After their first meeting, the governor and legislators promise to work together for an effective 2007 session.
November 21, 2006
StarTribune
Dane Smith
Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty and leaders of the incoming DFL legislative majorities emerged from their first meeting Tuesday promising a cooperative and productive 2007 session.
After a late lunch and a 90-minute talk with the DFLers, Pawlenty described general agreement that "progress can and should be made in K-12, in higher ed, in tuition relief or assistance. We want to make progress in health care (and) transportation."
Said House Speaker-designate Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis: "We're looking forward to working with the governor where we can find common ground. Doing this in a spirit of respect and civility is very important to members of the House majority."
Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis, added: "We would like to help him be successful as governor because that will make the Legislature successful and the citizens of the state successful."
Pawlenty, considered one of Minnesota's most conservative modern governors on economic and social issues, has been sounding far more moderate since he eked out reelection by about 1 percentage point over DFL Attorney General Mike Hatch.
Earlier Tuesday on Minnesota Public Radio, Pawlenty estimated that the projected state budget surplus to be announced next week might range from about $600 million to "north of $1 billion."
November 16, 2006
StarTribune
Associated Press
University of Minnesota President Robert Bruininks said on Thursday that the university will expand its presence here, including moving to a new temporary location and giving the campus its own chancellor.
"We see the University of Minnesota Rochester as an integral part of our ambitious aspirations and the drive to discover that makes the University of Minnesota unique," Bruininks said in a news release.
"UMR has great potential to benefit not only southeast Minnesota, but also the state — particularly its health care infrastructure and resources," he told a meeting of the Rochester Higher Education Development Committee on Thursday morning.
In the short term, he said the university will have a new location up and running by July because the university has outgrown the University Center Rochester, which it shares with Rochester Community and Technical College and Winona State University.
He said the university was looking for 40,000 to 50,000 square feet to lease, likely downtown or close to the city's center. That location will be a stopover until the university can build its own space.
The university's expansion in Rochester is now backed by $5 million in state funding for each of the next three years. The university and the committee are working to develop four-year degree programs in biotechnology, bioinformatics, technology, health care and business.
November 13, 2006
StarTribune
Steve Brandt
University of Minnesota regents on Friday approved a budget request that includes $182.3 million in new state funding for the next two years, in hopes of capping tuition increases at 4.5 percent.
The $1.42 billion request represents a biennial increase of more than 14 percent in the university's request to the Legislature. The university will revisit its budget and set tuition after the Legislature acts on the school's request. The 4.5 percent increase would be the smallest tuition increase in at least a decade.
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