June 29, 1999 - Governor Jesse Ventura says Minnesotans can expect proposals for major tax reform from his administration's next budget in two years. Ventura says government is too large and taxes are too complicated. He says his challenge will be determining where to make cuts.
June 29, 1999 - Analysts say Wells Fargo's decision to cut one thousand Norwest teller positions will not have much affect on service. They say it reflects the challenge banks face in cutting costs even as they juggle customer demand for both teller service and electronic banking.
June 29, 1999 - Minnesota tenants advocates say some landlords are ripping off prospective tenants by mis-appropriating rental application fees. They say in today's tight rental housing market, some landlords take many more applications than they need to rent an apartment, or even take applications when no apartment is available, pocketing the fees. A new law will make these practices illegal, but tenants groups say the law has no teeth.
June 30, 1999 - Star Wars is coming to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The museum is one of six sites chosen to host a Smithsonian traveling exhibition of costumes, props, production artwork and models from the archives of Lucasfilm. The museum hopes the exhibit "Star Wars: The Magic of Myth" will draw a quarter of a million people, which would set a museum record. And if the crowds admire a few paintings and the jade mountain while they're there, all the better. To those who wonder if "Star Wars" belongs in the museum, MIA curator Lotus Stack says the movie is an important artistic statement.
June 30, 1999 - Governor Ventura wants the Reform Party to distance itself from its founder, Texas billionaire Ross Perot... and Ventura is weighing in on internal party politics to help make that happen.
June 30, 1999 - US Bank Corp and the state of Minnesota have settled the privacy lawsuit brought against the bank by Attroney General Mike Hatch. Under the deal the bank admits NO wrong doing, but will change some policies and donate millions of dollars to charity.
July 1, 1999 - The Minnesota Vikings are launching a statewide campaign for a new stadium. The team rejected a proposal from the Minnesota Sports Facilities Commission to turn the Metrodome into a football only stadium for less than half the cost of building a new one. Instead, the Vikings want a 70,000-seat roofed football-only stadium that would cost at least 400- million dollars. Vikings owner Red McCombs says he thinks Minnesotans are behind him.
July 1, 1999 - The Minnesota Zoo has announced plans to build a four and a half million dollar exhibit honoring the family farm. Zoo officials say the farm will help city kids better understand the importance of agriculture. Critics say it looks like another money-losing venture for the state facility.
July 1, 1999 - Reports in the British press say Twin Cities based Control Data Systems is being sold to British Telecommunications, Britain's largest telephone company. There has been no official confirmation of the buyout. But an announcement is expected at a news conference scheduled for this afternoon in Minneapolis . Control Data Systems is the smaller of two companies resulting from the split of the original Control Data corporation in 1992. The old firm was a world leader in the manufacture of mainframe computers and was central to Minnesota's evolution as a center of high technology.
July 1, 1999 - Farmers gathered in Thief River Falls today to share their concerns with Minnesota Ag Commissioner Gene Hugoson and other officials. Heavy spring rains continuing into early summer have prevented farmers from planting millions of acres in northwest Minnesota and eastern North Dakota. For many area farmers it's another in a string of bad years and it may be the last straw for hundreds. Farmers say federal disaster aid is the only thing that will keep them going another year.