MinnPost

For just the eighth time in 40 years, a budget session did not require a special session to finish its work. There were many policy changes, too.

Even as Democrats coalesce around a series of tax cuts and credits, the child care credit is one of a few significant differences the House and Senate will need to reconcile. It’s also one of few major DFL tax plans to benefit middle class residents.

Sixteen organizations are seeking $136.4 million in state funding to construct buildings they say will allow them to do their work more effectively.

Lawmakers are considering two bills that would dump money into local government budgets. One would increase the aid for cities and counties by $300 million in total and ensure payments rise with inflation. The other would distribute $300 million specifically for public safety spending.

If the Legislature advances all 36 proposals, perhaps one-quarter of Minnesotans could encounter a local sales tax proposal on an upcoming ballot. Outside the metro, 17 cities and five counties are seeking legislative approval for local sales tax increases, including Grand Rapids and Beltrami County.

The vote illustrated the divide among Republicans, particularly in rural areas, as the party debated whether to stall a bonding bill as a negotiating tactic or greenlight money to pay for critical infrastructure.

The bill would broaden the number of local governments that could adopt the system and then create a task force with the aim of crafting a plan to elect partisan state and federal officials via ranked choice voting.

MinnPost is non-profit, non-partisan journalism supported by readers. Walker Orenstein covers Greater Minnesota.

"The right of privacy under our Constitution protects not simply the right to an abortion but rather it protects the woman's decision to abort; any legislation infringing on the decision-making process, then, violates this fundamental right" according to Doe v. Gomez in 1995 and U of MN Law Professor Jill Hasday

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