March 20, 1973 - Several bills are before the legislature this session to regulate the hearing aid industry. Most are licensing bills for dealers of hearing aids. However one bill introduced in the Rep. Mike Sieben and Senator Conzemius requires that before a dealer may sell a hearing aid the buyer must obtain a prescription from a doctor. This ensures that the hearing aid is indicated and needed. The Attorney General?s office has run into the problem of dealers selling the devices to people who didn?t need them, either unwittingly or knowingly. A spokesman from the Attorney General?s office says not all hearing problems can be helped by a hearing aid. There are many different types and the correct type, or strength, is not always being recommended. Other physical problems may lead someone to think he has a hearing problem when he does not Dealers are not necessarily qualified to discover problems that may create hearing loss or the appearance of hearing loss Some dealers sell them much like cars, with the price being determined by the bargaining power of the buyer. The manufacturers suggest list prices and some dealers sell above or below that price The AG?s office has had many complaints about abuses by hearing aid dealers and supposed discounts that weren?t really discounts.
March 20, 1973 - State representatives Arne Carlson and Gary Flakne of Mpls and Robert Federer of St. Paul claim that Gov. Wendell Anderson hasn't put Minnesota's revenue sharing funds in a special account as he is required to do by law, that he hasn't outlined his plans for spending the money, as he must by June 1, and that he intends to use the money to reduce the state debt. At a morning news conference the governor's executive secretary Thomas Kelm asserted the money has been put in a special fund and called the charges nothing but a smokescreen to cover up the cruel reality of the Nixon administration's new budget. State Commissioner of Administration Dick Brubaker says no revenue sharing money has been or will be used to eliminate a deficit in this fiscal year. There will be no deficit, we will wind up at least $15 million in the black without revenue sharing money. A special account was set up for revenue sharing money in December of last year, when state received its first payment. All the money has been invested and is drawing interest. It will be used to help finance new programs and ongoing state expenses over the next two years. The state can't file any statement on how the money is to be used until the federal government publishes regulations on how states can use the money. The Democrats called on the president to release federal money impounded for social programs until Congress can adopt a special revenue fund. They want the governor to create a non-partisan committee on revenue sharing to work out a plan with counties for the money's use, and advocated more money for the state welfare budget and programs such as daycare, human services, rural development and job incentives.
March 22, 1973 - The Democratic Party National Committee has 25 at large member seats available; the largest single block of nominees are from labor, particularly from groups who disliked McGovern. Democratic party is looking up according to the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Robert Strauss. He says the pieces are falling into place. The bitterness and lack of communication and rancor that built in 1968 and ran through 1972 is a thing of the past. The Democratic party is back in one piece. He says labor is back because its had empathy with the party over many years, and shares the party?s interests. That deteriorated during 1972; Strauss says he?s been trying to reverse defections, 18 to 20 million of them
March 22, 1973 - In this summary of legislative activities the Minnesota House passed a bill providing for expanding the number of Metropolitan Council members from 15 to 17 and have the chairman appointed by the governor. The other 16 members would run in newly created districts. The House gave preliminary approval to bill reorganizing state government, creating a department of finance with a Commissioner of Finance appointed by the governor, and a legislative audit commission and a legislative auditor. The Senate judiciary committee approved a bill banning experimentation and research on a ?living conceptive?, defined as any human life from fertilization through the first 265 days of life. Thomas Marhar (sp?), clinical instructor of medicine at Ramsey County Hospital, testified for the bill, saying the law was necessary after the Supreme Court?s abortion decision which will make many more fetuses available for laboratory research. He says: the new law and the trend in this country is away from Judeo-Christian ethics, and the state of medical ethics at this time hasn?t been thought out and it will be years before it will be worked out. Speaking against the proposal was Dr. Bernard Merkin from the University of Minnesota says at they have probably the most active and essentially the only unit in the world looking at the effect of drugs on developing organisms, and after delivery in young children. He says the ability to study tissue from therapeutic abortions for growth abnormalities in fetuses exposed to drugs is crucial information.
March 23, 1973 - Sherry Chenoweth says there?s a need for a federal consumer protection agency. She says there are a number of federal agencies that are supposed to be working for the consumer, such as the FDA, FTC, Highway and traffic safety administration, Yet by the fragmentation and bureaucracy in Washington the consumer is not as well served as he should be. It?s a better idea to bring it all together. No state, city, county can do the whole job of protecting the consumer. We live in industrialized society, most goods move on interstate commerce,. She was asked about whether has she noticed any decrease in complaints coming to the state office from Minneapolis and St. Paul, which have their own consumer protection agencies, because they?ve been handled at city level? Chenoweth replies she supposes a slight decrease in both core cities, but both agencies are so new they don?t? have a large load of consumer complaints yet. There?s a problem with the local agencies because they don?t resemble each other, they?re in different units of government. She?d like to see a strong state agency with branch offices in areas of population concentration such as Mankato, Rochester, Duluth, Moorhead.
March 26, 1973 - Jo Barrister, of the magazine Latin America, talks about the recent election installing a supporter of Juan Peron, who was exiled in 1955. She says Juan Peron is not allowed to return to Argentina until May 25. From the day that he returns he is likely to play the dominating role in this new government, now ruled by a puppet candidate, a faithful confidant of Peron from the day he came into power until the day he went to exile. When the new leader Campore (sp?) makes speeches in public he regurgitates what Peron has to say, credits ideas as those of Peron. Question: has the clock been put back 17 years? She answers that it?s hard to know, Peron is now adopting a more revolutionary stance than when he was in power before. Now he has adopted third world socialism. The new government probably contains some previous elements of fascism, nationalism, and now may have socialism. Question: By the massive vote for Peron candidate have the Argentinean people ruled out the army?s right to intervene in the government? Barrister replies that while the vote was unexpected, its probably only temporarily ruled out army intervention. Behind the vote is a desire for a miracle to happen overnight for the economic and political status of Argentina. This government will find it difficult to live up to voters? expectations; eventually there may be clamor for the army to return to power.
March 26, 1973 - A rural-dominated legislative committee takes up a bill for a Constitutional amendment would allow legislators to spend road use taxes in more diverse ways including mass transit. Funds would be distributed by a formula according to population, area and money needs. Opponents say it would lead to grandiose and expensive transit schemes when there?s not enough money in the highway fund now to keep roads and bridges in good repair and develop farm to market roads needed by farmers. C.L. Bauer of the Triple A says to undedicate highway funds would be to use them for unintended purposes. He says transit will not relieve traffic congestion, and that regarding pollution, standing on the busiest downtown street corner for eight hours is the equivalent of smoking one cigarette. Bill author Tom Berg says this is not an attempt to dissipate the fund or take outstate funds. It would give the legislature the flexibility to solve transportation problems that exist in rural Minnesota and township roads. He?s happy to support more highways in outstate, but he doesn?t think we need it in metro area, bill would take it out of current constitutional restrictions. Author bill Tom Berg asked for postponement of the vote so compromises could be worked out. A motion to kill the bill passed by a vote along rural/metropolitan lines.
March 27, 1973 - MPR's Dulcie Lawrence gives a summary of events at the Legislature. Nicholas Coleman talks about his handgun bill, saying if the Attorney General now sues it will be many years before all the handguns in the state have a permit because you don?t have to do anything about collector guns because they aren?t registered. This bill will achieve the main purpose of reducing violent deaths. The 18 yr old majority bill status in House and Senate is updated. Divorce reform bill author Allen Spear says the bill removes the grounds that now exist that create acrimony, hypocrisy, and sham within the court for people who mutually decide to have a divorce but have to find grounds on which to request divorce. Instead this bill provides a mechanism for a couple who mutually agree on a divorce, the vast majority of cases, to do so without going through grounds that now exist.
March 27, 1973 - A Wounded Knee update, and the situation appears to be quite confusing. Senator Abouresk says it's all over, and attributes conditions for a resolution of crisis to Aaron DeSerra, a Rosebud Sioux who claims to speak for AIM. There are three conditions necessary for a conflict resolution: audit of tribal council books (Richard Wilson's books) on Pine Ridge Reservation, especially with fund disbursement; assurance by BIA that a petition for a referendum to recall Wilson will not be turned down; investigation of Civil Rights for those still at Wounded Knee. Meetings will be held tomorrow in Rapid City and at Roadblock One. There's an unconfirmed rumor that Richard Banks and Russell Means are no longer in Wounded Knee. A light plane came in and landed at Wounded Knee, unloaded what the government says is a cache of ammo and guns. On what evidence is there that this information is correct, reporter McKiernan says It's total speculation.
March 29, 1973 - Speaker: What will happen if you adopt this particular amendment is that you will be back here next year and you are going to change it to eighteen. What you are saying to young adults in the metro area near adjacent states is that you cannot drink here; you get in your car and you drive. What eighteen year old will not have it available to them in Minnesota? People came before the committee and said it is easier to obtain drugs in Minnesota than alcohol. I did not start out as a crusader to lower this particular age, I served on a subcommittee and I did not have the answers. But I think this is the answer, it is a big step. I want you to take it with me and vote down Mr. Kempe's amendment.