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Capitol Notebook
May 22, 2003

Senators Ellen Anderson, David Tomassoni, and Steve Murphy at the Senate Rules Committee talking about Prairie Island (MPR Photo/Laura McCallum)

The latest happenings at the Capitol

St. Paul, Minn. —

PRAIRIE ISLAND NUKE STORAGE BILL HEADING TO SENATE FLOOR

A nuclear waste storage bill is headed to the Senate floor. The Senate Rules Committee voted 13-to-7 this morning to send the bill to the floor without recommendation. The issue of whether to expand waste storage at the Prairie Island nuclear plant wasn't resolved in the regular legislative session, when opponents of the bill used a filibuster to stall past the deadline to adjourn.

DFL Senator Ellen Anderson of St. Paul says she still has major concerns about the bill. It would allow the state Public Utilities Commission to approve future waste storage. Anderson says the Legislature should decide the matter, and the bill should require more renewable energy.

"I'm committed to try to fix this bill because I don't want a bill to pass that promotes coal, promotes nuclear but sends us backwards on wind, that would just be wrong for the people of Minnesota and for our future," she said.

Supporters of the bill say they have enough votes to pass it in the Senate. The Senate plans to take up the bill tomorrow.

LIKELY AGREEMENT ON 2 A.M. BAR CLOSINGS

Gov. Pawlenty's chief of staff says there's a likely agreement on a bill that would allow bars to stay open until 2 a.m. Charlie Weaver says the governor may hold a press conference this afternoon to announce the agreement. He says the governor wanted to ensure that 60 percent of the additional money gained from a later bar time would be dedicated to local police and the state patrol.

"If you extend it to 2 a.m. in greater Minnesota there's no troopers on duty after 2 a.m., so he's concerned that you have to fund troopers to actually be on the road if we're going to extend the bar closing time."

Weaver says the deal would require bars and taverns to pay a fee if they want to stay open the extra hour. Supporters say the bill would bring in about $11 million a year in food and beverage taxes and help convention business.

NO DEAL YET ON TRANSPORTATION BILL

Lawmakers still do not have an agreement on a transportation funding bill. Rep. Bill Kuisle, R-Rochester, chair of the House Transportation Committee, says there's more room to make cuts in the Minnesota Department of Transportation's budget.

"MnDOT has been on auto pilot for about 50 years. It has not had the pressure put on it like other state agencies. We're cutting other state agencies by 15-percent. I think this amounts to a three or four percent hit in order to pay these bonds off. I don't see that as even getting into the meat of anything," he told MPR's Cathy Wurzer.

State DFLers say Republicans and the governor don't have a balanced approach to transportation funding.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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