December 16, 2003 - Governor Pawlenty's Bioscience Council is recommending that the state invest more than $234-million dollars in Minnesota's biotech industry. The group finalized the proposals it wants Pawlenty to present to the Legislature in February. The package also calls for guaranteeing up to 200-million dollars in venture capital investments. Backers admit parts of the plan will be a tough sell at the Capitol. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
December 16, 2003 - The Minnesota House Republican caucus is proposing legislation that would create tougher sentences for violent sex offenders. The announcement comes two weeks after a convicted sex offender was charged with kidnapping 22-year-old college student Dru Sjodin. Extensive searches for Sjodin have come up empty. Alfonso Rodriguez Junior is in custody for allegedly kidnapping Sjodin. He was released from prison in May after serving 23 years for assault, kidnapping and other convictions of attempted rape and aggravated rape. House Republicans say the incident highlights the need for tougher sentences. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
December 16, 2003 - Governor Tim Pawlenty is on his way home this morning after a brief trip to Bosnia. More than a thousand Minnesota National Guard soldiers aren't quite as lucky. The Guardsmen and -women are part of a multinational deployment assigned to enforce the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords that ended Bosnia's bloody civil war. As part of their regular routine, Minnesota troops patrol the mountains along the former front lines, looking for illegal weapons and reassuring a doubtful population. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports from Bosnia. --- (NAT: KNOCKING)
December 16, 2003 - Senate DFLers are the latest group at the state Capitol to propose a plan to reduce the growth in health care costs. The proposal would restore some of the cuts to state subsidized health insurance programs, would cap health care premium increases and would invest more money in education for health care professionals. The rising cost of health care is likely to be a hot issue in the upcoming legislative session. House Republicans have proposed a dramatically different plan and a task force appointed by the governor is also working on the issue. I'm Tom Scheck, Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
December 16, 2003 - The capture of former Iraqi president Saddaam Hussein was an important moment for the U.S. soldiers there, and their families here at home. Brenna Linn of Richmond, Minnesota, just west of St. Cloud, has a son in the Army Reserves who is in Iraq and she joins us on the line.
December 17, 2003 - Next month Governor Pawlenty is to decide whether to support the State Corrections Department in its call for new funds to expand Minnesota's prisons. Corrections officials say the state's capacity to accomodate a rising inmate population with current facilities is near an end. As Deputy Corrections Commissioner Dennis Benson put it in an interview with Minnesota Public Radio. "our backs are against the wall with only 85 vacant beds in the entire statewide system." That means states eight prisons are filled to 99 percent capacity.
December 17, 2003 - Governor Pawlenty will travel the state tomorrow to announce the locations of new tax-free enterprise zones. Starting next month, new development on thousands of parcels of land in Greater Minnesota will be free from property, income and sales taxes. Economically stressed rural communities are waiting to see if this will spark the turn-around they need. Critics say Minnesota is about to land the latest blow in a battle nobody wins. Minnesota Public Radio's Jeff Horwich reports.
December 17, 2003 - Governor Tim Pawlenty is back in Minnesota today after a two-day visit with National Guard troops keeping the peace in Bosnia. The 1100 Minnesotans stationed there are the largest Minnesota deployment since the Second World War, and are part of a new emphasis on using Guardsmen and women to shoulder the country's growing military obligations. That new reality has left some wondering if they can afford to make the sacrifice. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports from Tuzla, Bosnia.
December 18, 2003 - Governor Pawlenty says he wants to discipline the state doctors who decided against recommending civil commitment for Alfonso Rodriguez Junior. Rodriguez was charged two weeks ago with kidnapping 22 year old Dru Sjodin. The convicted sex offender was released in May even though some evaluations say Rodriguez had a high likelihood of reoffending. Rodriguez has maintained his innocence in Sjodin's disappearance. While Pawlenty is considering punishment for the doctors who assessed Rodriguez, Minnesota's attorney general and other DFLers say they're concerned that budget cuts led to the oversight. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.
December 18, 2003 - I'm Jeff Horwich, in St. Paul and alongside the excitement of state officials and communities about to gain a tax-free zone, there are plenty of concerns and unanswered questions. Pawlenty acknowledged his critics as he announced the zone locations.