While excavating sand is nothing new in Minnesota, the rush to excavate large quantities to ship to the Dakotas has quickly unearthed a prominent issue for state legislators and regulators.

Hutchinson Mayor Steve Cook watched as the Legislature finished its work in a mid-July special session. Like many other local government officials, he was not impressed.

Minnesota's cities are rapidly going broke. If no changes are made in spending or revenue collections, cities of all sizes across the state will be running deficits by 2015, according to a new report commissioned by the Minnesota League of Cities. A decade after that, cities will see revenues run, on average, 35 percent short of spending needs.

A St. Paul-based think tank issued a controversial report this week that says cities that get local government aid are providing “more generous” health care ...