December 11, 1996 - This afternoon the St. Paul city council will discuss a proposal to tie business development aid to jobs that pay $8-twenty-five-an-hour or better. The proposal comes from a task force assembled by the city councils of both Minneapolis and St. Paul to look at how the cities can cultivate so-called "living wage" jobs. Business groups have lobbied successfully against such legislation at the state level...and helped defeat a similar proposal in St. Paul last year. This time around...business has been largely silent in the debate...although that's likely to change with this afternoon's council hearing.
December 12, 1996 - MPR’s Elizabeth Stawicki reports on Minnesota Supreme Court decision that State can commit convicted sex offender Dennis Linehan to a state hospital. The Court had to decide whether the government can lock up a person based on what the person may commit in the future. The ruling upholds Minnesota's Sexually Dangerous Person's law, a law that incarcerates sexual predators who've served their prison terms but who the court considers too dangerous to set free.
December 12, 1996 -
December 12, 1996 - Telemedicine, using special video-phone or satellite connections to link up doctors with colleagues in other cities has been around for years. It's mostly been used for medical conferences and consultations with specialists. But as Minnesota Public Radio's Lorna Benson reports, some rural Minnesota physicians are experimenting with telemedicine in their emergency rooms... to see if they can hand over some of their late-night and weekend emergencies to doctors in bigger hospitals.
December 12, 1996 - University of Minnesota Presidential Candidate Mark Yudof got generally high marks from legislative leaders following a morning meeting at the capital. The board of regents votes tomorrow on whether to offer Yudoff the position of president.
December 12, 1996 - It's day three of Mark Yudof's campaign to become president of the University of Minnesota. Yudof has been running on an almost non-stop schedule of question-and-answer sessions with University groups... and observing him are the University Regents, who are preparing to vote on Friday whether to offer him the job.
December 12, 1996 - The Minneapolis City council today narrowed to two the number of possible downtown sites for a proposed new Twins stadium. And they adopted a resolution which leaves open the door for partial public financing of a new ball park.
December 12, 1996 - Arts organizations across the state got some good news from Governor Carlson. In his state of the arts address--an effort to underscore how the arts have become a one-billion-dollar industry in Minnesota--Carlson proposed a 12-million dollar initiative which would nearly double state funding for the arts in the next biennium. In an era of declining federal support, arts groups say the proposed increase couldn't come at a better time.
December 13, 1996 - Mark Yudoff is the new President of the University of Minnesota.. Minnesota Public Radio's Martin Kaste is at the Regents meeting at the U and joins us now.
December 16, 1996 - Last week, Governor Carlson unveiled a plan that could nearly double the state's spending on the arts. In an effort to underscore how the arts have become a billion-dollar industry in Minnesota Carlson proposed a 12-million dollar initiative. But commentator Randall Davidson says the Governor is interested in boosting a different industry ... one that currently plays under the Metrodome. He says the Governor's pitch is really about two things: the proposed new Twins stadium and a finesse of public arts policy that will have profound impact in the short- and long-term.