Tuesday, May 24, 2011
In a post-session message, the legislator gives her views.
State Rep. Carolyn Laine (DFL-50A) distributed a message by email today expressing her views on the end of the regular session at the Minnesota Legislature. Email was one of the ways Laine kept up with constituents during weeks away from the Capitol while she recovered from a liver injury. Along the way, Laine stayed involved—introducing and co-sponsoring legislation, remotely—before returning to for the final weeks of the session. Fridley Patch has invited Fridley's other representatives in St. Paul—Reps. Tom Tillberry (DFL-51B) and Kate Knuth (DFL-50B), and Sens. Pam Wolf (R-51) and Barb Goodwin (DFL-50)—to express their views on the end of the regular session, and we will post any responses. Here is the text of Laine's message. The 2011…
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
In a letter to the editor, the Fridley rep backs the governor's cuts-and-taxes budget.
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Tuesday, May 17, 2011
To the editor: On May 16, Gov. Dayton offered his budget compromise offer: slightly less than half in revenue and slightly more than half in cuts. The governor modified his tax proposal and now the proposed fourth-tier bracket would go from $85,000 in taxable income for singles to $150,000 and from $150,000 in taxable income for couples to $250,000. Gov. Dayton’s tax plan would affect less than 2 percent of Minnesotans. This proposal is exactly what the people of Minnesota are expecting of us. They want a reasonable discussion and for us to sit down and work out a fair, responsible budget compromise. In a recent poll, an overwhelming majority of Minnesotans support a balanced approach of revenue and cuts, while just 27 percent support the …
Monday, May 16, 2011
Rep. Laine says it's time for Lutsen Mountain Corporation to clean up its act.
State Rep. Carolyn Laine (DFL-50A) is back at the state Capitol after a liver injury kept her away for much of the legislative session. In this video clip Laine comments on a bill, H.F. 1097, saying it is time for Lutsen Mountain Corporation to clean up its act. The company uses 60-107 million gallons of water of year from trout streams to make snow for skiing, she says, but they are permitted only to use 13 million. Laine says using the water damages the environment and reducing the water flow during the winter causes the river causes it to freeze to the bottom and kill trout eggs. Lutsen should build a pipeline to Lake Superior in the next three years, Laine says. Waiting five years may be too late. In the second clip, state Rep. Tom …
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
The state senator said she's open to either opt-in or opt-out for union-member contributions at issue.
The 24 words state Sen. Pam Wolf proposed adding to state lawbooks last week drew a small flurry of media attention and teachers-union fury before the state Legislator took off for a weeklong holiday recess. Those 24 words, amending Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 179A.06, subdivision 6: A dues check off under this subdivision for contributions to foundations, political action committees, or publications must be requested by the employee in writing. "What I believe she's trying to do is bury the union in a blizzard of bureaucracy," Tom Dooher, president of Education Minnesota, told Minnesota Public Radio. In a tweet, WCCO's Pat Kessler elaborated on an Associated Press story by quoting Wolf's remark about her bill that "it's not anti-…
Monday, April 18, 2011
Fridley's Fire Chief isn't in favor of legislation that passed the House over two Fridley reps' 'No' votes.
A bill banning state and local codes from requiring fire sprinklers in single-family homes has passed the Minnesota House of Representatives and a state Senate committee, but it doesn't get a passing grade from Fridley Fire Chief John Berg. The bill, H.F. 460, "flies in the face of the building code process that was established for debating and amending building codes that protect people," Berg said in an email. The bill passed out of the state Senate's Judiciary and Public Safety Committee (over Sen. Barb Goodwin's "no" vote) and got its second reading in the state Senate last week. State Reps. Tom Tillberry (DFL-51BA) and Kate Knuth (DFL-51A) cast votes against the bill. (Fridley's other representative, DFLer Carolyn Laine of House …
Thursday, March 31, 2011
The letter-writer warns of worse water-quality, $7 bus rides and more from Republican-backed legislation.
To the Editor: Tuesday in St. Paul the GOP/Tea Party Senate approved budget bills that slash spending on state agencies managing the environment and natural resources, and to that they added cuts to higher education that mean that many of our children will not be able to get a college degree. This is all while the GOP/Tea Party-controlled Legislature tries to cut taxes on businesses and the wealthy in the state. At this point it looks like up to 10 of our state parks will be closed, closings that will devastate the economy of many Minnesota communities. The DNR will lose 15 percent of its budget, which will result in the significant reduction of services at more than a dozen state parks over and above those that will have to be closed down…
Monday, March 14, 2011
A bill on teacher unions puts 'Wisconsin politics into the Minnesota Capitol," says Sen. Barb Goodwin.
Changes to collective bargaining for public employees still roiling Wisconsin are making their way to Minnesota, according to state Sen. Barb Goodwin (DFL-50). She accused Republicans of trying to "bring Wisconsin politics into the Minnesota Capitol" in a statement opposing a bill that would prohibit teacher strikes and put restrictions on teacher-contract negotiation process. The bill, S.F. 208, got its first hearing Monday afternoon before the Minnesota Senate's State Government Innovation and Veterans Committee. Goodwin is a member of the committee. UPDATE: Goodwin said the bill passed out of committee Monday on a party-line vote. She said she asked school-district and school-administrators representatives why their groups supported …
Friday, March 4, 2011
The legislator said she has acute cholestastic hepatitis, caused by a drug-induced liver injury.
State Rep. Carolyn Laine is suffering from "acute cholestastic hepatitis caused by a drug-induced liver injury," she said Friday, but she expects to return to the Minnesota House of Representatives next month. "I definitely intend to be present at floor sessions sometime in April, even if I have to go not completely well and spend more time resting in the retiring room!" said the three-term DFLer, who represents Fridley's western and southern sections, in an email to Fridley Patch. Laine said in a statement Thursday that she is able to keep up with communications with colleagues and constituents, and even monitor committee meetings online, she explained today that she cannot vote remotely. She has, however, been able to get her bills …
John Anderson
11:33 am on Thursday, May 26, 2011
Avonna, do you understand that the proposed budget is $2,000,000,000 more than the last biannium? There are zero cuts and it is a two billion dollar increase in spending. The one thing we can agree on is that I'm not happy with the Republicans in St. Paul, they campaigned on a zero increase in spending and compromised their promise by giving away $2,000,000,000 more than they said they would. more ›