Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton managed to draw a large crowd to a restaurant in downtown Minneapolis just ahead of the annual Twin Cities Pride Festival. The purpose was to raise money for Minnesotans United for All Families, the main campaign in opposition to a proposed ballot initiative.
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Adjournment fever pandemic strikes Capitol
The conventional wisdom from the start was that Session 2012 would be a short one. A healthy budget surplus plus newly redrawn legislative districts meant less work to be done at the Capitol and more to be done back home, where some lawmakers will face intra-party endorsement challenges and others have to get to know a daunting amount of new territory.
Read More »GOP eyes phase-out of business property tax
It has long been the bane of Minnesota’s business community, and this legislative session, both Republican majorities at the Capitol are looking to do away with it once and for all.
Read More »Pogemiller’s appointment to Office of Higher Ed ends storied legislative career
No one seemed to see Larry Pogemiller’s departure coming. Not even him. Gov. Mark Dayton announced late last week that the Minneapolis senator of nearly 30 years would move to the Office of Higher Education to replace former Director Sheila Wright, who resigned suddenly in September.
Read More »Lobbyists got more gray hairs than victories in 2011 session
At the close of a news conference in July called by Republican legislative leaders to discuss the $11 billion health and human services bill, former DFL House Speaker Bob Vanasek offered some pointed criticism to Republicans David Hann and Jim Abeler from the back of the room.
Read More »Latest revenue update signals trouble ahead
Although the state won’t issue its next economic forecast until early December, the outlook for the state budget is growing increasingly gloomy.
Read More »2012 may bring Budget Showdown II
The February 2011 budget forecast that knocked $1.2 billion off the state's recent budget deficit came with no shortage of caveats. Nearly half the rosier revenue picture was attributable to predicted capital gains collections, which are notoriously volatile.
Read More »ALEC’s influence surges in Minnesota
During the early part of her two-plus decades in the state Legislature, retired Republican Sen. Pat Pariseau remembers being just one of a handful of Minnesota legislators who could call themselves members of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).
Read More »Lobbyists scramble to digest budget
Some bills were only posted online in the early hours of Wednesday morning, just hours — or minutes — before they passed. By morning they were signed into law by the governor. Now some lobbyists, many of whom spend long days and nights at the Capitol during session, are scrambling to understand the budget bills’ implications for their clients.
Read More »Four veteran insiders offer a view of past state negotiations
Now that the state shutdown appears to be over, it seemed a good time to wonder what goes on in those conference rooms for hours ...
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