Minnesota Lawmakers Enact Tax-Relief Measure

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Minnesota lawmakers have approved a plan providing hundreds of thousands of taxpayers with extra deductions and exemptions they can claim on this year's tax forms.

The House and Senate sent the bill to Gov. Mark Dayton, who planned to sign it immediately Friday.

The $434 million package lines Minnesota's tax code up with more deductions available to federal filers, which will reduce state tax burdens for qualifying residents.

They include recent college graduates repaying student loans, teachers buying supplies for classrooms and people who lost or short-sold their homes in the last year.

Revenue officials urge people who many qualify to wait until Monday to file returns.

The bill also repeals three controversial business sales taxes beginning in April. And it raises the balance of the state's reserves by $150 million.