With the clock counting down toward zero on the Minnesota Legislature’s first deadline for bills that need recommendations to survive, let’s take a quick look at a couple Twin Cities-specific bills that are scrambling Friday to stay alive.
SF 3115 from Sen. Scott Dibble, DFL-Minneapolis, would authorize the city of Minneapolis to set limits on how long mobile food operations (chuckwagons, hot dog carts, etc.) can operate in one location without moving. The bill is scheduled for a hearing Friday in the Senate State and Local Government Operations and Oversight Committee.
SF 2957 from Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, would allow Hennepin County to purchase energy (motor vehicle fuel, natural gas, etc.) at a locked-in price in a contract so that the county won’t face deficits from higher-than-expected fuel costs than what they budgeted. The bill is up for a hearing Friday in the same Senate committee as Dibble’s, which Rest just happens to run.
A couple other noteworthy bills from Twin Cities authors trying to beat the clock Friday include:
HF 1270 from Rep. Michael Paymar, DFL-St. Paul, would authorize pilot programs for housing offenders with stayed sentences or sentences of less than one-year as an alternative to jail. The bill mentions Hennepin and Ramsey Counties as participants. It’s scheduled to receive a hearing in the House Finance Committee on Friday.
HF 3421 from Rep. Carlos Mariani, DFL-St. Paul, would establish end-of-course exams in reading, writing, algebra, geometry, chemistry and physics in high school to assess students’ college-readiness. The bill is up for a hearing in the House K-12 Education Policy and Oversight Committee, which Mariani leads.
SF 2874, from Sen. Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis, would eliminate the state Department of Employment and Economic Development and Department of Labor and Industry, and downsize the state Department of Commerce. The bill is being heard Friday in the Senate State and Local Government Operations and Oversight Committee.
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