Public Finance

DFL Rep. Karen Clark wants to raise taxes on barrels of beer from $4.60 to $16.17

Rep. Karen Clark, D-Minneapolis, is one half of the tandem leading the push for marriage equality. She's also leading the push to increase taxes on beer, wine, and liquor.SEE ALSO: Sunday liquor sales seem to be dead on arrival yet againYesterday, Clark's proposal to increase taxes on 31-gallon barr ... More >>

Minnesota budget forecast shows slimmer deficit

Minnesota's budget deficit is looking about $463 million slimmer than estimated last fall, according to a new forecast. SEE ALSO: Minnesota will be one of the states least affected by sequestration, but it's still going to suck

Smoking is slowly becoming illegal in Minnesota

One day after Gov. Dayton proposed a 94-cent increase in the state's cigarette tax, State Fair officials announced that smokers will be huddled into pens starting with this year's Great Minnesota Get-Together.FROM OCTOBER: State smoking ban turns five today In other words, smoking continues down the ... More >>

Mark Dayton gets F grade in Cato Institute's 2012 governor fiscal policy report card

The D.C.-based Cato Institute is a conservative think tank co-founded by Charles Koch, so of course researchers there and Gov. Mark Dayton weren't destined to be bosom buddies.SEE ALSO:-- Mark Dayton rips Paul Ryan for fudging Grandma's Marathon time... by over an hour-- Mike Parry says Governor Day ... More >>

Allen Quist ignores facts, alleges food stamp program discriminates against married couples

SEE ALSO:-- Allen Quist flip-flops about his research in a Mankato "anonymous sodomy" adult bookstore-- Allen Quist under renewed fire for 'men are genetically predisposed to lead family' remarkWith his gaffe-fest primary against Mike Parry in the rear-view mirror, you might've expected Republican U ... More >>

Target Field generated nearly three times more tax revenue last year than Dome did in 2009

Figures supplied by both the Twins and the public ballpark authority and a separate analysis by the Department of Revenue indicate Target Field has has significantly increased the amount of sales and use taxes generated by the Twins.The numbers show that the ballpark generated $17 million in tax rev ... More >>

Gov. Dayton using veto pen to hold line against ALEC-drafted legislation

So far this legislative session, Gov. Mark Dayton has vetoed 12 bills. Seven of them were originally drafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).According to MinnPost, five of the vetoed ALEC bills would have reduced corporate exposure to lawsuits and potential damages in Minnesota. ... More >>

Michael Brodkorb steps down from Minnesota Republican Party to volunteer on Mike Parry's campaign

​Michael Brodkorb is resigning as deputy chairman of the Republican Party in Minnesota to volunteer on state Sen. Mike Parry's run for U.S. Congress. Parry announced Friday that he would run against Congressman Tim Walz in the First Congressional District, a major move on the part of Republicans ... More >>

Shutdown could end today

Dayton's very special session will begin at 3 p.m.​Mark Dayton has called for a special session of the legislature to meet at 3 p.m. this afternoon. With a fast-track vote, Minnesota's shutdown might be over before happy hour. The legislature will try to pass all nine budget bills and Dayton's req ... More >>

Truckers in Minnesota seek a government place to pee, and rest

​Before anyone dismisses state highway rest areas as an unnecessary service and expense during the government shutdown, consider the plight of pissed off long-haul truckers. While most drivers speed past the cone zones that block access to the rest areas, heading for a pit stop at the next fast f ... More >>

Metro Transit on crash course with major layoffs, fare hikes

​The looming government shutdown will almost certainly impact bus and light rail service across the Twin Cities. But the long-range impact of the budget mess carries even worse news for commuters. Metro Transit will be forced to lay off 500 employees, eliminate 200 bus routes, and curtail service ... More >>

Minnesota banks could benefit from a government shutdown

At least one union is asking bank CEOs to cut a deal with the school districts.​If the Minnesota Legislature doesn't resolve the state budget by July 1, a government shutdown wouldn't be bad news for everyone. In order to stay open, school districts without enough reserve funds to pay employe ... More >>

Mark Dayton wants shutdown contingency to include payments to health providers

​Gov. Mark Dayton will expanded his list of essential services in a possible state government shutdown today, petitioning Ramsey County Court to include payments to health care and financial assistance workers providing services to those on state aid. "We recognize the lack of assured provide ... More >>

Senate petitions court to join shutdown lawsuit, while courts sue to stay open

​GOP members of a Senate panel have passed a resolution authorizing the entire body to intervene in the lawsuit filed by Gov. Mark Dayton to keep essential services running in the case of a government shutdown. Today, the courts filed their own petition begging legislators and the governor to ... More >>

What's essential in a shutdown? State files petition to explain

What's an essential service?​We're 18 days away from a state government shutdown, and the prospect that only essential agencies and services will continue to operate. But, what's an essential service? Attorney General Lori Swanson took a stab at that in a Ramsey County court filing today: Any ... More >>

Countdown to government shutdown: Who's to blame?

Minnesota lawmakers have until July 1 to get it together.​As of today, the Minnesota Legislature is two-and-a-half weeks tardy in solving the state's $5 billion budget deficit. Unfortunately for everyone, there doesn't appear to be a budget deal in sight. If no agreement is made by July 1st, ... More >>

Dayton vetoes all nine Republican budget bills

Dayton is Dr. No.​Wasting no time after the Legislature adjourned without reaching a compromise with him over the state's fiscal mess, Gov. Mark Dayton vetoed all nine Republican budget bills passed in the waning hours of the session. In doing so, he reminded GOP leaders that he too had the b ... More >>

Michele Bachmann caught spreading tax lies on "Good Morning America"

Bachmann vs. Stephanopoulos: No contest.​Never letting the facts get in the way of a good soundbite, Michele Bachmann's been caught with her pants on fire by PolitiFact again. George Stephanopoulos, on "Good Morning America," asked her why it was okay for the wealthy to get tax breaks, but no ... More >>

Team Bachmann still insists, yep, we're a "nation of slaves"

​We're a "nation of slaves," Michele Bachmann insists. No. We're not. We stopped that brutality a long time ago. But what would prompt her to make such a crazy claim? Because the Obama administration has doubled the national debt from $5.8 trillion to $13.1 trillion -- that's what she told a ... More >>

Scott Dibble takes aim at tobacco products

​If you've been smoking "little cigars" like the classily-advertised Remington Good Times brand, your life may be about to get more expensive.DFL state Sen. D. Scott Dibble of Minneapolis has introduced legislation that will update the state's laws to include tobacco products currently exempt from ... More >>

Supplemental budget cuts $1 billion state deficit by a third

​Both houses of the Legislature voted today to pass a supplemental budget that cuts about $312 million in state spending. Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who reached an agreement with legislators over the weekend, is expected to sign the bill. That leaves the remainder of the $1 billion budget deficit, whi ... More >>

Michele Bachmann fisked by CBS News after "Face the Nation" appearance

The congresswoman keeps insisting that the federal government now controls 51 percent of the U.S. economy.

Tim Pawlenty's budget cuts: Nothing spared except cops, vets, K-12

T-Paw said today that only military and veterans' programs, public safety and education will be spared from cuts.

Reaganite: Pawlenty's "transparently phony" on balanced budget

He may think he has found a clever way of appealing to the right wing tea party/Fox News crowd, Bruce Bartlett says.

Six Minnesotans sue Pawlenty over budget cuts

A lawsuit filed yesterday challenges the constitutionality of Pawlenty's use of unallotment.

Rybak's office defends artistic drinking fountains

During Gov. Tim Pawlenty's unallotment announcement, he made a jab at Minneapolis's plan for "artistic drinking fountains" during a time of budget crisis. Rybak's office hits back.

Minn. DFL proposes increasing taxes on all things that matter

DFL legislators have come up with the genius idea of taxing all things that really matter in life: booze, cigarettes, and rich people.

Bad idea: Threatening to shoot IRS reps

Taxes can enrage anyone, but that doesn't mean you need to threaten to commit drive-by shootings against tax collectors. It's just probably a really bad idea.

Tough choices: Minn. lawmakers can take pay cut to save state

When you can barely make ends meet, why would you choose to take in less money?

Franken calls for Congressional hearings on bailout cash

Should baseball pay for sidewalks?

Both Minnesota senators vote for financial rescue bill

Feeling gassy?

Who's to Blame?

In the wake of the I-35W bridge collapse, it's time to take a hard look at the politicians and policies that may have contributed to the disaster

The Blue in the Red

Can the Minneapolis Police Department plunder the city's pocketbook?

A Centrist is Born

Mike Hatch mines the middle ground—and never mentions the T-word

The Road to Perdition

The governor wants to spend billions on roads without raising your taxes. Think there might be a catch?

City Budget: Glass houses edition

Heavy Hitter

The governor and the developer: A love story

Apocalypse Soon

Scuzzy Math

Was the education budget the "big winner" at the Capitol? The truth is in the numbers.

Pawlenty's ethics run into tree

Blue Christmas

The City Council gives itself a gift: Money for the MPD

911'S A Joke In Your Town?

Death by a Thousand Cuts

How does Minnesota's fresh-minted 2003 budget make this a meaner place? Let us count the ways

Magical Misery Tour

Norm Coleman's "St. Paul miracle" gets a withering report card

Blaming the Somalis

Are local immigrants unwittingly funding Al Qaeda? The numbers just don't add up.

Eagan Needs Luxury Homes

Tony Caponi's 60-acre suburban sculpture garden, where he has lived since 1949, could have a future as a permanent art park-- or another housing development

Saving Private Coleman

St. Paul launches a campaign to open bidding wars on city services

Death and Taxes

In the murky underground of patriots, tax resisters, and cash-strapped working stiffs, Karl Granse's basement is Law Central. Now he's about to watch his most famous