Political Party

Draz to celebrate Halloween with Emmer endorsement party

Republican Rep. Steve Drazkowski has picked Halloween to announce his support for GOP gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer. The Mazeppa lawmaker is holding a meet and greet event tomorrow at noon at the National Guard Armory, 1715 Marion Road S.E. in Rochester.

Rep. Emmer, an attorney from Delano, Minn., is considered to be one of the more conservative candidates in the race. In a news release, Drazkowski explains why he is backing Emmer.

"Representative Emmer stands solid for the working people of our state — advocating for the individual liberties and common sense policies rewarding work and personal responsibility, rather than discouraging it."

Drazkowski goes on to state that "Tom Emmer respects the Constitution and is devoted to God, his family and the freedom that Minnesotans have died to protect."

Clock running out on fixing tax reciprocity agreement

A bipartisan group of 21 lawmakers has sent a letter to Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty asking them to restore the tax reciprocity agreement between the two states.

The lawmakers are asking officials to start negotiating both a short-term and long-term fix to the reciprocity dispute. And the clock is ticking. The Minnesota Department of Revenue said a solution has to be in place by early November in order to alert affected taxpayers and employers. Otherwise, the reciprocity agreement will end as of Jan. 1, 2010.

Lawmakers signing the letter include DFL-Winona, Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston and Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa, Sen. Sharon Erickson Ropes, DFL-Winona and Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing.

The letter goes on to ask the two states to also look at a long-term fix to the problem. That could include updating a study that calculates reimbursements and potentially revising the interest rate applied to Wisconsin's payments.

The letter states, "We are keenly aware of the difficult budget circumstances facing both states. We believe, however, that this fact makes it even more important to strive for a long-term agreement that will support the working relationship and regional economy  of which we have been so reliant and have benefited from in the past."

Last month, the Minnesota Department of Revenue announced it was scrapping the 41-year-old agreement as of Jan. 1, 2010. At that point, Minnesotans who work in Wisconsin must file and income tax return in both states. That means higher taxes for Minnesota workers. The department estimates that 8,000 Minnesota residents will see a tax increase of $300 year.

Click here to Download Reciprocity Restoration Letter

Food on a stick and politics

Once again it is time for the Great Minnesota Get-Together. And while the latest new foods on a stick usually grab the limelight, it is worth noting that the fair is also a key political event. Gubernatorial candidates are swarming to the event for the chance to schmooze fair goers and build key support.

The Minnesota DFL has posted a list showing when gubernatorial candidates will be at the party's booth. You can check that out here. In the case of the Republican Party of Minnesota, it looks like it will be more of a hit-and-miss scenario for people looking to chat with a particular gubernatorial candidate. The party's spokesman Mark Drake said GOP gubernatorial candidates will be at the booth but there is not a set schedule as to when they will be there.

However, former House Minority Leader Marty Seifert has already tweeted that he is the only gubernatorial candidate with his own booth.

In addition, state lawmakers can be found at both the House and Senate booths. Click here to Download Memsched09 and here to 

Download Senators_attending

Not many southeast Minnesota lawmakers appear to be making the trek. House Assistant Majority Leader Andy Welti, DFL-Plainview, was at the fair today. House Assistant Minority Leader Randy Demmer, R-Hayfield, will be there from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 2 and Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa, is scheduled to be there from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 6.

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

Is someone to blame for failure to get St. Charles aid?

The Legislature's failure to pass $800,000 in aid that the city of St. Charles had been hoping for has some pointing fingers. The money would have made up for lost property taxes and sewer/water and electricity revenue from the North Star Foods, which was destroyed in a fire last month.

While lawmakers did manage to get money for the local school district and a sales tax exemption for the company to rebuild, the money for the city failed to win approval. The measure did win Senate approval but did not pass in the House.

In the wake of the disappointment, some politicians have been putting the blame on Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Wabasha, the bill's sponsor. Here is a link to a Winona Daily News article with some critical remarks by St. Charles Mayor Bill Spitzer. But in an interview on Tuesday, Spitzer said his comments were mischaracterized and that you can't blame one person for the bill's failure.

But Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, was more than willing to take Drazkowski to task over the bill — along with the governor. Here is a link to today's story.

Not the year for gay marriage debate

Today marks a crucial first deadline at the state Capitol. All policy bills must have cleared at least one chamber's policy committees in order to stay alive. Several bills both in favor and against gay marriage will miss that deadline — failing to get even a single hearing.

It seems with the state grappling with a $4.6 billion budget deficit, there is little appetite among state lawmakers to wade into this social debate.

Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Wabasha, has authored a bill that would amend the state Constitution to define marriage as union between a man and a woman. That proposed change would be submitted to the state's voters during the 2010 general election.

Meanwhile Rep. Tina Liebling, DFL-Rochester, is co-sponsoring the "Marriage and Family Protection Act," which would removes gender specific references in the state's marriage laws.

Other proposals include a bill that would allow for civil unions and another bill that would require Minnesota to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states.