Minn. Senate votes to cover 2010 recount costs

St. Paul, Minn. (AP) — Legislation is advancing to cover some state costs related to 2009 spring flooding and bills stemming from the 2010 Minnesota governor's race recount.

The Minnesota Senate voted 60-4 on Tuesday to allocate money for unforeseen expenses.

The bill includes $2 million the Department of Public Safety needed to match federal disaster assistance. Another appropriation would give the secretary of state $322,000 for recount reimbursements the elections office had already paid to counties.

The secretary of state would also get $149,000 to pay legal fees tied to a lawsuit over exit polling by several media outlets.

A federal judge ruled the state must pay the fees of news outlets, including The Associated Press. The companies sued over a law aiming to keep pollsters far away from buildings where people were voting.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)