Two of three American Indian tribes working with Gov. Tim Pawlenty on a proposed Twin Cities casino formally withdrew their backing Monday, with one saying last week's move to link it to a second casino "will do more harm" than good. (04/25/2005)

Minnesota House Republicans have merged two casino proposals in an effort to keep gambling revenues on the table for end-of-session budget negotiations. (04/23/2005)

The University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system would each get $102 million in new state money the next two years under a bill passed Friday by the House of Representatives. (04/22/2005)

A debate in the Minnesota House started as an attempt to place certain cold remedies behind pharmacy counters, to make it harder for meth manufacturers to obtain the pseudoephedrine crucial to making their drugs. It ended with a sweeping ban on many everyday medications. (04/22/2005)

Bills in both the House and Senate would increase the amount of state money that school districts get for each student. While legislators agree on the need to put more money into K-12 education, they disagree on how to pay for it. (04/21/2005)

A House committee on Thursday defeated a plan to add a nickel more to Minnesota's 20-cent-per-gallon gas tax but decided that some car owners should pay more to register their vehicles. (04/21/2005)

The House Health Policy and Finance Committee has approved an omnibus budget bill that cuts 30,000 people off of state health programs. (04/21/2005)

Minnesota's Senate Democrats released a budget Wednesday outlining $1 billion in new state spending, mostly for education, but they refused to say how they would raise the money. Republican leaders blasted the proposal, calling it "laughable" and "a complete sham," and scolded the DFL for not suggesting a funding source for their plan. Will the two parties be able to find a budget they can agree on? ( 04/21/2005)

Several thousand supporters of a constitutional ban on gay marriage rallied Wednesday at the Capitol, saying all they want is a chance to vote on the issue. (04/20/2005)

Supporters of a health care spending bill are praising the bill's author for keeping health care costs low while increasing funds for the disabled and the elderly. But critics described the bill as shortsighted. (04/20/2005)

Senate DFL leaders Wednesday outlined a plan for about $1 billion in new state spending. Most of the money would go to public schools. Senate Democrats did not say where the money would come from, however, and Republican leaders promptly blasted the plan. (04/20/2005)

The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe says it will reject any attempt to merge a proposed state-tribal casino with a separate plan to put slot machines at the Canterbury Park race track. A merger is being floated since both gambling initiatives are stalled at the State Capitol. (04/19/2005)

About 30,000 adults would lose health insurance coverage under a spending bill unveiled Tuesday by House Republicans, who made deeper cuts to public insurance programs than Gov. Tim Pawlenty proposed. (04/19/2005)

The Minnesota Legislature appears close to overhauling the state's child support system, which affects about 300,000 children in the state. Bills that would base child support on the combined income of both parents are picking up momentum. While nearly everyone involved in the debate agrees that the current system needs reform, there's little consensus on the best way to do that. (04/18/2005)

Groups opposed to tax increases say they will stifle job growth in the state. Advocates for a tax increase say scrimping on education and other state priorities will do far more harm to Minnesota's economy. The issue is ready to boil over at the Capitol. (04/14/2005)