Was the environmental review process "a neutral evaluation" or "puffery"?

The Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council last week wrapped up a hard-fought round of hearings on Legacy funding by making $102 million in recommendations for the 2014 Legislature. There are three items in particular that hung on to receive funding despite staunch opposition from some of the 12 members on the citizen/legislator panel.

U.S. District Court Judge Joan Ericksen has dismissed claims against the state stemming from the actions of a Minnesota Department of Natural Resources employee who improperly accessed data on more than 5,000 individuals.

In crafting its recommendations to the 2014 Legislature, the Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council is internally divided on more than $30 million in requests to combat aquatic invasive species in Minnesota waters.

The Senate Finance Committee turned down Sen. Matt Schmit's bid to amend frac sand legislation into the game and fish bill less than a week after it removed from the same bill by a different committee. However, Gov. Mark Dayton's administration has voiced strong support for Schmit's proposal, creating the potential for it to reemerge before session's end.

A new report from the legislative auditor will likely spur lawmakers to re-examine the money they’re giving to state agencies and nonprofits to conserve outdoor habitat.

The landscape is shifting for the 12-member citizen-legislator group that recommends conservation habitat land acquisitions to the state Legislature.

Two marquee pieces of environmental legislation in the 2012 session owe their victories in no small part to horse trading between Gov. Mark Dayton and the Legislature.

While legislative leaders haggled in private regarding the 2012 session’s marquee legislation, rank-and-file legislators spent long hours on the floors of the House and Senate processing members’ pet bills.

Gov. Mark Dayton signed legislation on Monday that seeks to reduce red tape for businesses applying for permits. It's the second straight session in which Dayton and Republican legislative leaders have reached agreement on proposals to improve the state's regulatory climate.