Political Notebook

Did Bruininks really say UMR might have to close due to budget cuts?

In a press release sent out by DFL Rep. Tina Liebling, it states that, "University of Minnesota President Robert Bruininks told legislators that budget cuts might force the university to close the Rochester campus."

Is that really true? As someone based at the Capitol, it was the first time I had heard such a forceful statement about UMR. So I decided to do a little checking. The bottom line is that statement is misleading.

That statement in the press release is based on testimony that Bruininks gave on Feb. 22 before the House Higher Education Policy and Finance Committee. During that testimony, he talked about what it would mean if the university is faced with a 15 percent to 20 percent cut in its budget. To illustrate the size of the budget problem, he listed off several examples of programs that would have to be totally eliminated in order to make up the funding gap.

At one point, he said, "We could eliminate all four coordinate campuses across the state of Minnesota that is $76 million in state support and not balance even the lower number of these projected cut."

The four coordinate campuses are Crookston, Duluth, Morris and Rochester. But this was clearly just an example to highlight the size of the budget cuts facing the university. He also provided an example that they could eliminate the U of M's College of Science and Engineering and close the pharmacy and dental schools and that would only save $83.5 million.

The Minnesota House yesterday passed a budget bill that would cut nearly 18 percent from the university's budget based on what they were forecasted to receive. A Senate version of the bill cuts U of M's budget by 19 percent. Bruinicks did say in the hearing that deep cuts would require the university to reasses how it operates.

"We would be forced to re-examine the impact and the financial viability of entire operations in the University of Minnestoa system, statewide services, entire schools, colleges and campuses, (and) the level of enrollment in critical programs," he said.

But at no point does Bruininks state that specifically the University of Minnesota Rochester campus may have to be closed.

I called Liebling to ask her about the statement in her press release and she said that it is her responsibility to review press releases that are sent out and she should have done a better job vetting that.

"I obviously have to take responsibliity for what goes out under my name," she said.

Lawmakers reject proposal allowing logging in Whitewater, Frontenac

Members of the Minnesota House overwhelmingly rejected a proposal that would open up Whitewater and Frontenac state parks to logging.

Lawmakers voted 106 to 22 in favor of stripping the language that would allow the logging out of an environment budget bill. Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa, proposed the language, which requires the commissioner of natural resources to assess the black walnut and other timber resources in the two state parks and harvest the trees that are suitable. The proceeds from the logging would go to the state.

Environmental groups launched a big push against the proposal arguing it would cause lasting harm to the state parks. The environment budget bill's author, GOP Rep. Denny McNamara of Hastings, sponsored the amendment to take out the logging language.

Drazkowski, whose district includes Whitewater State Park, urged his fellow lawmakers to support logging in the state parks.

"This is another area of state government where an asset of the government is actually rotting and going to waste. This is what Minnesotans are tired of. They are tired of the waste, fraud and abuse in government."

Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Red Wing, whose district includes Frontenac State Park, also supports allowing for logging in those state parks.

But several lawmakers, both DFL and GOP, voiced concerns about the proposal. Rep. Lyndon Carlson, R-Crystal, said he used to teach in St. Charles and spent a lot of time at Whitewater State Park.

"That’s a valley that is very sensitive and it is very sensitive to things like flooding and it is also a valley with a lot of history, and I would be very concerned if that was opened up for logging or cutting," Carlson said.

Here's how southeast Minnesota lawmakers voted on the amendment to strip out the logging language. Voting yes were: Rep. Tina Liebling, DFL-Rochester; Rep. Rich Murray, R-Albert Lea; Rep. Kim Norton, DFL-Rochester, Rep. Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona and Rep. Jeanne Poppe, DFL-Austin. Voting no were: Rep. Mike Benson, R-Rochester; Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston; Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa; Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Red Wing; and Rep. Duane Quam, R-Byron.

Dayton sets budget ground rules

As the GOP-led Legislature devotes this week to passing out its budget bills, DFL Gov. Mark Dayton set some ground rules on what he will and will not support.

In a letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch and Speaker of the House Kurt Zellers today, Dayton wrote that he will not consider signing any budget bills unless they add up to a total solution to the state's $5 billion budget deficit. He said he also expects lawmakers to accept Minnesota Management and Budget's fiscal analysis as the basis of their budgets. GOP leaders have expressed concern about how slowly those fiscal notes have been prepared and questioned whether some of theym are accurate. Dayton said he told MMB officials that they must provide nonpartisan, honest and impartial analysis of budget proposals.

Finally, Dayton said he will not sign any budget bills that include "extraneous policy items" in them.

"I want to serve notice now, with almost two months remaining until your adjournment, that I will not sign revenue or expenditure bills that include policies to which I have not agreed, which I oppose and which should be passed and presented to me in separate legislation."

Click here to Download Dayton letter to GOP leaders

Senate Republicans responded by releasing a video today of DFLers expressing concerns about the accuracy of fiscal notes in the past. Here is a link to the video.

Tea Party launches 'urgent action' against Roch sales tax

The Rochester Tea Party Patriots sent out an "urgen action item" in an email this weekend asking members to call GOP House members and voice their opposition to the city's sales tax proposal. This comes after Rochester leaders on Friday called on House Majority Leader Matt Dean to restore the $58.5 million in cuts to the proposal made by a key House committee.

The e-mail asks, "Will our Legislators Cave to the Country Club Chamber of Commerce members and City Officials to add the 58.5 million dollars back in to the Sales Tax bill? NO NEW TAXES!"

The city needs authorization from the state legislature before it can put its half-cent sales tax proposal before the voters. At the Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce event on Friday, Rochester residents told Dean that the legislature should leave it to the city to decide what it wants to put before the voters.

Dean apologized to the audience saying it appears there had been a "miscommunication" on the sales tax and he would work to correct it. Rep. Keith Downey, R-Edina, who serves on the House Taxes Committee, vowed to put together a closed-door meeting with  lawmakers and residents to try to negotiate a deal.

A House committee sliced specific projects from the city's half-cent sales tax proposal, including $26 million for an area senior center, $3.5 million for a Boys & Girls Club youth center, $11 million for an expansion of the Rochester Public Library and $18 million for various economic development proposals. House Taxes Committee Chair Greg Davids, R-Preston, backs these cuts.

The House is expected to vote on the omnibus tax bill today. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the DFL lawmakers in the delegation offers an amendment to restore the entire $160 million sales tax proposal in the bill. Stay tuned.

GOP leader gets an earful over Roch's sales tax proposal

Rochester leaders today called on House GOP Majority Leader Matt Dean to let the citizens of Rochester vote on a $160 million local sales-tax option as proposed by the city. They voiced anger about changes made to the proposal by House lawmakers who stripped out $58.5 million worth of projects.

"Rochester is fully capable of making intelligent deicsions as to how we want to spend our money and don't tread in that area is my recommendation to you because it is a hot subject in town," said Rochester resident Chub Stewart.

Dean and Rep. Keith Downey, R-Edina, were in town for a luncheon with Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce members. It soon became clear that the number one issue among those in the room was the city's sales tax.

Rochester City Council President Dennis Hanson said the city had a committee of citizens that spent 14 weeks analyzing proposals for the city sales tax.

He asked, "I guess my question is why does the state legislature seem to feel they have to get so involved in Rochester's local option sales tax when they really could quite frankly care less about the rest?

That question drew strong applause among the roughly 50 attendees. Dean ended up apologizing to the city of Rochester saying that there appeared to have been a miscommunication on the sales tax bill.

"It sounds to me like this process probably got sideways somwewhere along the way and there was probably communication problems from working together," he said, "and I just want to apologize for that with the city and the folks who brought these (concerns) forward."

The city needs the legislature to give it the authorization to put the sales tax measure before the voters. House Taxes Committee Chair Greg Davids has been an outspoken critic of some of the projects in the proposal including a senior center, a youth center, and a library expansion. He supported the move to cut down the size of the sales tax proposal. A Senate version of the measure sponsored by Sen. Dave Senjem, R-Rochester, has remained intact.

I'll have more on this in a story for tomorrow's paper.

 

Mingo is ready for her close-up

For once the video cameras were not trained on Gov. Mark Dayton at a news conference. Instead, they were focused on the latest addition to the governor's family.

Wanamgingo, an 11-week-old German shepherd, got the run of the Governor's Reception Room as representatives of the city of Wanamingo personally thanked the governor for naming his dog after their small southeast Minnesota city. They presented the governor with two personalized dog tags for Mingo — including one that features images from the city's Main Street. They also gave him a copy of a resolution applauding his choice of dog name and a book about the history of Wanamingo.

The city's mayor admitted he was shocked to hear the governor had picked the name "Wanamingo" for his dog.

“I was watching the news and all of a sudden they said you were going to name it Wanamingo and I said, ‘Did they really say that?’” said Mayor Ron Berg.

Mingo soon let it be known she was tired of being on her leash by whinning. That's when she got a chance to run around the Capitol press corps and get some real media attention. Dayton joked she was posing for the "pupparazzi."

 

Davids vows senior center, youth center won't be part of final Roch sales tax bill

 House Taxes Committee Chair Greg Davids, R-Preston, said there is no way that a proposal for a new senior center and a youth center are going to make it into the final Rochester sales tax bill.

"I don't know if I have the votes in my caucus to pass one of that size and for those specific uses," he said.

The city of Rochester needs the authorization of the Minnesota Legislature in order to put a $160 million half-cent sales tax proposal before the voters. A House version of the bill is headed to a floor vote next week that strips out $58.5 million from the proposal including $26 million for an area senior center and $3.5 million for a Boys and Girls Club youth center. It also cuts $11 million for a proposed library expansion and $18 million for various economic proposals.

A similar bill in the Senate leaves Rochester's $160 million sales tax proposal in tact. If both bills win approval, a legislative conference committee will have to hash out the differences. Davids, who will definitely be on that conference committee as the tax bill sponsor, said he will fight to keep those provisions out of the bill. The only thing he may reconsider is allowing some of the additional money for economic development if the city can provide a better explanation of how it would be used.

Davids said while cities can use their general fund money to build senior centers and youth centers, a city sales tax has never been used for that purposes. He said he is concerned the senior center and youth center could open the floodgates to other organizations looking for sales tax money.

"My biggest concern for example on the Boys and Girls Club and senior center is whose next and what’s next," he said. "I am a big supporter of the American Red Cross and Salvation Army. They are fine orgnizations. Do we fund them next?"

City officials and some lawmakers have criticized Davids for supporting the trimming of the Rochester city sales tax proposal saying it should be a matter of local control and the voters should decide whether or not they want to back the plan.

But Davids said he doesn't see it that way.

"What if they wanted a nuclear waste dump and if they vote on it they get it? That is not a local city decision. Of course, that is a very extreme example. But to say that anything a city wants to do the state should just allow, I just disagree with."

Hockey, South St. Paul and Reagan all part of Pawlenty's big announcement

Former GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced at 2 p.m. today via his Facebook page that he is establishing an exploratory committee as part of a possible run for the White House in 2012. He created a video for his announcement, which you can see here.

The video starts with Pawlenty talking about growing up in South St. Paul and watching the meatpacking plants disappear.

"At a young age, I saw up close the face of challenge, the face of hardship, the face of job loss," Pawlenty says in the video.

He says he sees those same challenges in America today but that "there is a brighter future for America. We know what we need to do — grow jobs, limit government spending and tackle entitlements."

Key images in the video include Pawlenty suited up in hockey gear on the ice, Republican President Ronald Reagan, the Lincoln Memorial, American flags and a close-up on a church.

Democrats wasted no time reacting to Pawlenty's news. Four minutes after the big announcement, DFL State Chair Ken Martin issued this statement:

"Our former governor's announcement of an Exploratory Committee shouldn't be a surprise to anyone at this point — he's spent the better part of his last two years in office ignoring the needs of his state while trying to woo the Republican base. Tim Pawlenty bankrupt the future of our state, the last thing he deserves is a chance to do it to our nation.

Senjem to introduce racino bill next week

Rochester GOP Sen. Dave Senjem is taking the lead in pushing a bill to allow video slot machines at two horse-racing tracks in the state.

I just got a press release about a news conference slated for 10 a.m. Monday at the state Capitol announcing Senjem will be the chief author of the racino bill. Also joining him will be DFL Sen. Dan Sparks of Austin, who sponsored the bill last year. Rep. Bob Gunther, R-Fairmont, will be the chief author in the house. The measure could raise $250 million per year.

Previous racino attempts have fizzled at the Capitol. But with the state facing a $5 billion budget deficit, this might be the year lawmakers and the governor are willing to consider gambling as part of the solution. A big question is how those racino dollars would be used. One option would be for the money to help go towards building a new Minnesota Vikings Stadium. DFL Gov. Mark Dayton has said he would not want to see gambling money diverted to a stadium. Rather, he would like to see any such revenues go towards education.

Joining the lawmakers for the press conference will be representatives from Minnesota's equine industry, who are strong supporters of the bill. But expect a tough fight on the measure — especially from Native American tribes who argue this expands gambling in the state and will divert business from their casinos.

Lawmakers host "listen in" session in Chatfield this weekend

Area residents who want a chance to talk to some of the region's lawmakers will have a chance on Saturday morning. Turning out for the "listen in" session will be Sen. Carla Nelson, R-Rochester; Sen. Jeremy Miller, R-Winona; Rep. Mike Benson, R-Rochester; and Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston.

The event runs from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Old Tyme Cafe, 219 Main St. S. in Chatfield. This comes as GOP-led Legislature is working to meet a March 25 deadline to put together its budget proposal.