Political Party

Taxpayers League scorecard not kind to Roch Democrats

The Taxpayers League of Minnesota has released its annual legislative scorecard. The scores are based on whether or not lawmakers voted for legislation deemed by the organization to be unfriendly to the taxpayer. In many cases, that involves whether or not a lawmaker supported bills with tax increases.

The report card did not have a favorable view of most DFLers — especially in Rochester. On a scale of 0 to 100, with 100 considered a perfect score, no Rochester Democrats received a rating above 13. In southeast Minnesota, the lawmaker with the lowest score was Sen Steve Murphy of Red Wing who netted a 0. 

Rep. Gene Pelowski of Winona was the highest ranking Democrat with a score of 47. That is in large part due to his voting against the DFL tax increase proposals. 

The report heralds Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former House Minority Leader and potential gubernatorial candidate Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, as the "2009 Heroes of the Taxpayers" for standing up against tax increases.

Here is a look at ratings for Southeast Minnesota lawmakers. To look at the Taxpayers League's full list, go here.

Senate

Sharon Erickson Ropes, DFL-Winona — 21

Ann Lynch, DFL-Rochester — 7

Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing — 0

David Senjem, R-Rochester — 57

Dan Sparks, DFL-Austin — 14

House

Robin Brown, DFL-rural Austin — 7

Greg Davids, R-Preston — 80

Randy Demmer, R-Hayfield — 80

Steve Drazkowski, R-Wabasha — 87

Tim Kelly, R-Red Wing — 87

Tina Liebling, DFL-Rochester — 13

Kim Norton, DFL-Rochester — 13

Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona — 47

Jeanne Poppe, DFL-Austin — 27

Andy Welti, DFL-Plainview — 13

Norton's seat belt bill gets passed — a first for House

Rochester DFL Rep. Kim Norton's bill that would allow police officers to pull drivers over for failing to wear a seat belt passed the Minnesota House Monday afternoon by a vote of 73 to 60. This marks the first the bill has passed the House, according to Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing.

Murphy is the bill's sponsor in the Senate and has been championing the issue for 17 years. Opponents have argued the measure is an invasion of personal liberties and could lead to more racial profiling. Supporters argued it would save an estimated 30 lives per year and mean $3.4 million in new federal funds.

So what made the difference this year?

"I think the difference was the author in the House was very aggressive and worked the bill hard and did a good job. Kim Norton made the difference," Murphy said.

The bill is expected to come up for a vote on the Senate this afternoon. If it passes, it will head to the governor.

Primary seat belt bill headed to the floor

Rochester DFL Rep. Kim Norton managed to get her primary seat belt bill out of the House Ways and Means Committee. When the bill got referred to this committee yesterday, the odds seemed grim. But Norton spent the past 24 hours working behind the scenes to get the bill to the floor. It is believed this may be the first time the primary seat belt bill has made it out of the House committee system to the floor.

The bill would allow police officers to pull over motorists for failing to wear a seat belt and ticket them. The bill's sponsor in the Senate — Red Wing DFL Sen. Steve Murphy — has been trying to get the bill passed for 17 years. Could this be the year it passes?

Norton says the House vote will be "very, very close."

Norton faces tough road on seat belt bill

This morning, it seemed as though Rochester DFL Rep. Kim Norton was poised to make legislative history — getting the primary seat belt bill through the House committee system to the House floor. But then came a road block. The bill instead ended up getting referred to the House Ways and Means Committee.

The primary seat belt bill would allow law enforcement to pull over and ticket motorists failing to wear a seat belt. Under current law, motorists can not be pulled over simply for not wearing a seat belt. But if a motorist is pulled over for a different traffic offense, they can be ticketed for not being belted up.

Norton said there are currently seven people on the committee who she says do not support the bill. To get the measure to pass, she would need to convince six of them to cast "yes" votes.

Opponents of the bill say it violates civil liberties and could lead to more racial profiling. Supporters say it would save an estimate 30 lives a year in Minnesota. The state would also get $3.4 million in federal money if it passes.

The bill has traditionally passed the Senate but gotten bogged down in the House. One thing is for sure — Norton will face a tough fight.

'Uh-oh' — Minnesota Dental Association targets Lynch in ad

I opened today's Rochester Post-Bulletin and was struck by a full-page ad  paid for by the Minnesota Dental Association. It features a patient with his mouth open and two gloved hands clutching dental tools that are in his mouth. Above the picture it says "The last thing you want to hear when you're getting dental care is 'uh-oh.'"

The ad then goes on to single out Rochester Sen. Ann Lynch saying she "wants to allow a new type of dental worker to perform unsupervised surgery on you and your family."

The ad urges readers to call the Democrat's office and "tell her unsupervised workers doing dental surgery is a bad idea."

This all centers around Lynch's bill, which would create a new mid-level dental practitioner. The goal is to help address dental access problems — especially for some lower-income residents in the urban core and rural areas. The oral health practitioners would be allowed to fill cavities, pull teeth and prescribe certain medication.

The Minnesota Dental Association today launched a vigorous ad campaign against the proposal. It includes a full-page ad in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune and ads in other newspapers across the state. They are also doing some radio ads and Web-only ads. But it's safe to say the association is spending tens of thousands of dollars to get their message out.