Wednesday, May 22, 2013
What's your take on Minnesota's higher cigarette and income taxes, same-sex marriage law, all-day kindergarten funding, gun control measures, minimum wage and more?
What do you like—or dislike—in what the Minnesota Legislature did or didn't do? Leave a comment below. The Star Tribune posted a handy list of issues the Minnesota Legislature did and didn't tackle in the session that ended Monday at midnight. Love 'em? Hate 'em? Leave a comment below. DID: DIDN'T DO: See the full post at startribune.com. Which actions the Minnesota Legislature took do you support or oppose? Leave a comment below.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Gov. Mark Dayton’s signature Tuesday didn’t end the heated debate around same-sex marriage.
Whatever side of the debate you fall on, there’s no denying that this week’s passage of a bill legalizing same-sex marriage was a historical moment. Minnesota became just the 12th state to sanction gay marriage when Gov. Mark Dayton signed the bill Tuesday. Patch readers quickly wrote in to share their thoughts on the moment. Eagan Patch reader Kathi Malone echoed the view of legislators who voted yes in seeing same-sex marriage as a civil right: I am so happy that finally gay people will be able to have the civil right to marry. This is truly an American vote for freedom. I applaud Sen Clausen and all other legislators who voted for this historical bill. James N added: Thank you Senator Carlson and the entire MN legislature for extending …
Monday, May 13, 2013
State Sen. Barb Goodwin, who represents Fridley, spoke in favor of the bill to legalize gay marriage in Minnesota that passed the state Senate Monday.
Updated below: Minnesota state Sen. Barb Goodwin (DFL-Columbia Heights), who represents Fridley, spoke on the floor of the Minnesota Senate Monday against adding exemptions for people who oppose gay marriage to the bill to legalize same sex marriage. Goodwin called the amendment offered by state Sen. Paul Gazelka (R-Nisswa) "one of the most discriminatory things I have seen in a long time." The amendment, to allow people to refuse services related to gay marriages based on the service-providers sincerely held religious beliefs, failed to pass. "It violates every human rights statute ... that we have," Goodwin said on the Senate floor. "It's important to separate our religious beliefs that we want to impose on others." Goodwin said the …
Friday, May 10, 2013
The bill now moves on to the state senate as Minnesota Democrats hope to make the state the 12th in the nation to legalize gay marriage. Gov. Mark Dayton has vocally supported the legislation.
UPDATE: Minnesota Representatives approved with a 75-59 vote Thursday a bill legalizing same-sex marriages in the state, putting it on the road to become the 12th state in the nation to do so. The vote came at about 3 p.m. Thursday, May 9, about three hours after the bill was introduced. This is about honoring difference," bill sponsor Karen Clark said. "I respect the other point of view. But there is something about being able to marry the love of your life." Clark, a Democrat from Minneapolis, recognized her partner of 26 years in the assembly's audience. The vote came nearly six months to the day after a 2012 vote on a Republican-sponsored amendment item defining marriage as a union between man and woman. That, of course, was …
Thursday, May 9, 2013
The bill passed the Minnesota House of Representatives with help from state Reps. Connie Bernardy of Fridley and Carolyn Laine of Columbia Heights.
Read tweets by and about Fridley-area state representatives Connie Bernardy and Carolyn Laine on the day of the historic vote to approve a same-sex marriage bill in the Minnesota House of Representatives. See the Storify in the window above or at Storify.com.
Columbia Heights' state Rep. Carolyn Laine spoke in favor of the legislation to legalize same-sex marriage on the floor of the Minnesota House of Representatives Thursday.
State Rep. Carolyn Laine (DFL-Columbia Heights) spoke in favor of same-sex marriage legislation on the floor of the Minnesota House of Representatives Thursday afternoon. The full House is debating the bill and is expected to vote Thursday. If the bill passes the Minnesota Senate will take it up on Monday. Some of what Laine said in her speech: WATCH LIVESTREAM VIDEO of the House debate and vote on Thursday. See also: MN Same-Sex Marriage Bill: Bernardy Proud to 'Stand Up for Liberty, Love, Justice'
Fridley's state Rep. Connie Bernardy spoke in favor of the legislation to legalize same-sex marriage on the floor of the Minnesota House of Representatives Thursday.
State Rep. Connie Bernardy (DFL-Fridley) spoke in favor of same-sex marriage legislation on the floor of the Minnesota House of Representatives Thursday afternoon. The full House is debating the bill and is expected to vote Thursday. If the bill passes the Minnesota Senate will take it up on Monday. Some of what Bernardy said in her brief speech: "Everyone in our community ought to be treated fairly and equally under the laws of our state. ... "[I am proud to] stand up for liberty, love and justice for all Minnesotans." WATCH LIVESTREAM VIDEO of the House debate and vote on Thursday. See also: MN Same-Sex Marriage Bill: Laine Offers GLBT Community Gift of Word 'Marriage'
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
The Minnesota House of Representatives passed the bill 75-59 on Thursday, May 9, 2013.
Watch a replay of the Minnesota House of Representatives debate and vote on a bill to make same-sex marriage legal on Thursday, May 9, 2013. The bill passed after three hours of debate by a vote of 75-59. The YouTube above has all the action from the House floor via The UpTake. Do you want to urge your fellow Patch readers to support one side or the other of this issue? Write up your take on this in our Local Voices section! Email your editor for how to get started (look for their email address in the top-right corner of this page).
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
The bill is poised to move to the floors of the Minnesota House and Senate.
Update: The same-sex marriage bill passed the Minnesota Senate Finance Committee on a voice vote just after noon on Tuesday. Check above for a replay video. The Minnesota House of Representatives will vote on the bill on Thursday. Original post: Watch a video livestream of the Minnesota Senate Finance Committee Tuesday as the committee debates and votes on a bill that would make same-sex marriages legal in Minnesota. It is the up fourth item on the committee's Tuesday morning agenda. The video in the window above (or at The Uptake) will show first the Minnesota Senate Education Committee discussion of another bill addressing the problem of bullying.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
With 'yes' vote from Fridley's senator, the MN Senate Judiciary Committee sent same-sex marriage bill to full Senate on 5-3 vote. A House committee later followed suit with its version.
A "yes" vote from Fridley's state Senator, Barb Goodwin (DFL-Columbia Heights), helped move a same-sex marriage bill from committee Tuesday to the full Senate. (Click on YouTube from The UpTake to see her comments, or watch them at YouTube.com.) The Minnesota Senate Judiciary Committee approved Senate File 925, a bill extending marriage rights to same-sex couples, on a party-line 5-3 vote Tuesday afternoon. Update: The Minnesota House of Representatives Civil Law Committee heard testimony and debated the House version of the bill Tuesday, approving it late Tuesday night. Lawmakers said they would likely set the bills aside for a while to focus on the budget, according to WCCO. (See "Ex-Legislator: 'I Blew My Vote' on Gay Marriage.") …
Lisa
10:38 pm on Friday, May 24, 2013
The second "Did" bullet,"Let home child-care providers and personal care assistants unionize" is incorrect. Daycare Providers across the State of MN, prior to this Bill becoming law, had the right to unionize. In fact, there are a few providers, mostly in Northern MN, who belong to a union. This bill, in simple terms, outlines the steps union organizers need to complete to form a union that will … more ›