN Business, Connie Doepke, David Hann, David Olson, Deb Kiel, Freedom Club, Greg Johnson, John Hoffman, Keith Langseth, Mark Dayton, MN Business Partnership, Phil Hansen, Pro Jobs Majority, RSLC, Steve Green, Steve Smith
GOP-aligned independent groups have rushed to fill the campaign spending gap that Republicans face in their battle for continued control of the Minnesota Legislature.
The change in Minnesota politics wrought by the 2010 election created equal measures of optimism and concern among the business groups that lobby state lawmakers.
Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty has retired the debt left over from his failed bid for the Republican presidential nomination, his campaign said Tuesday, officially erasing a burden that at once stood at more than $500,000.
by Paul Demko
Published: April 4, 2012
Tags: Bruce Nustad, business property tax, Charlie Weaver, Laura Bordelon, Minnesota Business Partnership, Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, Minnesota Department of Commerce, Minnesota Retailers Association, Southwest Corridor, Twin West Chamber of Commerce
Business interests still hoping some of their legislative priorities will be addressed in waning days of session.
by Paul Demko
Published: March 21, 2012
Tags: Ann Lenczewski, Ann Swenson, Branden Petersen, Chad Westberg, Charlie Weaver, Chris Kumpula, Cynthia Bemis Abrams, Elaine McAwley, endorsements, Frank Hornstein, Geoff Michel, Lew Coffey, Marion Greene, Martha Weaver, Mary Kiffmeyer, Melisa Lopez Franzen, Nick Zerwas, Pat Mazorol, Paul Rosenthal, Peggy Scott, Roz Peterson, Terry McCall
Last Saturday GOP activists gathered in Burnsville to determine who would be the endorsed candidate in House District 56A. No incumbent is running for re-election in the district, which leans heavily Republican.
Looking to the session ahead, groups like the chamber and the Minnesota Business Partnership plan to renew the push for their key 2011 measures and have added a few new priorities as well.
by Paul Demko
Published: January 18, 2012
Tags: Amy Koch, Charlie Weaver, Chris DeLaForest, Chris Georgacas, Cullen Sheehan, Dave Senjem, David Hann, Kurt Zellers, Mark Dayton, Reform 2.0, Tony Cornish, Warren Limmer
The 2012 legislative session should be unlike any in recent memory. That’s in part because there is no budget deficit to erase. The surprising December budget forecast — showing a surplus of nearly $900 million — removes the primary point of contention between DFL Gov. Mark Dayton and the GOP-controlled Legislature.
by Charley Shaw
Published: October 7, 2011
Tags: Andrew Falk, Charlie Weaver, Julie Rosen, Katharine Tinucci, Lester Bagley, Mark Dayton, R.T. Rybak, Ramsey County, Ramsey County Charter Commission, Vikings Stadium, Zygi Wilf
The Minnesota Vikings’ partnership with Ramsey County officials in pursuit of a new football stadium in Arden Hills has remained intact. But the alliance appears to be increasingly isolated in the face of forces in business and elected office in Minnesota who have reservations — or other ideas.
