http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/ee/index.php en editor@TheRochesterDemocrat.com Copyright 2008 2008-05-16T12:44:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/school_employee_insurance_bill_sent_to_pawlenty/ {summary} MN Governor



KEVIN DUCHSCHERE
Star Tribune
Last update: May 16, 2008


For the second straight year, the Legislature has sent Gov. Tim Pawlenty a bill that would create a statewide health insurance pool for public school employees.

Whether Pawlenty will veto it, as he did last year, remains to be seen.

Under the bill, which both houses passed Thursday, the program would offer at least six health plans for eligible school workers, ranging from coverage without a deductible to a high-deductible plan paired with a health savings account.

All districts would have to buy insurance through the pool rather than negotiate their own plans, and all school employees -- who number more than 200,000 in Minnesota -- would have to participate.

The bill provides a $4 million loan from the general fund to create the pool.

Proponents say such a pool would provide relief to smaller districts hit by sharply rising prices from year to year. On the other hand, some observers say larger districts ought to be allowed to opt out if they can save more money arranging for their own insurance.


]]> 2008-05-16T12:44:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/pawlenty_rejects_minimum_wage_hike/ {summary} MN Governor Veto-proof support appears lacking for the bill to boost pay for low-paid workers, including those who receive tips.


By KEVIN DUCHSCHERE,
Star Tribune
Last update: May 15, 2008


As expected, a minimum wage bill that would boost hourly pay for the state's lowest paid workers to $7.75 by 2009 was vetoed today by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

The bill would raise the hourly minimum for large employers -- currently, $6.15 -- by 75 cents in July, and by another dollar next summer.

For small employers, under the bill, the $5.25-an-hour wage would go up 50 cents in July and another dollar next year.

In his veto message, Pawlenty said that the minimum wage approved by the Legislature would give Minnesota the 7th-highest in the country, hurting efforts to maintain jobs during the economic slowdown and ultimately raising consumer costs.

And he noted the bill failed to include a tip credit, which allows employers to pay a lower wage to workers who get gratuities for their services, such as waiters.

Pawlenty said he had made it clear he would have supported a reasonable increase in the minimum wage, provided the bill included a tip credit.

"Minnesota is one of only a handful of states that do not recognize a tip credit at the state level," Pawlenty wrote in his message. "A tip credit is applied in 43 states for calculating the base wage for tipped employees. The tip credit is essential for the continued viability of many employers."

Worker advocate groups criticized the veto, saying they had compromised several times to meet Pawlenty's concerns only to have him reject the bill anyway.

"I don't think a total of $8 a week above the federal minimum wage for the rest of this year or $13 a week over the next year is too much to ask," said Kris Jacobs, director of the JOBS NOW Coalition.

In his message, Pawlenty said that he would consider a bipartisan minimum wage in next year's session if it's reasonable and includes a tip credit. He noted that the federal minimum wage will rise to $6.55 this year and $7.25 next year for most employers.

]]> 2008-05-16T01:19:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/ventura_says_hes_serious_about_possible_senate_campaign/ {summary} Campaign Races


by Mark Zdechlik,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 15, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — In the first few seconds of his time back on MPR Jesse Ventura was talking about Minnesota's 2008 Senate race, saying he's seriously thinking about stepping in.

Ventura said he's not impressed with Democrat Al Franken or Republican Sen. Norm Coleman.

"Coleman is nothing but a chicken hawk," he said. "Do you know what the definition of a chicken hawk is? Well, that's someone who, when it was there time to serve and go to war and go in the military they were chicken. And then they come back when they're 50 years old and they rubber stamp the president on everything he wants to do with the war. Well, why when it was your turn to go you wanted no part of it?"

Ventura called Franken a carpetbagger for leaving New York for Minnesota's Senate race. And he commented on Franken's tax problems.

"Apparently even with a Harvard education he didn't realize that when you earn in 30 states you go to pay taxes in all of those states," he said. "I as a pro wrestler knew that. Can you imagine that?"

Franken's campaign declined to comment on Ventura's criticism.

Coleman, during his weekly telephone conference call with reporters, said he thinks Ventura's talk about the Senate race has more to do with selling books than running a campaign.

"I'm going to be very blunt here," Coleman said. "We've seen the Jesse show one time. I doubt that many Minnesotans want to see the sequal. But that's the beauty of Democracy is that anybody can run including the former governor. But he's also in the process of selling a book, and I think certainly there's been more focus on the selling part than the policy making part. But I certainly welcome him into the race if that's his intention."

For the past month Ventura been trying to drum up interest in his latest book, "Don't Start the Revolution Without Me." He's made numerous appearances, showing up on CNN and the Comedy Channel among other places. But Ventura's decision to join Gary Eichten for a Midday broadcast and to tape an interview with Twin Cities Public Television mark the first-time he's talked to the Minnesota news media since he left the governor's office.

Ventura said he remains angry with other local news organizations for the reporting they did on his family.

Ventura said he didn't run for a second term as governor because of his wife's health problems. He cited property tax reform, light rail transit and forcing Democrats and Republicans to work together as his gubernatorial achievements.

He said if he were elected to the Senate he would work to abolish the federal income tax and replace it with a national sales tax. He also said he would make it more difficult for the nation's leaders to commit to war.

Ventura said he would require lawmakers to designate members of their families to serve. He would also bring back the draft.

"I think that we should have a voluntary military until we take the vote to go to war," he said, "and the minute that vote is taken to go to war the draft should immediately be implemented at that point."

Ventura said he will not make a decision on running for Senate until the July deadline to file for office approaches.

On the way out of the MPR studios, Ventura pledged to run an aggressive campaign if he decides to get into the race.

"I don't do things half way. I don't do them to lose" he said. "When I ran for governor people said to me that first day at the Capitol in January, are you serious about this? Well November it proved I was, didn't it? When I won."

If he does run Ventura said he would spend no more than what six years of a Senate salary would bring in, about $1 million. And he confidently predicted he could garner as much free media attention as he would need.


]]> 2008-05-15T21:48:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/vehicle_emissions_bill_defeated/ {summary} MN Senate



St. Paul, Minn. (AP) — A state Senate committee has defeated a bill to put Minnesota on course for adopting California-style car emissions standards.

A 10-7 vote by the Senate Business, Industry and Jobs Committee means it will be almost impossible for supporters of the strict emissions standard to enact a law for it this year.

There's an outside chance the House sponsors could use procedural motions to get around the Senate committee setback.

The bill would have required that new cars and light trucks sold in the state emit 30 percent fewer greenhouse gases by the year 2016.

More than a dozen states have adopted the standard, but so far, the federal government has blocked its implementation.


]]> 2008-05-15T21:46:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/minnesota_loses_10000_jobs_in_april/ {summary} MN Employment


by Annie Baxter,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 15, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — Minnesota's economy lost about 10,000 jobs in April, and the unemployment rate inched up. The state's jobless rate increased a tenth of a point to 4.8 percent. That's still below the national unemployment rate of 5 percent.

Oriane Casale of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development said payrolls usually grow in April as employers begin hiring for the summer.

"Obviously, this April didn't deliver in terms of warm weather," Casale said. "We were still sort of solidly in winter. And so that could explain some of the seasonally adjusted job decline. We just didn't see the hiring we expected to see in April."

Over the past year the biggest job declines came in the construction industry, which shed 4,500 jobs, mostly due to softness in the residential construction market.

The education and health services sector continues to lead job growth. The sector added more than 13,000 jobs.

]]> 2008-05-15T21:43:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/pawlenty_legislators_inch_closer_to_deal/ {summary} MN Budget



By MARK BRUNSWICK and MIKE KASZUBA,
Star Tribune
May 15, 2008


DFLers and Gov. Tim Pawlenty inched closer to a budget agreement shortly before midnight Wednesday, but a new DFL proposal that included a 5.5 percent annual cap on property tax levy limits was not acceptable to the governor.

As legislative leaders shuttled between their offices and the governor's meeting room throughout the evening, a casually dressed Pawlenty at one point sat with reporters outside his office and informally talked of the prospects of an agreement. "It's not insurmountable," he said of the gap separating the two sides. Negotiations are scheduled to resume at 10:30 this morning.

The DFLers' proposal included $103.2 million in spending cuts and new revenue, but a Pawlenty spokesman quickly dismissed it, saying the 5.5 percent levy cap was too high. Later in the evening, House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, said the governor, who had earlier proposed a 3 percent cap, had talked of a cap as high as 3.9 percent.

The $103.2 million included a range of large and small proposals, from a $1 million cut to the University of Minnesota to a $10 million savings from delaying in-patient hospital payments.

But Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said the lack of an agreement on a levy limit cap was a key sticking point. "That does not go nearly far enough in providing real property tax relief," he said of the DFL's 5.5 percent offer.

Turning to another major, unresolved issue, both Pawlenty and Kelliher said a public subsidy package for the Mall of America's second phase was being hurriedly retooled as the Legislature moved into its final four days. Kelliher, however, said state officials are still insisting on language that would require the mall to show that the project needed public subsidies to proceed.

At several points Wednesday, negotiators recessed to allow state budget crunchers time to perform computer runs on different property tax models. With both the House and Senate adjourned until today, negotiations proceeded unfettered by legislative activity.

Senate Majority Leader Tarryl Clark, DFL-St. Cloud, expressed confidence that a deal could be reached before a scheduled Monday adjournment.

Set aside for the time being Wednesday night was a $50 million snag that resulted in negotiations breaking down Tuesday. That money would have come from a reserve fund from the state's HMOs that DFLers wanted to tap as a budget fix. While DFLers said the money had been part of negotiations for some time, Pawlenty claimed that using the money could result in lawsuits.

Also left on the back burner for now was the Central Corridor light rail line, a key component of the DFL legislative agenda. Pawlenty line-item vetoed $70 million for the line, which would connect Minneapolis and St. Paul, despite having included the project in his own original bonding proposal this year.

The budget negotiations reflect fundamental differences in approaches to governing. Pawlenty believes in holding down the growth of government and wants to limit the ability of local governments to impose property tax increases. While local voters could approve their own increase, his plan would cap city and county increases at 3 percent or the current consumer price index, whichever is lower. School districts, small towns and townships would not be affected.

"We cannot have a government that is growing at a rate several times above inflation when the economy is struggling, when people are worried about their jobs, when businesses are having a hard time," said McClung.

DFLers have pushed for property tax changes and have focused in the past couple of days on ensuring funding for basic services. A House/Senate conference committee has approved $86 million to counties, cities and townships over the next two years as part of a funding program called Local Government Aid.

While the increase would not necessarily result in property tax relief, DFLers believe local governments would be less likely to need to increase property taxes to fund services with the new money.

]]> 2008-05-15T10:49:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/mn_senate_conservatives_liberals_unite_to_pass_legislation_against_federal/ {summary} MN Senate



by T.W. Budig
ECM Capitol reporter
May 13, 2008


Senate conservatives and liberals united Tuesday (May 13) to pass legislation prohibiting the state from taking any action to implement federal Real ID Act law.

"There is no security more dangerous than false security,” said Sen. Ray Vandeveer, R-Forest Lake, who supported the bill.

The federal law has drawn heat from some lawmakers this session as inviting an invasion of Minnesotans’ privacy and as an expensive, unfunded mandate coming out of Washington.

Day, like Gov. Tim Pawlenty, voiced opposition to legislation prohibition the state from implementing the requirements of the act. But the Senate, on a strong vote, passed such legislation nevertheless.

The act requires certain data to be included on the state driver’s license and failure to comply could have Minnesotans not being allowed to board planes or enter federal buildings, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has argued in the past.

The governor supports the act.

But Sen. Leo Foley, DFL-Coon Rapids, a former state trooper, argued it would have state law enforcement diverting attention from more important tasks.

“I guess we all forgot 9/11 real fast,” said Sen. Dick Day, R-Owatonna, who opposed the bill.

But several local conservative Republicans, including Vandeveer and Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, argued at length against the provision.

Sen. Mike Jungbauer, R-East Bethel, argued that the apparent penalties the federal government would exact on states failing to comply with the act constituted the worst kind of coercion.

Sen. Mike Jungbauer, R-East Bethel, spoke on the Senate floor on Tuesday (May 13) against the state participating in the federal Real ID Act. Jungbuaer argued that adding information to driver's licenses, as the act requires, is an open door to electric snooping as a person with an electric device could pull the data off a person's driver's license on the sly as they walked by.

The bill passed the Senate on a 50-16 vote.

Local senators Johnson, Koch, Pariseau, Robling, and Wergin voted against the bill.

]]> 2008-05-15T02:19:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/legislature_presses_ahead_to_the_end_of_the_session/ {summary} MN Legislature



by Tim Pugmire,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 14, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — The Minnesota House and Senate passed a school finance bill Tuesday night over the objections of Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who had wanted an end-of-session budget agreement in place before the vote.

DFL legislative leaders decided to press ahead after closed-door negotiations with the Republican governor broke down.

The latest round of budget talks got hung up when the Pawlenty administration objected to using $50 million from health plan reserve accounts as part of a larger budget balancing plan. Progress on a property tax plan also stalled. Lawmakers have until the end of the week to solve a projected $935 million deficit.

But Assistant Majority Leader Sen. Tarryl Clark, D-St. Cloud, said she is not sure the governor is serious about reaching a budget deal.

"We want a deal. We still think it's close enough to get there, but there's that goal post. And the governor is moving the goal post, and we need to know where to aim. And right now he just moved it a whole bunch," Clark said.

Budget negotiations got a jump start earlier in the day when the House began debating an education finance bill that would direct more state money to K-12 schools.

Gov. Pawlenty convinced DFL leaders to put the floor session on hold and return to the bargaining table. After the talks broke down, the House and Senate quickly resumed their work and passed the education bill by wide margins in both chambers.

But House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, accused DFLers of jeopardizing an overall budget agreement.

"There's really not that much of a cavern for us to get across to get a global deal. And by pulling K-12 aside and saying we're just going to go ahead and do this without an agreement on how to pay for it smacks of more politics than good policy," Seifert said.

The education bill provides a funding boost to schools by freezing one of the governor's key initiatives, a program that pays teachers based on classroom performance.

After the vote, Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung was blasting Democrats and promising a veto.

"With six days left Democrats have left the table launching bills at the governor You have to take into account both the executive branch and the legislative branch, a bill is not completed until its signed into law. Just passing a bill off the floor does not complete the work," McClung said.

But the DFL House Majority Leader Tony Sertich of Chisholm says he doesn't see the education finance bill as a critical piece of an agreement to balance the budget. Public schools have been largely left out of the discussion of proposed spending cuts.

With budget talks at an impasse, Sertich said the House wanted to get to work.

"We're now in the final week of session. And we feel it's reasonable and appropriate to get our work done. The public I think detests when we wait until the last minute of the last day to pass all our bills. So we're trying to do it in a reasonable way," said Sertich.

The House and the Senate will not be in session again until Thursday. DFL leaders say they hope to use the break to restart budget talks with the governor. The session must end Monday.
Broadcast Dates


]]> 2008-05-14T16:33:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/talks_resume_for_session_ending_budget_deal/ {summary} MN Budget



St. Paul (AP) — Top legislative Democrats and Gov. Tim Pawlenty headed into a fresh round of budget talks Tuesday with renewed optimism for negotiating an end to the session.

"We're going to try to bring this to a head here today," the Republican governor said on his way to the talks.

DFL House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher suspended debate on an education spending bill after taking a call from Pawlenty at her desk above the House floor. She said he expressed concern about forcing GOP representatives into a tough vote before an overall deal is in place.

Kelliher said she wants to pick up the pace.

"I felt that yesterday went on far too long in terms of not really making progress and that we would need a deadline today to be able to make some decisions," she said, adding that the deadline would probably be later Tuesday.

With the 2008 session fading fast, a mutually agreeable plan to blunt property tax hikes around the state has proven elusive. It is considered the key ingredient to a broader budget deal and an orderly finish to the election-year session.

Lawmakers spent much of Monday and Tuesday morning waiting on number crunchers to show them how a property tax cap, extra local government aid and more direct-to-homeowner assistance fit together.

Uncertainty revolved around the effect of a property tax cap on local governments, said Senate Taxes Committee Chairman Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook. He said lawmakers must be careful when restricting tax money to cities and counties because public safety is one of their major responsibilities.

Bakk said a tax compromise is still within reach. He said Pawlenty needs to do something about the increase in property taxes during his administration and the state needs the money that would be raised by tightening taxation of companies with foreign operations.

"If the governor really wants one, we'll get there," Bakk said of a compromise.

Pawlenty has been calling the property tax cap the key to a session-ending deal.

The tax talk has occurred as state leaders also try to mend a budget with a projected $935 million shortfall.

Other items awaiting action in the final week - the session must end by May 19 - were a proposal to send more money to schools and a subsidy package for the Mall of America.

The Democrat-controlled House started, then suspended debate on a bill that would send an additional $51 per student to public school districts around the state. Republican Minority Leader Marty Seifert urged Democrats to wait until they get an overall agreement with Pawlenty.

Schools would get the extra money on a one-time basis. The bill also seeks to freeze a Pawlenty-pushed program that gives more money to school districts that adopt performance-pay contracts for teachers.

The Senate approved legislation regulating contracts between surrogate mothers and prospective parents and started debating a proposal to keep Minnesota from going along with a federal plan for enhanced identification requirements.

The Legislature stood ready to authorize the city of Bloomington to raise a menu of sales, lodging and restaurant taxes to help subsidize a $2.1 billion Mall of America expansion. The mall's owners first would have to open their books to prove a need the public dollars.

Pawlenty was due to act Tuesday on a batch of bills the Legislature sent him last week.

Among them are an education policy bill that would raise the high school dropout age from 16 to 18 and make hockey the official state sport. Another bill would let state employees take time off to donate blood.


]]> 2008-05-14T01:59:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/pawlenty_vetoes_health_care_bill/ {summary} MN Budget



St. Paul, Minn. (MPR) — The fate of the massive bill has been uncertain for months. Compromise legislation passed this week had whittled down the bill considerably from its original form.

In the end the bill's undoing appears to be a decision by House and Senate DFLers to spend surplus money from the Health Care Access Fund to extend state subsidized health insurance coverage to an additional 44,000 Minnesotans. Lawmakers knew the governor couldn't support more spending while the state is struggling to plug a projected $935 million dollar budget deficit, says Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung.

"This will come as no surprise to the legislators who have been working on it. They're aware that they have not met his concerns. They decided to go ahead and pass the bill anyway. That's their prerogative. But no one should all of a sudden be shocked and surprised when the governor vetoes this bill," McClung says.

The governor wants to tap the Health Care Access Fund to help plug the budget deficit. DFL House and Senate lawmakers have been adamant about using the fund to pay for additional health care coverage, among them, Rep Paul Thissen, DFL-Minneapolis.

"He is resistant to that. But I think in these kind of difficult economic times, times of insecurity on economics, making sure that people have access to quality health care is something that we really ought to deliver."

The business community is desperate to save money on health care, but it agrees with the governor that this is not the time to expand public programs, says Erin Sexton is Director of Health Care and Transportation Policy with the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce.

"We have a good safety net in Minnesota and that's important, but they are growing at a fast rate and I think everybody that looks at it says that it's probably a pretty unsustainable rate for our state budget."

For other lobbying groups, expanding public programs has been a top priority. The Minnesota Medical Association, made up of 10,000 physicians, sent a letter to the governor encouraging him to sign the health care reform bill, says Dr. James Dehen is President of the Minnesota Medical Association.

"Nothing's perfect in this bill but we have to do something. And I don't mean do the wrong thing obviously, but we can't continue on the status quo. The problem is not going to go away."


]]> 2008-05-14T01:21:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/property_tax_cap_stalling_legislators/ {summary} MN Budget

by Tim Pugmire,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 13, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — End-of-session negotiations between legislative leaders and Gov. Tim Pawlenty are still focused on property tax relief.

The Republican governor is scheduled to resume closed-door talks with DFLers later this morning. Pawlenty says a property tax cap is the linchpin of a deal. House and Senate Democrats prefer direct relief to homeowners and increased aid to cities.

Their latest talks broke up just after midnight, with the focus still on property tax relief. The governor is insisting an end-of-session deal includes the property tax cap.

DFL leaders in the House and Senate say they want property tax relief too, but they say talks slowed because the Department of revenue had not yet provided data on property tax options

House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher left one discussion with the governor frustrated that his staff had still not provided the data.

"No Minnesotan would want us making a decision with partial information. It's just not fair to the people of the state, when we're talking about trying to reduce their property taxes, hold their property taxes down. We can't appropriately do that without the proper information," Anderson Kelliher said.

Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said the Department of Revenue is providing complex information as quickly as possible. He says the governor wants to reach a negotiated agreement with legislators.

Lawmakers also have to solve the projected $935 million budget deficit. The session ends May 19th.

]]> 2008-05-13T17:49:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/maccray_school_district_plans_for_4_day_week_to_save_money/ {summary} MN Education



Redwood Falls, Minn. (AP) — The Maccray school district in west-central Minnesota is poised to go to a four-day school week next year to save money.

Superintendent Greg Schmidt says the move will save about $65,000 from the district's $7 million budget, mostly in transportation costs.

He says that if the state Education Department approves the move, Maccray will be the first district in the state to so reduce its week.

Schmidt says the plan would cut 23 days out of the year by eliminating school on the Mondays. The school day would expand by an hour Tuesday through Friday.

The School Board unanimously approved the plan on Monday, but Schmidt says the district still needs to cut another $200,000 by next year.

Rising fuel prices have spiked busing costs for rural districts. For example, Schmidt says Maccray has about 700 students spread over 350 square miles.

The district includes the towns of Maynard, Clara City and Raymond.

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Information from: KLGR-AM, http://www.klgram.com


]]> 2008-05-13T16:50:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/health_care_bill_clears_legislature_will_pawlenty_sign_it/ {summary} MN Health The legislation would change the way health care in Minnesota is provided.


By WARREN WOLFE,
Star Tribune
Last update: May 13, 2008


Fifteen months in the making, a bill changing how health care in Minnesota is provided and paid for was approved late Monday by the Legislature, a measure one sponsor said "is at least the first stage on the road to health-care reform."

However, the bill faces a possible veto when it reaches Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who has expressed misgivings, and the 83-50 vote by which it cleared the House was short of the margin needed for an override. The Senate approved the measure 53-13.

Although significant, the changes provided by the bill are far less dramatic than those recommended at the start of the session by separate panels appointed by the governor and the Legislature.

The bill would start a statewide campaign to reduce smoking and obesity and offer public data on the quality and costs of doctor and hospital services.

The bill would also certify doctors and clinics that provide "medical homes" with comprehensive and coordinated care, and expand eligibility to add about 40,000 people to MinnesotaCare, the insurance program for lower-income working poor.

Even that scaled-back version still may be vetoed, however. Pawlenty has proposed using some of the Health Care Access Fund reserves to balance the state budget, leaving less for the health-care bill.

At a news briefing earlier Monday, he complained that the bill would spend most of the reserves without resolving budget issues. "We're having a hard time paying for the [budget items] we have, much less adding the new ones," he said.

Pawlenty also has taken issue with the expansion of the MinnesotaCare program at a time when medical care is consuming an ever-greater portion of government budgets.

During House debate Monday night, Rep. Laura Brod, R-New Prague, said: "Throwing more people into a public system is not reform. It's more of the same."



]]> 2008-05-13T14:21:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/governor_calls_property_tax_cap_key_to_deal/ {summary} MN Budget



ASSOCIATED PRESS
May 12, 2008


Gov. Tim Pawlenty held more budget negotiations with legislative leaders Sunday, saying getting a property tax cap that would reduce projected increases by at least $100 million a year remains the key to an overall agreement.

And he threatened to oppose the Central Corridor light rail project and other DFL priorities without a deal.

Talks between the GOP governor and the DFL legislative leaders began at 5:15 p.m. and recessed before 7 p.m. so that Revenue Commissioner Ward Einess could meet with the legislative tax committee chairs on the cap issue, Pawlenty spokesman Alex Carey said.

Late Sunday night, the governor sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller and House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher insisting on a cap.

Pawlenty said he wants a commitment on the cap before negotiating other major elements of a budget deal.




]]> 2008-05-12T13:03:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/pawlenty_tops_post_vp_list/ {summary} MN Governor



Washington Post
May 11, 2008


Gov. Tim Pawlenty is back in the national spotlight. With the presidential race firming up between Democratic Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois and Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the media are moving on to vice presidential speculation, and Pawlenty was listed Sunday as McCain's most likely choice for a running mate by the Washington Post. Here's what it said:

"The Minnesota governor remains the single possibility in the Republican vice presidential field who best fits what McCain wants and needs in a VP. Pawlenty has been elected twice in a Democratic-leaning state that is almost certain to be a battleground in the fall. He is liked and respected by both conservatives and moderates, and he gets rave reviews for his political instincts. He has also known McCain for nearly three decades and, at 47, could allay some concerns about McCain's age."

MOST LOGICAL VEEP CHOICES?

Here is the Post's list of the "five most logical veeps," assuming McCain and Obama are the candidates, ranked in the order of the likelihood of being chosen.

REPUBLICANS

5. Former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts

4. Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida

3. Former Rep. Rob Portman of Ohio

2. Sen. John Thune of South Dakota

1. Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota

DEMOCRATS

5. Former Sen. Sam Nunn of Georgia

4. Gov. Tim Kaine of Virgina

3. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York

2. Gov. Ted Strickland of Ohio

1. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas

]]> 2008-05-12T11:12:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/2008_legislative_session_all_that_scrapping_paying_off_this_time/ {summary} MN Legislature With a May 19 deadline for adjournment, adversaries in the Legislature and Gov. Pawlenty have plenty of bickering left to do -- but this year's contentiousness has also proved surprisingly constructive.


By MARK BRUNSWICK,
Star Tribune
Last update: May 10, 2008


Maybe polarization works.

The 2008 legislative session has been as contentious as any, with vetoes and veto threats, a high-profile veto override, the cashiering of a commissioner and plenty of name-calling.

But with a week to go, Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty and the DFL-controlled Legislature are in position to finish on time, and with a not-too-shabby record of accomplishments that will affect Minnesotans in ways big and small.

"Assuming we can get a budget deal done, I think there will be a lot of positive things that would come of it," Pawlenty said last week.

House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, likewise said Friday: "We are way ahead of last year's mark."

Starting fast in February, DFLers rammed through a big transportation funding bill that will improve Minnesotans' roads and raise their taxes at the pump. It came over Pawlenty's veto. Later, DFLers ousted Lt. Gov. Carol Molnau from her second job as transportation commissioner.

For his part, Pawlenty has stood by his opposition to tax increases and used line-item vetoes to trim DFLers' borrowing plans.

Both sides can claim credit for a good-size construction bill that will build college classrooms, convention halls and ice rinks across the state. And a new light-rail line, a veterans nursing home and the first new state park in four decades remain decent bets to be included when everything is counted.

The Capitol crowd is also moving toward enacting popular policies such as new restrictions on teen drivers. And they may even get together on the beginnings of a health care overhaul.

Could much of it still fall apart? Of course. But the question just now is why such a pugnacious bunch has performed so well.

The DFL strikes back

First off, self-interest still matters. House members must face voters in November. The $6.6 billion transportation bill came with the state's first gas tax increase in 20 years. Majority DFLers would like to have property tax relief prominent in their election brochures to offset the potential fallout of the gas tax increase. This gives them an incentive to work together and to negotiate with the other side.

Chris Gilbert, a political scientist at Gustavus Adolphus College, said the Legislature is showing signs of its healthiest working relationship in the past five to six years. But he sees that as happening between legislators and not necessarily with Pawlenty.

"When he has won showdowns with the Legislature in the past, those victories have been on his terms, but that doesn't negate the fact that the governor's office projects an image of feeling entitled to get its way," Gilbert said.

House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, likens the 2007 session to the first "Star Wars" movie, in which a small band of rebels (his minority GOP caucus) blow up the Death Star (the DFL majority agenda, especially tax increases).

This year's session, for Seifert, has been more like the second film in the series, "The Empire Strikes Back," in which DFLers overrode a veto, tossed out Molnau and passed a substantial bonding bill with what he said was little input from the governor. But he says the overall impact on real people will be slight.

"People will pay some higher taxes, and some capital projects around the state were approved. But the average butcher, baker or candlestick maker will not even notice that we were even here," he said.

Kelliher's key role

Others, including Pawlenty, have noted a more efficient, if not collegial, atmosphere. House and Senate leaders pushed a calendar that front-ended many of their goals, including a constitutional ballot question for funding the outdoors and the arts within the first days of session.

Addressing the state's projected $936 million deficit has proved elusive so far, but the amount represents a chewable 2.6 percent of a $35 billion two-year state budget, with several options available.

Many observers point to the emergence of House Speaker Kelliher as a calming force in the closed-door talks that previously have been characterized by an almost Captain Ahab vs. Moby Dick tension between Pawlenty and Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller. As Minneapolis legislators, Kelliher and Pogemiller are well acquainted, and Kelliher and Pawlenty were colleagues when Pawlenty was in the House.

"She has been the bridge that keeps whatever personality conflicts there are in check," said Bob Vanasek, DFL House speaker from 1987 until 1991 and now a lobbyist.

It is also in Pawlenty's interest to have things finish on time, even if you don't buy the narrative that has him on the short list of possible running mates for GOP presidential candidate John McCain.

"Any governor likes it better when the Legislature is out of town," Vanasek said.

Vanasek and others suggest that the veto override has continued to sting Pawlenty, who has vetoed 10 bills since then. Among the casualties was every bonding-bill project located in St. Paul, including light-rail funding that Pawlenty himself included in his first bonding plan.

Seifert said Republicans urged Pawlenty to "reengage" himself with the line-item veto, rather than take down the whole bonding bill, a move that Seifert said shifted momentum in the session back to favor Pawlenty.

'Art of the game'

So now it comes down to this: images of legislative leaders going in and coming out of the governor's office at all hours, amid rumors of whether there is movement on this or that area to solve the deficit. The exotic dance has few parallels in the real world, but at stake are taxpayer dollars and programs Minnesotans depend on.

Pawlenty last week said his office has prepared for possible failure to reach a budget compromise by doing some exercises in unallotment, in which a governor unilaterally imposes budget cuts. He also said he has looked into dates for a special legislative session should that become necessary.

"It's the art of the game to a certain degree," said former Pawlenty chief of staff David Gaither. "As the time deadline gets closer, everybody wants to show there is nothing more important to them in their lives at this moment than to get this thing buttoned up.

"Working at 11 o'clock at night, it must mean we are burning the midnight oil for a reason."

]]> 2008-05-11T02:45:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/debate_brewing_after_legislature_oks_minimum_wage_hike/ {summary} MN Legislature The bill with a two-phased raise faced an uncertain future, as Gov. Tim Pawlenty has voiced objections.


By PATRICIA LOPEZ,
Star Tribune
May 9, 2008


Legislators sent Gov. Tim Pawlenty fresh veto-bait just before midnight on Thursday, passing a two-stage increase in the minimum wage.

The vote was 89-45 in the House and 40-18 in the Senate for a bill that would raise the minimum hourly rate to $6.75 by mid-July and to $7.75 by next year. Smaller employers would have to pay $5.75 an hour by July and $6.75 by July 2009. The current minimum wage is $6.15 for large employers and $5.25 for small businesses.

Pawlenty has said the wage increase goes too far, and he is insisting on a tip credit that would allow a lower wage to be paid to employees who get tips.

Sen. Ellen Anderson, DFL-St. Paul, and Rep. Tom Rukavina, DFL-Virginia, have said they would risk a veto rather than accede to a subminimum wage in Minnesota.

Pawlenty left the Capitol on Thursday evening for Breezy Point, for the state fishing opener, and isn't scheduled to return until Sunday, when he will speak at the Minnesota Statehood Day ceremony, marking the state's sesquicentennial.

Pawlenty and legislative leaders have yet to reach agreement on elements critical to closing the session, including how to bridge a projected $936 million budget gap and whether to include $70 million in bonding for the Central Corridor light-rail project between St. Paul and Minneapolis.

In a briefing for reporters on Friday, House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, said agreement between DFL leaders and the Republican governor "would be the best present Minnesota could have on its birthday."

In other legislative action late Thursday, the House passed an education policy bill that includes provisions requiring students to stay in school until age 18, up from the current 16, and to have at least a half-credit of physical education for graduation. The bill was sent to Pawlenty.

Also late Thursday, the House sent a transportation policy bill back to a conference committee. Among other things, the bill would have made the failure to wear seat belts a primary offense in Minnesota and restrict teenagers' ability to drive at night and to carry multiple passengers. The House recommended that the seat-belt provision be removed to improve the bill's chances for passage.


]]> 2008-05-10T03:02:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/outside_firm_to_look_into_dnr_fundraising/ {summary} MN Agencies




By DAVID SHAFFER,
Star Tribune
May 9, 2008


Natural Resources Commissioner Mark Holsten told legislators Friday that an outside firm will be hired to investigate whether fundraising for a state-supported game warden conference violated conflict of interest laws.

But two legislative committees got few answers as they questioned Holsten and other DNR officials about spending at least $383,000 on a game warden conference last July in St. Paul.

Holsten pledged to supply legislators with more information as internal and external investigators examine spending and employee actions related to the 2007 North American Wildlife Enforcement Officers Association conference.

"The allegations that have been raised are serious," Holsten testified before a joint hearing of House and Senate environmental committees.

The hearing and investigations were prompted by a Star Tribune report this week that the DNR pumped taxpayer money into the conference and required all 204 conservation officers to attend. The event turned a $76,000 profit, but the organizers didn't share it with the state. Some DNR officials believed the fundraising on state time for the conference was improper, the paper reported.

Holsten said an outside contractor, probably an attorney, will be hired to investigate the fundraising.

Rep. Jean Wagenius, DFL-Minneapolis, chairwoman of the House Environment and Natural Resources Finance Division, said a conference website created by the DNR had solicited contributions to be sent to Capt. Cathy Hamm, who works in the enforcement division. She is the wife of Col. Mike Hamm, the head of the enforcement division.

"This raises a lot of issues," Wagenius said of the web solicitation. "One is that there's a strong implication that this is a solicitation for the benefit of the state and that's questionable."

]]> 2008-05-10T02:53:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/budget_talks_on_hold/ {summary} MN Budget



by Tom Scheck,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 9, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — Budget talks between Gov. Tim Pawlenty and the Legislature are on hold, because the governor is in Pequot Lakes for the annual fishing opener.

Legislators and the governor are working to reach an agreement on erasing a $935 million projected budget deficit.

DFL House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher said the House and Senate are working on an alternative plan, in case they can't reach a budget deal with the governor. She said lawmakers will start passing their own budget bills on Monday or Tuesday if they can't resolve their differences.

"We've sort of taken on the boy scout model to always be prepared and we are prepared," Kelliher said. "We are prepared for an orderly end of session. One that balances the budget. One that sends the governor top priorities like the Central Corridor. We are all ready to go on that. We of course, first and foremost, prefer that to be a negotiated agreement with the governor."

Some of the main sticking points in budget negotiations are which programs will be cut, the use of a health fund to balance the budget, and the best way to provide property tax relief.

Lawmakers have ten days until the constitutional deadline to adjourn the session.


]]> 2008-05-09T21:28:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/house_approves_new_psych_hospital_for_woodbury/ {summary} MN Legislature

May 8, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — (AP) - The Minnesota House is on the record with overwhelming support for a proposed children's psychiatric hospital in Woodbury, but Senate approval is iffy.

The House voted 125-8 on Wednesday, with lawmakers grieving the loss the children to suicide for those who must go out of state for mental health treatment.

The House bill lifts a state restriction on the construction of hospitals so that Prairie St. John's can build the 66-bed facility.

Rep. Marsha Swails, DFL-Woodbury, says she authored the bill because of an extreme shortage of beds for children in crisis in the metro area.

Prairie originally proposed a 144-bed hospital that would provide psychiatric and substance abuse services to children and adults, but the state Health Department determined it wasn't in the public interest.

It's not clear if the Senate will take up the psychiatric hospital proposal before the current session ends.


]]> 2008-05-09T14:07:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/hockey_clears_house_hurdle/ {summary} MN House

by Tim Pugmire,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 9, 2008


St. Paul, Minn. — Legislation that would make ice hockey the official state sport cleared another hurdle at the Capitol.

The Minnesota House passed a wide ranging K-12 education policy bill Thursday night that contains the hockey recognition.

Rep. Dean Urdahl, R-Grove City, says hockey has a unique status in Minnesota.

"This is the birthplace of American hockey. This is where the United States Hockey Hall of Fame is. Other states can claim a lot, have a lot of claim to wrestling to basketball to football to other sports. But there's something about hockey that is uniquely Minnesotan," said Urdahl.

Urdahl said the provision is not intended to slight other sports. But some of his colleagues disagree.

Rep. Bud Heidgerken, R-Freeport, says his district includes 13 school districts, but only one hockey team. Heidgerken says the provision is demeaning to other sports.

"To sit here and put that in an education bill, telling our state, telling our kids that if you want to play one sport hockey is the official sport. I'm sorry, every sport is important. And I think that we need to send that message to our entire school systems," said Heidgerken.

Heidgerken said singling out hockey as the state's official sport is demeaning to other sports and doesn't belong in an education bill.



]]> 2008-05-09T13:45:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/pawlenty_signs_compensation_package_for_bridge_victims/ {summary} MN Governor



Kyndell Harkness,
Star Tribune
Last update: May 8, 2008


A close-knit coalition of Minneapolis bridge collapse victims watched Thursday as Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed a $38 million package to compensate them for their injuries and losses. The ceremony at the State Capitol capped their nine-month fight for state help recovering from the Aug. 1 failure of the Interstate 35W bridge, which killed 13 people and injured 145.

“A GOOD START”: “Things will never be the same, but it will be a good start,” said Mercedes Gorden, who was bedridden for four months, has endured nine surgeries and faces at least one more to fix bones that were crushed.

Ron Engebretsen, who lost his wife, Sherry, in the collapse, said the state assistance will help in his emotional recovery. “By going through the process we have over the past few months, it really reinforces our belief in the state of Minnesota that we do the right thing here,” he said.

THE DETAILS: Everyone who was on the bridge when it fell would qualify for as much as $400,000. People whose injuries and losses were more severe could get additional money from a pool of $12.6 million. A panel of lawyers will determine the exact amount for each victim.

“The course and trajectory of the lives of the individuals here and their families were severely and unchangeably altered,” Pawlenty said. “We stand united today as a state to try to do the right thing.”

Sen. Ron Latz, DFL-St. Louis Park, said the fund was carefully designed to recognize the unique scope of the collapse while upholding fairness for other victims of government-involved accidents.

“Nothing we can do and nothing that we have done can alter for them what happened on Aug. 1, 2007,” he said.

“All we can do is come in after the fact and try to respond with money. It’s a poor substitute. But that’s what our justice system uses.”


]]> 2008-05-09T13:25:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/legislators_ok_higher_dropout_age_minimum_wage_hike/ {summary} MN Legislature Legislators dropped the hammer on Minnesota teens, and passed a bill to raise the minimum wage in two stages. But a transportation policy bill that would have made the failure to wear seat belts a primary offense was sent back to a conference committee.


By PATRICIA LOPEZ,
Star Tribune
May 9, 2008

Legislators dropped the hammer on teens Thursday night, passing a bill that would force students to stay in school until age 18 and require physical education for graduation.

The DFL-led House voted 82-49 to send Gov. Tim Pawlenty the education bill, which, in addition to pushing up the dropout age, also would declare hockey to be the official state sport. The Senate passed the bill earlier.

But a transportation policy bill that would have made the failure to wear seat belts a primary offense in Minnesota, banned text-messaging while driving and restricted teens' ability to drive at night and to carry multiple passengers did not fare as well.

Late Thursday, the House voted 72 to 62 to send it back to a conference committee with a recommendation that the seat-belt provision be removed to improve the bill's chances for passage. The Senate did not take it up pending the conferees' actions.

On the education bill, Rep. Carlos Mariani, DFL-St. Paul, said many Minnesotans were unaware that students now can legally drop out as soon as they turn 16. "This sends a powerful message to our students," Mariani said.

Students also would be required to have a half-credit of physical education in order to graduate.

Minimum-wage hike approved

In their last act just after midnight Thursday, both houses passed a bill to raise the minimum wage in two stages, ignoring Pawlenty's threat to veto it.

The vote was 40-18 in the Senate and 89-45 in the House.

The bill would raise the lowest hourly wage for workers at large companies by 60 cents to $6.75 in mid-July and another dollar a year later. That's for businesses with annual sales above $625,000.

Smaller employers would have to pay at least 50 cents more an hour, or $5.75, starting in July and their minimum wage would go up to $6.75 a year later.

Seat-belt proposal held back

The seat-belt provision has long been controversial in the House, with opposition crossing party and geographical lines. The resistance held firm despite the prospect of as much as $25 million in federal aid for passage of a primary seat-belt provision.

Under the bill, drivers could have been stopped and fined $25 for anyone in the car older than 15 who wasn't wearing a seat belt. The Senate has long supported such a provision.

Rep. Ron Earhardt, R-Edina, had said that as many as 40 lives a year could be saved. Among the opponents was Rep. John Lesch, DFL-St. Paul, a prosecutor, who said, "Stop trying to protect me from myself."

A later closing time for bars

Earlier, the Senate, by a vote of 42 to 20, and the House, by a vote of 112 to 22, approved authorizing local governments in the Twin Cities area to push back bar-closing times from 2 to 4 a.m. during the Republican National Convention. Pawlenty has said he'll sign the measure

It's left up to individual cities and townships in the seven-county metro area to decide whether they want to expand bar hours to 4 a.m. They're also allowed to charge bars a fee of as much as $2,500 for special permits to operate during the longer hours.

Sen. Linda Scheid, DFL-Brooklyn Park, who co-authored the closing-time proposal in a broader liquor policy bill in the Senate, said she believed an informational session for legislators quelled concerns about enforcing the expanded hours and the ability of local jurisdictions to regulate it.

Under the measure, the later hours would be in effect only from Aug. 31, the day before the convention begins in St. Paul, through Sept. 5, the day after it ends.

Hot words over hockey

The move to make hockey Minnesota's official sport, which was part of the education bill, prompted some cross-checking on the House floor before it was approved.

Rep. Bud Heidgerken said it was demeaning to young athletes trying to choose a sport and wouldn't mean anything in some parts of the state where hockey isn't popular.

But Rep. Dean Urdahl said the provision didn't aim to put down any other sport but instead to recognize hockey's unique place in Minnesota and its history.

Late-night work

As midnight approached, the House and Senate were working madly to clear up major bills as they moved toward closure of a session scheduled to adjourn by May 19.

Also on the agenda late Thursday was the minimum-wage bill, targeted for a veto by Pawlenty.

Negotiations among Pawlenty and DFL legislative leaders on how to bridge their differences had continued on Thursday, working toward closing a projected $935 million budget deficit. They met again briefly in the afternoon before Pawlenty departed for Breezy Point Resort for the governor's fishing opener with no breakthroughs.

Earlier in the day, Pawlenty said he is considering his options -- including a special session -- if he and legislative leaders fail to reach a global agreement before May 19.

He said discussions continue on the level of spending cuts, specifics of a property tax cap and the use of reserves.

While discussions among staff members were expected to continue, it is unlikely Pawlenty and the leaders will meet face-to-face again until Sunday night.


]]> 2008-05-09T13:20:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/transportation_bill_is_retooled_to_boost_its_chances/ {summary} MN Legislature Trying to assuage critics, conferees reworked a measure that includes stricter seat-belt enforcement and teen driving restrictions.


By MIKE KASZUBA,
Star Tribune
May 7, 2008


With Gov. Tim Pawlenty threatening a veto and legislative passage in doubt, House and Senate DFLers reworked a transportation policy bill Wednesday that includes a provision allowing law-enforcement officials to stop motorists for not wearing seat belts.

A House-Senate conference committee stripped a proposal that would require children younger than 8 to use booster seats after Pawlenty sent the panel a letter saying that its overall recommendations were "ill-considered."

The reworked bill is expected to go before the full House today.

Although Pawlenty also wanted changes to provisions that put new restrictions on teenage drivers, the panel said it had made enough changes to satisfy the governor and House Republicans.

One of the bill's provisions would make not wearing a seat belt a "primary" traffic offense, meaning police could stop motorists for that reason alone. Currently, a ticket can be issued for failure to buckle up only if someone has been pulled over for another violation, such as speeding.

"This bill will rise or fall on primary seat belts," said Rep. Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, a conference committee co-chairwoman.

Other provisions

The bill also would limit early morning driving by newly licensed drivers younger than 18 and restrict the number of young passengers they can have.

Another part of the bill would ban motorists from e-mailing and text messaging while driving.

Wednesday's developments came a day after Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung and Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, the other conference committee co-chair, clashed verbally over what Murphy said were conflicting late-night signals by the governor's office over what Pawlenty wanted.

Senate Minority Leader David Senjem, R-Rochester, complained Wednesday that Murphy had challenged McClung during a TV interview Tuesday to "meet him on the Capitol steps."


]]> 2008-05-09T02:17:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/booster_seat_rule_dropped_after_pawlenty_objects/ {summary} MN Legislature


Associated Press
May 7, 2008


A transportation policy bill is headed for floor votes in both houses Thursday without a booster seat requirement that bothered Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

A House-Senate conference committee stripped mandatory booster seats for children ages 4 to 8 from the package after Pawlenty twice sent them letters outlining his objections to the bill. The second letter said the booster seat provision left "unanswered questions."

Several panel members said they weren't happy about making the last-minute changes at a meeting Wednesday, after they thought they had finished their bill. But they said they were willing to do it to get other provisions into law, including new teen driving restrictions and a measure allowing law enforcement to stop and ticket unbelted drivers.

"I don't expect to get another letter," said Rep. Terry Morrow, DFL-St. Peter. "What I expect to see now is that both houses pass this bill in a bipartisan way and that the governor is going to sign this bill."

Stopping briefly to speak to reporters on his way to an event, Pawlenty said he hadn't seen the changes yet and repeated the concerns outlined in his letter — including a desire to let parents opt their teenage children out of driving restrictions that include a curfew and limits on passengers.

Rep. Melissa Hortman, the lead House negotiator for the bill, said the panel did not adopt that provision after hearing from law enforcement representatives who said it would make the restrictions hard to enforce.

Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, said the booster seat requirement would have prevented serious injuries to children who are too small for adult-sized seat belts.

The panel also added a provision that would prevent speeding tickets for going up to 70 miles per hour in a 60-mph zone from going on a driver's record.


]]> 2008-05-09T01:34:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/minimum_wage_hike_faces_pawlenty_veto/ {summary} MN Governor


by Tim Pugmire,
Minnesota Public Radio
May 7, 2008


Gov. Tim Pawlenty says he'll veto legislation that would increase Minnesota's minimum wage twice in the next 14 months. The Republican governor says the pay boost is too high. But his veto warning Tuesday came less than a day after House and Senate negotiators completed work on the bill, and DFL lawmakers are crying foul.


St. Paul, Minn. — The legislation would raise the minimum wage for employees of large companies from $6.15 to $6.75 in July. Another dollar increase would come in July 2009. Workers at small companies would see the minimum wage rise from $5.25 to to $5.75 this summer, with another dollar jump next year.

Rep. Tom Rukavina, DFL-Virginia, said the compromise agreement would help the lowest paid workers in the state. In an attempt to gain the support of Gov. Pawlenty, Rukavina said the conference committee eliminated annual inflationary increases in the minimum wage.

"Inflation was his biggest concern, at least the one mentioned first and foremost," he said. "So we took out inflation even though I believe about seven or eight other states have that either built in constitutionally or statutorily into their minimum wage."

But Gov. Pawlenty still has concerns with the bill, and his spokesman said a veto is planned. In a written statement, spokesman Brian McClung said the governor has supported minimum wage increase in the past, but this bill goes too far.

He said the bill would give Minnesota one of highest minimum wages in the country and hurt small businesses. The governor also wants a credit for high-earning tipped employees.

House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, R-Marshall said he supports the governor's veto threat. Seifert said the minimum wage bill will drive small cafes and hardware stores out of business.

"I had a small business owner that said the last one that passed cost his businesses $60,000 per month in additional costs because of the number of employees they have," he said. "And they said if they have to eat another increase, they're going to close their doors. And that's happening all over Minnesota."

The House passed its minimum wage bill last week. The Senate passed a similar bill a year ago.

After learning of the veto threat, Sen. Ellen Anderson, DFL-St. Paul, called the governor irresponsible and disrespectful.

"I mean, if the governor was going to veto this, he should have told us yesterday when we were negotiating it," she said. "He didn't. He left the door open. He said he was open to signing a bill. And we compromised. We met him more than half way. And now he pulls the rug out from under us. I mean that's just not a decent way to treat legislators or in particular the people of Minnesota who are now to suffer the consequences."

The Legislature could ratify the proposal this week and send it to the governor. State lawmakers last raised the minimum wage in 2005.

]]> 2008-05-08T03:05:00-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/minn_house_votes_to_allow_aid_for_studies_of_stem_cells_from_human_embryos/ {summary} MN House

Associated Press | May 7, 2008


Legislation allowing state dollars to support research on stem cells from human embryos has cleared the Minnesota House.

The vote was 71-62 in the chamber controlled by Democrats.

A similar bill passed the Democrat-led Senate last year.

Differences between the two versions would have to be reconciled before the proposal could go to Governor Tim Pawlenty.

The Republican governor has called for stricter limits on research involving human embryos.

An amendment that would have restricted state aid to studies on stem cells derived without destroying embryos failed on a 65-69 vote.



]]> 2008-05-08T00:45:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/minnesota_congresswoman_corrects_committee_on_city_for_republican_national_/ {summary} MN Congressional Reps.


WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Minnesota congresswoman chided her own committee Wednesday for mixing up the names of the cities hosting the Republican National Convention this summer.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee had examined hospital capacity in seven cities in case of a terrorist attack. Two of the cities, Denver and Minneapolis, were identified as sites for this year's nominating conventions.

But St. Paul, Minn. — not neighboring Minneapolis — is the site of the Republican, although the Twin Cities are co-hosts.

"I live in Minnesota and I need to set the record straight," Betty McCollum, a Democrat from St. Paul, said at a committee hearing.

Besides Minneapolis and Denver, site of the Democratic convention, the committee looked at Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston.

A committee report found that hospitals surveyed in those cities did not have the necessary capacity to handle victims from a terrorist bombing similar in size to the 2004 bombing in Madrid, Spain, which killed 191 people and injured more than 1,800.

Committee staffers looked at "surge capacity" at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis and found, among other things, that its emergency room was operating at 91 percent capacity on the day it was surveyed.

But, said McCollum, "In the event of an emergency at the Republican National Convention, Regions Hospital in St. Paul, an excellent facility, will be the primary responder, with the (Minneapolis) hospital examined in the report providing support."

After McCollum's comments, the committee moved on to the next lawmaker for questions without addressing her complaints.


]]> 2008-05-08T00:36:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/bill_moves_ahead_no_dropping_out_before_18/ {summary} MN Education Legislators finalized a measure to raise the high school dropout age. But would kids pay attention to such a law?


By NORMAN DRAPER,
Star Tribune
Last update: May 6, 2008


House and Senate education policy committee members agreed late Monday on raising the Minnesota high school dropout age from 16 to 18.

A final Senate and House vote on the measure could come as early as this week.

The dropout age measure, given little chance of passing a month ago, is part of a larger education policy bill. That bill also contains provisions for adding criteria to the report cards the state issues for schools every year. New criteria would include: numbers of students taking Advanced Placement and other rigorous courses, numbers of students taking courses required for college admission, and measures of how safe and connected students feel in their schools.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty's office did not return calls inquiring whether he would sign the bill if it passes the Senate and House.

The proposal represents an effort to keep in school at least a few of the thousands of Minnesota high school kids who drop out each year. If passed, it would bring Minnesota in synch with many other states that have set the age at 18.

What's uncertain is how many kids would pay attention. Many of the 16- and 17-year olds who leave school without graduating do so without following state requirements to get their parents' permission. Critics wonder how many of them would heed a new law raising the dropout age. But proponents say it's time for Minnesota to signal how important it is to stay in school. They cite figures showing that Minnesota high school dropouts forfeit millions of dollars in earnings, and that a significant lowering of the dropout rate would, among other things, save millions of dollars in public safety and health care costs.

If passed, the measure as written would go into effect in the 2011-2012 school year. There is no pricetag attached to the measure. The cost could be significant if it results in many more students staying in school. That's because school funding from the state is allocated on a per-pupil basis.

]]> 2008-05-08T00:26:01-06:00 http://www.therochesterdemocrat.com/index.php/weblog/minn_senator_says_he_faces_unwelcome_choice_on_road_safety_rules/ {summary} MN Senate


ST. PAUL (AP) -- A top senator claimed Tuesday that he was being forced to choose between three safety features as he prepared a transportation policy bill to send to Gov. Tim Pawlenty — an account the governor called "not helpful."

Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, said a gubernatorial staffer told him late Monday that his bill could include two of the following three measures: a buckle-up law, restrictions for teen drivers and mandatory booster seats for children. Murphy heads a House-Senate conference committee working on the bill.

"We want this bill to pass," Murphy said. "This bill has the potential of saving anyplace between 40 and 60 lives in Minnesota."

Pawlenty outlined several objections to the bill in a letter to Murphy that said, "We are disappointed with your continued misstatements. Your press conference this morning was not helpful."

Pawlenty said he wants Murphy to address the concerns House Republicans and Democrats have with the bill, and he recommended allowing parents the choice of opting out of teen driving restrictions.

His letter also said he expects the conference committee to remove "any other problematic provisions identified by MnDOT, DPS or my staff," referring to the Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Safety.

Murphy said he would drop the booster seat requirement if forced to choose because the other safety measures would save more lives.

The seat belt law would allow law enforcement to stop and ticket drivers for not buckling up. Now they can give seat belt tickets only when they stop motorists for other probable violations. The teen driving restrictions include a curfew and limits on the number of passengers a new driver can have.


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