No Bachmann or Palin at this rally

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Missed out on your chance to see former half-term Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin Wednesday in Minneapolis? Wondering what to do with your day? The Minnesota AFL-CIO has got you covered. The federation of trade unions is organizing a “Rally for Jobs and Tax Fairness” at noon in the State Capitol rotunda, two hours before U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., will be using the Minneapolis Convention Center to host a rally and fundraiser with Palin. The rally and a follow-up session of lobbying state lawmakers is part of the MN AFL-CIO’s Working Families Day at the Capitol and will feature National AFL-CIO Secretary/Treasurer Liz Shuler.U.S. Reps. Continue Reading

DFLers embrace Pawlenty business tax breaks to reward their districts

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In one month, DFL legislative leaders have gone from hating Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s signature economic development tax break plan to loving it so much they want to extend it in certain cases.So why have Democrats put their loathing for Pawlenty’s JOBZ program aside this session? Because the jobs bill they plan to pass on Monday calls for extending or modifying it to help land or keep jobs in Duluth and St. Paul, two DFL strongholds.SF 2568, from Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, and HF 2695 from Rep. Ann Lenczewski, DFL-Bloomington, hands out tax boons to different groups and cities in hopes ot creating some jobs.The most widely discussed parts of the bill are an angel investor tax credit for people or groups that bankroll new business start-ups, a tax credit for small businesses that hire new employees and a tax credit for restoring historic buildings.Some of the ideas line up with Pawlenty’s tax proposal, though he has criticized it for not going far enough in cutting business taxes.Humorously, for those who have been watching DFLers try year-in and year-out to yank the rug out from under Pawlenty’s JOBZ program, this year they’ve done an about-face and decided to use it to help land a wind turbine manufacturer in Duluth and to make the St. Paul Ford plant a tax-free zone to keep those jobs from leaving.Some other winners, hand-picked by Bakk and Lenczewski for tax benefits in the bill:* The Mall of America expansion in Bloomington would get state authorization to use local tax breaks to do a phased expansion.* Oakdale, East Grand Forks, North Mankato and Cohasset get expanded authority to offer local tax breaks for job creation.* Urban redevelopers who could access local tax breaks for “compact development districts.”* Duluth would get to use some taconite tax set aside for a biomass energy plant in 2008 to be used instead for a value-added wood product facility.Watch the Senate Taxes Committee discussion of the bill here.  Continue Reading

CORRECTION / Unemployment up again / Here come the Feds / more

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CORRECTION I summarized an article from AP and the Pioneer Press regarding a 14-state federal prosecution for “modern-day slavery” of immigrant workers. The article, and my summary, erroneously said that a Mankato roofer was implicated in the case. Here is the correction from the Pioneer Press:
A headline in Thursday’s Pioneer Press should not have said that a Mankato roofer was implicated in a labor scheme involving immigrant workers. In fact, Kato Roofing was a client of a labor-leasing company that has been indicted in relation with the scheme. But Kato Roofing has not been implicated or associated in any way with the federal investigation and Kato Roofing officials emphasize that they have done nothing wrong. Continue Reading

Shredding Strike Force docs / T-Paw: “Quit whining” / Ending “Season of Fear” / more

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Shredded documents at Gang Strike Force led to Strike Force commander Capt. Chris Omodt’s decision to padlock the doors ahead of schedule yesterday, reports the Strib.Officers in the Metro Gang Strike Force shredded documents at its headquarters late Wednesday night, hours after the state Commissioner of Public Safety announced plans for an internal investigation after a government audit found that the Strike Force couldn’t account for $18,000 in seized cash and at least 13 vehicles. After the shredded documents were found in dumpsters and garbage cans at the Strike Force’s Brooklyn Center headquarters, Omodt ordered an immediate closing. In an email obtained by the Strib, Omodt also reported that “someone apparently shut off a computer that records when someone enters the building with a security card,” and that Strike Force members had removed documents and personal property from the building.Adding insult to injury, Governor Tim Pawlenty vetoed the tax bill and told cities and local governments that their concern over cuts to local government aid were “hogwash” and that, “Instead of just whining and complaining, they need to figure out how they can reduce their spending by a few percent.” “Nothing short of insane” That’s Congressional Representative Betty McCollum’s characterization of the NRA/Republican success in tacking a concealed-guns-in-national-parks rider onto the credit card reform bill, reports the Minnesota Independent. This is a shameful example of the failure of the legislative process and I would urge President Obama to veto the Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights and send it back to Congress to take the guns out. Continue Reading

Veto forecast / Charter school in trouble / New car rules / more

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Even without the legislature in session, the forecast for Minnesota is high winds and lots of heat today.T-Paw QOTD “The legislators are gone away and they are not coming back.”Health care, bullying, transportation More end-of-session news: Pawlenty plan is recipe for massive job losses from Workday Minnesota, and Pawlenty talks unallotment, veto plans from Session Daily. Getting down to specifics:Health care The governor’s cuts come amid a “hellish week for hospitals,” says MnIndy, reporting on staffing cuts across the state in large and small, public and private hospitals. The Strib reports that many people are cutting back on health care, waiting until they are very sick before seeing doctors, leaving prescriptions unfilled, and skipping routine screenings, such as Pap smears. Transportation In the single bright spot, MN 2020 reports that Minnesota moved forward on transportation in this session. Elections bill Although the legislature watered down the elections bill, leaving out provisions sought by both DFL and GOP legislators, the governor will still veto it, reports MinnPost. Continue Reading

Governor No: Line item vetos and unallotment / Cop pleads guilty / Beware the borer / more

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Governor No No new taxes. No special session. No compromise. That’s essentially the message that Governor Pawlenty delivered with $400 million in line item vetoes and a threat that he will balance the budget by unallotment if the legislature does not agree to his terms. Rachel Stassen Berger’s PiPress blog describes who gets hit by the biggest line item veto:In signing the Health and Human Services bill the Legislature sent him, he slashed $381 million in funding for General Assistance Medical Care, a health insurance program for adult Minnesotans who don’t have health insurance but may not be eligible or may not yet be approved for other subsidized health care programs. Health insurance through GAMC is only available to folks who make $650 a month, about $7,800 a year, or less. Many covered under GAMC are homeless. Continue Reading

Waiting for the veto / “Independent” contractors / Playing to lose / more

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Passed, passed, passed and waiting The legislature passed a number of bills yesterday, and the stack on T-Paw’s desk continues to grow. Will he sign or will he veto? Only the governor knows for sure. Among the bills awaiting decision:
• Flat funding for P-12 schools and cuts for higher ed. Minnesota Miracle and expanded Q-Comp both lose out. Continue Reading

Closing the door to college / Five days, a billion dollars / No blood on the gun / more

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I’m on the road, so this blog post is short and late — I hope tomorrow will be earlier and longer. Closing the door to college Minnesota has had a proud tradition of higher education and of making higher education available to its residents. That may be ending, reports MinnPost:Tuition is rising faster in Minnesota than in most other states. It has doubled since 1999 at the U of M. .. Meanwhile, state spending for higher education has stuck flat for years in some areas and dropped by double digits in others. Continue Reading

State support for jobless on the rise

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According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, “In March, the number of unemployed persons increased by 694,000 to 13.2 million, and the unemployment rate rose to 8.5 percent. Over the past 12 months, the number of unemployed persons has grown by about 5.3 million, and the unemployment rate has risen by 3.4 percentage points. Half of the increase in both the number of unemployed and the unemployment rate occurred in the last four months.”
This report was published at the end of March 2009. According to Unemployment Insurance Minnesota, “For the week ending March 28, 2009, 148,700 weeks of regular unemployment insurance and 33,400 weeks of extended benefits were requested.”
The population of the city of Saint Paul, Minnesota, according to the 2000 census was 280,000 persons. That means that during the last week in March, the number of people applying for benefits was more than half the population of the city of Saint Paul. Continue Reading