State Legislature

The Minnesota House has passed a public school funding bill that increases per-pupil payments to schools while making major changes to the way that they operate.

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The Minnesota House has passed a higher education budget bill that cuts funding for the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities systems.

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A minor spending cut in a sprawling Senate health and welfare bill threatens home-delivered meals for thousands of poor senior citizens and could result in lost federal dollars.

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The Minnesota House of Representatives has voted to cut state income taxes as part of a package of changes to state tax policy, but the bill faces a cold reception from Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton.

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With the Legislature beginning its budget votes, Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton has warned majority Republicans that he won't accept slices of the budget until an agreement on a full plan is reached.

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The first floor debates and votes on Republican-sponsored state budget bills come this week at the Capitol. The House of Representatives plans to debate and vote Monday on a tax bill that includes income-tax cuts in the two lowest income brackets, cuts statewide property taxes on businesses, and phases out state aid to the cities of Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth.

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House Republicans aim to reduce projected health and welfare spending $1.6 billion by cutting services for the disabled and elderly and MinnesotaCare health care while seeking federal permission for more health care cuts.

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Two veteran Republican lawmakers from southern Minnesota are the chief sponsors of the latest bill seeking to allow horse racing tracks to install video slot machines. The push to expand casino-style gambling has been regularly stymied at the Capitol.

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A bill attempting to head off possible human cloning is starting its travel through Minnesota's Legislature. The human cloning ban is a priority of the state's dominant anti-abortion group, Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life.

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A proposal to more than double prison sentences for the most serious sex crimes gets its first legislative hearing Tuesday. The House public safety committee considers legislation that would raise the recommended sentence for first-degree sex offenses from 12 years to 25 years.

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