Minnesota Legislature

BEMIDJI -- Rep.-elect Dave Hancock, R-Bemidji, has been appointed as vice chair of the House of Representatives' Veterans Affairs Division, according to a release Thursday from the Minnesota House. "It is an honor and a privilege to serve the people of Minnesota in this leadership...

ST. PAUL – Victories in greater Minnesota on Tuesday delivered the state House back to GOP control. It was a lonely GOP victory in what otherwise was an election day Democrats dominated in state races. Republicans picked up DFL seats in many rural areas, helping the GOP...

BEMIDJI -- Water rates are set to increase next year for the top 10 percent of water users in Bemidji, following a unanimous City Council vote Monday. The city's 2014 water rules say every user pays the same fee rate: $3.35 per 1,000 gallons of water that goes through the meter. The...

ST. PAUL — It was cold last winter, really cold. Propane was in short supply last winter, really short. And the fuel was expensive, really expensive. The 10 percent of Minnesotans who heat with propane — as well as farmers, businesses and others that use it — felt to crunch...

ST. PAUL — U.S. Sen. Al Franken’s election opponent is trying to make a campaign issue out of a video shot two years ago showing the senator holding two traffic cones to his chest, apparently to imitate a woman’s breasts. “It was a thoughtless moment and I regret it,” Democrat...

Don Davis Forum News Service ST. PAUL — Two U.S. House races in Minnesota are getting far more national attention than usual. ABC News lists House district campaigns across the northern and western parts of the state as two of the five most interesting races in the country. ABC’s...

ST. PAUL-- The Minnesota Senate has formed a bipartisan legislative task force specifically for Greater Minnesota issues, senators announced Friday. Sens. Tom Saxhaug, DFL-Grand Rapids and Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, unveiled the eight-member Rural Task Force, designed to identify...

Don Davis Forum News Service ST. PAUL —Some political organizations are setting up websites that look like they are run by news organizations, but instead of objective news they deliver heavy doses of partisan propaganda. The National Republican Congressional Committee is one...

Don Davis Forum News Service REDWOOD FALLS — Republicans have courted Minnesota Iron Range voters by strongly supporting proposed copper-nickel mines as a new way to make money from the land. In recent months, GOP candidates have made visit after visit to the normally Democratic...

ST. PAUL —The Obama administration says it is trying to connect people with money to those in rural America who need funds. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, a former Iowa governor, announced that the administration is setting up a $10 billion fund to jump-start investments...

ST. PAUL — Everyone knew that U.S. Sen. Al Franken and Mike McFadden will run rich campaigns if they face off in November, as expected, but a couple of mostly rural U.S. House races involve more money than usual. Northern and east-central Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District...