A Star Tribune poll released Sunday indicated that 71 percent of Hennepin County residents think they should get to vote on a proposed 0.15 percent sales tax to fund a new Twins ballpark. The Hennepin County Board votes Tuesday on whether to send the proposal to the Legislature, which could approve it, deny it or put it up for referendum. Which decisions should be made by the people and which ones should be left to their elected representatives? ( 05/03/2005)

Workers who make the minimum wage are in line for a $1 raise in August, following a Minnesota Senate vote Tuesday that affirmed a compromise approved by the House and supported by Gov. Tim Pawlenty. (05/03/2005)

With less than three weeks to go before the end of the legislative session, a number of spending bills are making their way through both the House and Senate. But the two chambers are far apart on how to balance the state budget in the face of a projected deficit. MPR's Cathy Wurzer spoke with Gov. Tim Pawlenty. (05/03/2005)

A revised version of Minnesota's handgun permit law survived a key committee vote at the Capitol Monday. The Senate Crime Prevention Committee kept the bill alive by sending it to its next stop without recommendation. The committee also made significant changes to the bill. (05/02/2005)

Over bitter objections from some Democrats, the Republican-controlled House approved an $8.1 billion health budget bill Friday that would eliminate public health insurance for at least 24,000 adults. (04/29/2005)

House Republicans narrowly passed a hard-hitting budget bill Friday that Democrats said would further squeeze government-subsidized child care, job-training and housing programs. (04/29/2005)

A bill subjecting violent sex predators to life behind bars got even tougher Thursday when the House voted to make castration a possible penalty for pedophiles and to create special license plates identifying sex offenders. (04/28/2005)

For pro-gun legislators seeking to reinstate a court-blocked handgun law, a leading senator's offer to put their bill to a swift and clean vote sounded too good to be true. It was. (04/28/2005)

Gov. Tim Pawlenty threw his weight behind a proposal that would require schools to spend at least 65 percent of their budgets directly on classroom instruction on Wednesday. What qualifies as "classroom instruction?" Is setting a quota the best way to ensure money makes it to the students? ( 04/28/2005)

The House voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to require that the amount of ethanol in gasoline sold in Minnesota be doubled over the next decade, with supporters citing economic opportunity for rural areas and decreased dependence on foreign oil. (04/27/2005)

Minnesota's Electoral College votes would go to the presidential candidate who won the state's popular vote if legislation passed by the Senate Wednesday becomes law. (04/27/2005)

Senate Democrats are headed for a faceoff with House Republicans and Gov. Tim Pawlenty over the MinnesotaCare health plan for the working poor, with DFLers calling for an expansion and Republicans calling for cuts. (04/27/2005)

The public got its first chance to comment on the Twins stadium funding deal on Tuesday. The Hennepin County Board had been scheduled to vote to ask the Legislature for permission to raise property taxes to finance its part of the stadium. But commissioners put off a vote, to give more citizens time to respond. MPR's Brandt Williams reports. (04/26/2005)

The House dealt a major setback Tuesday to Gov. Tim Pawlenty's plan to pad the state budget with gambling money, sending a bill that would establish two casinos at Canterbury Park back to a committee seen as hostile. (04/26/2005)

In what's just about become an annual tradition, the Twins ballpark debate is poised to return to the state Capitol. The deal announced on Monday between the team and Hennepin County doesn't require any state dollars. But it does require legislative permission for the county to levy a proposed new sales tax to help finance the package. The proposal won praise from many key lawmakers, but significant hurdles remain. (04/26/2005)