Lawmakers are expected to announce a deal on Monday raising Minnesota's minimum wage to $9.50 an hour with inflationary increases thereafter. Negotiations between the Senate -- which has been dragging its feet on the issue -- and the House, have been a major political division this session between the Democrats who control the Legislature.

During the 2013 legislative session, DFL lawmakers and Gov. Mark Dayton settled on a $300 million funding package for so-called Corridors of Commerce. In October, when Dayton announced the awarding of grants for 10 projects spread throughout the state, his announcement was heralded as good news by a number of Republicans, including U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann and Rep. Kurt Zellers, R-Maple Grove.

Political and ideological opponents did not waste their chance to grab some of the spotlight from Tuesday's groundbreaking.

Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter rejected calls from American Indian activists who were pushing for the delay of bond sales on the new Minnesota Vikings stadium, the Star Tribune reports. The activists are trying to get assurances that the word "Redskins," the' nickname for the Washington, D.C. NFL team, will not be displayed inside the stadium.

The race had divided many of the city's prominent Democrats.

A national Republican group is hammering DFLers in three greater Minnesota congressional districts over the technical failures that have beset the rollout of the federal health insurance exchange.

After taking a pounding from Congressman Tim Walz in the 2012 general election, Republicans in the 1st Congressional District appear to be dusting themselves off and getting serious about preventing the Mankato Democrat from winning a fifth term.

State lawmakers who focus on pension issues are faced with the thankless task of trying to predict the financial future as they weigh the health of the state’s public pension plans.

Aaron Miller announced on Tuesday that he plans to seek the GOP nomination in the 1st Congressional District. The U.S. Army veteran is the second announced Republican challenger to DFL U.S. Rep. Tim Walz.

Rick Nolan raised $135,000 in the second quarter of 2013 and ended June with less than $200,000 in the bank. The first-term DFL incumbent is expected to face a vigorous challenge in the 8th Congressional District.