The Capitol Note: State readies push for 2018 Super Bowl

Gov. Mark Dayton announced the member of the steering committee in a Monday press conference. (Staff photo: Peter Bartz-Gallagher)

1.) Gov. Mark Dayton announced the starting lineup of the steering committee that will work to bring the 2018 Super Bowl to the new Minnesota Vikings stadium, trotting out a combination of public and private figures who will pitch Minneapolis as a destination to National Football League owners. Among the figures representing Minnesota’s delegation are Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority (MSFA) chair Michele Kelm-Helgen and Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Katie Clark Sieben. Private sector committee members include U.S. Bancorp CEO Richard Davis and Marilyn Carlson Nelson, former CEO of the Carlson hospitality company. Clark Sieben said Indianapolis saw $324 million worth of economic activity owing to its 2012 hosting gig, and added that the state would look to unite labor and private sector forces to help bring the event to Minneapolis. “We need everyone involved in this effort to bring the Super Bowl,” she said.

2.) The newest idea floated as a good use of the state’s projected surplus funds would see $100 million dedicated to expanding public access to broadband internet services, according to Minnesota Public Radio. The legislative task force convened to address that topic thinks spending that amount would deliver broadband to an additional 100,000 customers who currently cannot use high speed internet. The Legislature has a statutory requirement to make broadband available to every Minnesotan by 2015, but task force head — and former House Speaker — Margaret Anderson Kelliher has estimated that comprehensive coverage could cost up to $3.2 billion.

3.) Republican U.S. House candidate Stewart Mills announced on Monday that his campaign took in $205,000 worth of donations during the last quarter of 2013, bringing his annual total for that year north of $449,000. Mills entered this year with $306,000 in cash on hand, the Star Tribune reports. Incumbent DFL U.S. Rep. Rick Nolan has yet to publicize his own collections from the tail end of 2013; during the third quarter, Mills notably outraised Nolan, and trailed his cash on hand holdings only slightly.

COMINGS & GOINGS

• Dave Baker announced this past weekend his intention to run against Rep. Mary Sawatzky, DFL-Willmar, the West Central Tribune reports. Baker, a Willmar businessman, had been trying to recruit Republican candidates in that town before deciding that he might make a credible entrant himself. Sawatzky won election in 2012 with just 48.3 percent of the vote, defeating incumbent Bruce Vogel; an Independence Party candidate nabbed more than 7 percent of the vote that year.
• Negotiations specialist Dennis Eisenberg has been added to Education Minnesota‘s lobbying team. The new registration brings the teachers union’s current roster to 22 active lobbyists.
• All seven of the DFL candidates running to replace Rep. Michael Paymar, DFL-St. Paul, are expected to be on hand for a public forum on Wednesday evening, according to MinnPost. The event will be held at the St. Paul Jewish Community Center, and begins at 7:00 p.m. Paymar’s announcement that he would not seek reelection set off a slew of announcements from Democrats in that district, which leans heavily toward liberal candidates.
• Former Attorney General and DFL gubernatorial candidate Mike Hatch is hosting a fundraiser Thursday for Rep. Debra Hilstrom, DFL-Brooklyn Center, in her bid for the Secretary of State’s office. The notice announcing Hatch’s support, as captured by GOP operative Ben Golnik, explains that the event will be held at the Minneapolis Club, and comes with a suggested donation of $50 per person or $100 per couple.
• Darin Broton of Tunheim Public Affairs registered to lobby on behalf of the Minnesota Community Foundation, bringing that nonprofit’s current lobbyist count to three; it is Broton’s only current lobbying registration with the state.