At the onset of the legislative session in January, spirits were high and expectations soared as both parties pledged a cooperative, bipartisan session full of legislative success and good-natured governance. At the outset, it appears to be business as usual at the State Capitol: No budget, partisan shots from both sides and both chambers, and another special session. As we await the final bell at midnight on May 23rd, below are a few items of note during the yearly session.

Casino Gambling returns…

The issue of gambling, or "gaming" (depending on whom you talk to) was arguably the hottest, most controversial topic at the legislature this year. Governor Pawlenty introduced his gaming proposal in mid-session, which would have established a new casino in the metro area, run in partnership by a collection of Indian tribes and the state. The governor, calling the issue a matter of "fairness", argued that the revenue from such a casino could provide $200 million to the state, effectively plugging a hole in his budget proposal.

Despite a major push from the governor, his gambling proposal was soundly defeated in the Senate Agriculture, Veterans and Gaming Committee. A similar measure to create a racino at Canterbury Park in Shakopee was also defeated in the Senate Committee on the same day. The governor and his legislative supporters revised their strategy to combine the casino and racino proposals, but the measure has stalled in the tax committee, where Chairman Phil Krinkie is opposed to the bill.

…Bonding agreement reached…

In a departure from the usual partisan wrangling, the House, Senate and Governor came together to pass the 2005 Capital Investment bill in April, 11 months after its traditional time of passage. The measure survived a last minute challenge due to a provision for the Amateur Sports Commission - which had not previously been included in either chamber's bonding measure. The provision authorized the Commission to lease up to 17 acres of its golf course and athletic fields in Blaine for unspecified purposes. The hurdle was finally cleared when the House voted to amend the rules and include the controversial provision in order to move the bonding bill to the governor's desk. The bonding bill provides $945 million dollars for education, infrastructure, public safety and other projects.

…Public Safety (Meth and Sexual Predators)…

The debate on public safety circled around two major issues this year: methamphetamine abuse and penalties for sexual predators. The House passed a bipartisan meth bill in mid-session that restricts the sale of pseudoephedrine in Minnesota stores - one of the key ingredients in making the illegal substance methamphetamine. The bill would restrict the sale of cold medicines that contain pseudoephedrine, a crucial meth ingredient, to pharmacies this year. Rep. Mike Charron added an amendment on the floor to ban the products outright in 2006, barring any court injunction. An additional amendment was added by Rep. Joe Atkins to require that non-prescription ephedrine or pseudophedrine products sold in gel capsule or liquid form also be subject to the sale restrictions, but only if the State Board of Pharmacy concludes that the liquid or gel products can be used to manufacture meth. The Senate passed a meth bill in March, which did not provide for the ban on pseudoephedrine products and exempted gel caps and liquid forms from the restrictions.

The two meth bills were added to the public safety omnibus bill and their differences were reconciled in conference. The full ban, offered by Rep. Charron, was dropped in conference. The conference committee included an exemption from the bill for liquid and gel caps, but added a stipulation that the Board of Pharmacy must monitor the issue to determine if the gel caps and liquid forms become useful to meth cooks.

Both the House and Senate also passed major bills to tighten controls on sex offenders. The two measures, however, are very different. The House bill is expansive, prescribing special license plates for released offenders, castration for child molesters and much longer sentences - including mandatory minimums - for nearly all sex offenders. The Senate bill emphasizes life sentences for only a few offenders, while focusing on treatment of the psychiatric and addictive illnesses that led to the crimes. The two bills were not reconciled in a conference committee, but provisions from each were included in the public safety omnibus bill.

…Minnesota farmers score a win…

Minnesota farmers scored a major victory this legislative session with the passage of a measure to double the amount of ethanol content of Minnesota gasoline by 2013. The ethanol legislation calls for ethanol to make up 20-percent of the total volume of gasoline consumed in the state by 2015. If the goal is not reached by the increased use of E85 fuel and the continued blending of 10-percent ethanol in all gasoline, the bill will mandate that the concentration of ethanol in all gasoline be increased to 20-percent. The bill also provides for the promotion of the use of renewable liquid fuels in the state.

During the ethanol debate, metro legislators, led predominantly by members of the Minneapolis delegation, expressed their concerns that local corn growers have been unwilling to restrict the use of Atrazine and other pesticides. The metro legislators argued that continued use of Atrazine continues to harm surface and ground water quality. The bipartisan coalition of rural and out state legislators who favor the legislation quickly dismissed these claims and their significant majority easily passed the bill.

…as do Minnesota workers…

Minnesota workers also scored a major victory with passage of a measure to raise Minnesota's minimum wage by $1. Under the proposal, minimum wage in Minnesota would rise from $5.15 to $6.15 an hour. Businesses with gross receipts of less than $625,000 a year will pay a minimum hourly wage of $5.25 - up from the current level of $4.90 for small businesses. The legislation would take effect on August 1st. According to a report from the state Department of Labor and Industry, an estimated 49,000 Minnesotans, or 2 percent of wage-and-salary workers, made minimum wage in 2004, down from 4.4 percent in 1998.

…Transportation bill goes down…

Holding true to his pledge, Governor Tim Pawlenty vetoed a $7.8 billion omnibus transportation bill on Thursday afternoon, criticizing Senate Democrats for sending him a bill he would not support. The Governor objected to provisions in the bill to raise the gasoline tax by 10-cents and the increase in sales-tax funds for transit. The Senate sent the bill to the governor earlier in the week, after adopting the House version which contained the controversial provisions. In a press conference after his veto, the governor accused DFLers of trying to embarrass him by passing a bill that had no chance of passage into law. Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson, who called a press conference of his own after the veto, accused the governor of obstructing the process and laying "a big goose egg". There is no announced plan to reconsider the bill any time soon.

Despite the veto, a provision in the bill proposing a constitutional amendment to dedicate all motor vehicle sales taxes to transportation by 2012, if voters approve in next year's general election, survived, albeit with controversy. Senior members of the House, including the Chair of the Transportation Committee, Rep. Mary Liz Holberg, indicated they would oppose the constitutional measure unless its funding formula is changed to guarantee that most of the money goes to roads. According to Holberg, the measure as currently drafted could direct it all to transit. Constitutional amendments are not subject to veto by the governor.

…A germane gun bill…

A revised bill to allow concealed weapons in Minnesota passed the House on Wednesday, overcoming the measure's last hurdle on its way to the governor. The governor has said he will sign the bill. The bill is a reenactment of the 2003 gun law which was stuck down by the Minnesota Supreme Court last month, after the court ruled the original bill's passage was not germane and violated the state's constitution. The new law is much broader than the original, which gave local law enforcement officials more discretion to research a person's background before issuing a permit. The new law is less restrictive in who can obtain a permit, but also requires permit holders to go through training and specifies what type of organizations are allowed to ban guns and how organizations that want to ban guns can make that known.

…New Regents at the "U"…

Four new members of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents were approved by the State Legislature on Wednesday, February 16th during a Joint Session of the House and Senate. Dallas Bohnsack (2nd Congressional District), David Larson (3rd CD), Anthony Baraga (8th CD) and Steven Hunter (at-large) will serve for a 6-year term. The Regents Candidate Advisory Council selected the individuals from a field of 58 applications. The Joint Session provided little debate. However, Rep. Phyllis Kahn exercised a personal point of privilege to express her "disgust" that the Joint Committee failed to include a woman among the four candidates on the slate. The Board of Regents is the governing fiduciary body of the University with the ultimate responsibility for the investment program.

…and vetoes.

The Governor took the veto pen out of his drawer four times this session, vetoing an omnibus transportation bill, legislation to exempt state primary requirements in municipalities where there are no offices for which nominees must be selected, an agriculture zoning ordinance bill and a bill providing recourse for high school varsity coaches whose contracts are not renewed. The governor's veto of the varsity coaches' bill was welcomed by the bill's author, Rep. Dean Urdahl, when he noticed a technical error in the final version of the bill passed by both chambers. The error would have allowed confidential student records to be disclosed - not closed - to the public.

Next Steps…

Due to the legislature's inability to finalize the must-pass budget bills before the May 23rd Constitutional adjournment date, the Governor has called a Special Session to begin one minute after the last body adjourns. The length and purpose of the Special Session will be determined by the legislature.

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Home > Practice Areas > Government Relations-State and Federal > Legislative Updates > 2005 Session Wrap-Up
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Casino Gambling returns… The issue of gambling, or "gaming" (depending on whom you talk to) was arguably the hottest, most controversial topic at the legislature this year. Governor Pawlenty introduced his gaming proposal in mid-session, which would have established a new casino in the metro area, run in partnership by a collection of Indian tribes and the state. The governor, calling the issue a matter of "fairness", argued that the revenue from such a casino could provide $200 million to the state, effectively plugging a hole in his budget proposal. Despite a major push from the governor, his gambling proposal was soundly defeated in the Senate Agriculture, Veterans and Gaming Committee. A similar measure to create a racino at Canterbury Park in Shakopee was also defeated in the Senate Committee on the same day. The governor and his legislative supporters revised their strategy to combine the casino and racino proposals, but the measure has stalled in the tax committee, where Chairman Phil Krinkie is opposed to the bill. …Bonding agreement reached… In a departure from the usual partisan wrangling, the House, Senate and Governor came together to pass the 2005 Capital Investment bill in April, 11 months after its traditional time of passage. The measure survived a last minute challenge due to a provision for the Amateur Sports Commission - which had not previously been included in either chamber's bonding measure. The provision authorized the Commission to lease up to 17 acres of its golf course and athletic fields in Blaine for unspecified purposes. The hurdle was finally cleared when the House voted to amend the rules and include the controversial provision in order to move the bonding bill to the governor's desk. The bonding bill provides $945 million dollars for education, infrastructure, public safety and other projects. …Public Safety (Meth and Sexual Predators)… The debate on public safety circled around two major issues this year: methamphetamine abuse and penalties for sexual predators. The House passed a bipartisan meth bill in mid-session that restricts the sale of pseudoephedrine in Minnesota stores - one of the key ingredients in making the illegal substance methamphetamine. The bill would restrict the sale of cold medicines that contain pseudoephedrine, a crucial meth ingredient, to pharmacies this year. Rep. Mike Charron added an amendment on the floor to ban the products outright in 2006, barring any court injunction. An additional amendment was added by Rep. Joe Atkins to require that non-prescription ephedrine or pseudophedrine products sold in gel capsule or liquid form also be subject to the sale restrictions, but only if the State Board of Pharmacy concludes that the liquid or gel products can be used to manufacture meth. The Senate passed a meth bill in March, which did not provide for the ban on pseudoephedrine products and exempted gel caps and liquid forms from the restrictions. The two meth bills were added to the public safety omnibus bill and their differences were reconciled in conference. The full ban, offered by Rep. Charron, was dropped in conference. The conference committee included an exemption from the bill for liquid and gel caps, but added a stipulation that the Board of Pharmacy must monitor the issue to determine if the gel caps and liquid forms become useful to meth cooks. Both the House and Senate also passed major bills to tighten controls on sex offenders. The two measures, however, are very different. The House bill is expansive, prescribing special license plates for released offenders, castration for child molesters and much longer sentences - including mandatory minimums - for nearly all sex offenders. The Senate bill emphasizes life sentences for only a few offenders, while focusing on treatment of the psychiatric and addictive illnesses that led to the crimes. The two bills were not reconciled in a conference committee, but provisions from each were included in the public safety omnibus bill. …Minnesota farmers score a win… Minnesota farmers scored a major victory this legislative session with the passage of a measure to double the amount of ethanol content of Minnesota gasoline by 2013. The ethanol legislation calls for ethanol to make up 20-percent of the total volume of gasoline consumed in the state by 2015. If the goal is not reached by the increased use of E85 fuel and the continued blending of 10-percent ethanol in all gasoline, the bill will mandate that the concentration of ethanol in all gasoline be increased to 20-percent. The bill also provides for the promotion of the use of renewable liquid fuels in the state. During the ethanol debate, metro legislators, led predominantly by members of the Minneapolis delegation, expressed their concerns that local corn growers have been unwilling to restrict the use of Atrazine and other pesticides. The metro legislators argued that continued use of Atrazine continues to harm surface and ground water quality. The bipartisan coalition of rural and out state legislators who favor the legislation quickly dismissed these claims and their significant majority easily passed the bill. …as do Minnesota workers… Minnesota workers also scored a major victory with passage of a measure to raise Minnesota's minimum wage by $1. Under the proposal, minimum wage in Minnesota would rise from $5.15 to $6.15 an hour. Businesses with gross receipts of less than $625,000 a year will pay a minimum hourly wage of $5.25 - up from the current level of $4.90 for small businesses. The legislation would take effect on August 1st. According to a report from the state Department of Labor and Industry, an estimated 49,000 Minnesotans, or 2 percent of wage-and-salary workers, made minimum wage in 2004, down from 4.4 percent in 1998. …Transportation bill goes down… Holding true to his pledge, Governor Tim Pawlenty vetoed a $7.8 billion omnibus transportation bill on Thursday afternoon, criticizing Senate Democrats for sending him a bill he would not support. The Governor objected to provisions in the bill to raise the gasoline tax by 10-cents and the increase in sales-tax funds for transit. The Senate sent the bill to the governor earlier in the week, after adopting the House version which contained the controversial provisions. In a press conference after his veto, the governor accused DFLers of trying to embarrass him by passing a bill that had no chance of passage into law. Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson, who called a press conference of his own after the veto, accused the governor of obstructing the process and laying "a big goose egg". There is no announced plan to reconsider the bill any time soon. Despite the veto, a provision in the bill proposing a constitutional amendment to dedicate all motor vehicle sales taxes to transportation by 2012, if voters approve in next year's general election, survived, albeit with controversy. Senior members of the House, including the Chair of the Transportation Committee, Rep. Mary Liz Holberg, indicated they would oppose the constitutional measure unless its funding formula is changed to guarantee that most of the money goes to roads. According to Holberg, the measure as currently drafted could direct it all to transit. Constitutional amendments are not subject to veto by the governor. …A germane gun bill… A revised bill to allow concealed weapons in Minnesota passed the House on Wednesday, overcoming the measure's last hurdle on its way to the governor. The governor has said he will sign the bill. The bill is a reenactment of the 2003 gun law which was stuck down by the Minnesota Supreme Court last month, after the court ruled the original bill's passage was not germane and violated the state's constitution. The new law is much broader than the original, which gave local law enforcement officials more discretion to research a person's background before issuing a permit. The new law is less restrictive in who can obtain a permit, but also requires permit holders to go through training and specifies what type of organizations are allowed to ban guns and how organizations that want to ban guns can make that known. …New Regents at the "U"… Four new members of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents were approved by the State Legislature on Wednesday, February 16th during a Joint Session of the House and Senate. Dallas Bohnsack (2nd Congressional District), David Larson (3rd CD), Anthony Baraga (8th CD) and Steven Hunter (at-large) will serve for a 6-year term. The Regents Candidate Advisory Council selected the individuals from a field of 58 applications. The Joint Session provided little debate. However, Rep. Phyllis Kahn exercised a personal point of privilege to express her "disgust" that the Joint Committee failed to include a woman among the four candidates on the slate. The Board of Regents is the governing fiduciary body of the University with the ultimate responsibility for the investment program. …and vetoes. The Governor took the veto pen out of his drawer four times this session, vetoing an omnibus transportation bill, legislation to exempt state primary requirements in municipalities where there are no offices for which nominees must be selected, an agriculture zoning ordinance bill and a bill providing recourse for high school varsity coaches whose contracts are not renewed. The governor's veto of the varsity coaches' bill was welcomed by the bill's author, Rep. Dean Urdahl, when he noticed a technical error in the final version of the bill passed by both chambers. The error would have allowed confidential student records to be disclosed - not closed - to the public. Next Steps… Due to the legislature's inability to finalize the must-pass budget bills before the May 23rd Constitutional adjournment date, the Governor has called a Special Session to begin one minute after the last body adjourns. The length and purpose of the Special Session will be determined by the legislature.
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