May 1, 2003 -
May 2, 2003 - A new poll shows most Minnesotans favor the direction set by Governor Tim Pawlenty's no-new-taxes approach to budget-balancing. But the survey -- conducted for Minnesota Public Radio and the St. Paul Pioneer Press -- also shows that when confronted with specific alternatives or tax proposals, significant majorities show a willingness to increase state revenues. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.
May 2, 2003 - The Minnesota House early this morning passed a 7 billion dollar budget bill that funds health and human services programs for the next two years. House Republicans say they're providing a nine percent increase to services that include subsidized health insurance, child care funding and programs for the elderly. But because of higher health care costs and increased demand costs for those programs were projected to rise over twenty percent in the next biennium. Opponents say the bill unfairly targets the lower income and the poor. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports....
May 5, 2003 - Minnesota lawmakers have just two weeks before they must adjourn the session. Both the House and Senate have passed several spending packages, and now they must agree on a way to balance the next two-year budget in the face of a 4.2 billion dollar shortfall. Joining us now for a look at the week ahead is Minnesota Public Radio's Capitol Bureau Chief, Laura McCallum.
May 5, 2003 - 25 years after the death of Hubert Humphrey... former staffers and aids are coming together in Minneapolis to honor his legacy. Humphrey was mayor of Minneapolis in the 1940's. He united the Democratic and Farmer-Labor parties... became a U.S. senator who championed civil rights.... and was elected Vice President in 1964. Later today... about a hundred former staffers and aids will gather at the Humphrey Institute at the U of M to discuss his impact on Minnesota and the country. Joining us on the line is Norm Sherman... who was Humphrey's press secretary during his Senate and Vice Presidential career.
May 6, 2003 -
May 6, 2003 - A new Minnesota Public Radio-St. Paul Pioneer Press poll finds about half of those polled think Governor Pawlenty is doing a good or excellent job. That's about the same as in a February poll by the same organizations. But the number of people rating his performance "poor" more than doubled, rising from 8 to 17 percent. Craig Grau is a political science professor at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, and he's on the line now. That is Craig Grau, a political science professor at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
May 6, 2003 -
May 7, 2003 - The latest Minnesota Public Radio, St. Paul Pioneer Press Poll shows a slight majority would oppose an increase to the gas tax or their license tab fees to pay for transportation projects. Respondents were split over the condition of the state's roads. Both the House and Senate have passed different transportation funding projects. Governor Pawlenty and House Republicans say the poll reinforces their decision not to raise taxes to pay for transportation projects. Senate DFLers say the polls show more people support an increase than in previous years. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
May 7, 2003 -