The capital investment bill (HF380) received a $208 million line-item trim from Governor Tim Pawlenty. Coming into law at $717 million in general obligation bonding, it is more than $100 million less than the traditional 3 percent of general fund debt-service limits.

• $70 million allocation for the proposed Central Corridor light-rail transit project that would link St. Paul and Minneapolis. (see "Central Corridor - Dead or Alive?" section below).
• $70 million for various University of Minnesota and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system projects, including $24 million for a new Bell Museum of Natural History on the St. Paul campus.
• $18.5 million for improvements to various metropolitan area parks and trails, including $11 million for improvements to the polar bear and gorilla exhibits at St. Paul's Como Zoo.
• $13.7 million for proposed rail and transit projects, including $4 million for planning of a high-speed rail line connecting St. Paul to Chicago.
• $7.7 million for various sports centers proposed through the Amateur Sports Commission.

House Majority Leader Tony Sertich (DFL-Chisholm) called the new law "bittersweet" - while creating jobs, addressing clean water and wastewater infrastructure issues, he said it is "a direct personal attack" on the House sponsor, Rep. Alice Hausman (DFL-St. Paul). Sertich called the cutting of most St. Paul projects "disgusting," saying the cuts are retaliation on the House for the veto override of the transportation bill.

Read more from the House and a recent Star Tribune article.

Other Session News

Republican National Convention:

• A compromise proposal (HF3986) for late bar hours during the convention passed the House Commerce and Labor Committee. Read the Pioneer Press article.

Taxes:

• An idea to eliminate all property taxes got varied reactions from a House committee. Read more from the House.

Transportation:

• An investigation into the Department of Transportation's role in the Interstate 35W bridge collapse is on schedule. Read more from the House.
• A bill to improve communication with small businesses about transportation projects received committee approval. Read more from the House.

• With great fanfare, Congress adopted strict ethics rules last year requiring members to disclose when they steered federal money to pet projects. But it turns out lawmakers can still secretly direct billions of dollars to favored organizations by making vague requests rather than issuing explicit instructions to government agencies in committee reports and spending bills. That seeming courtesy is the difference between "soft earmarks" and the more insistent "hard earmarks." Read the New York Times article.

Workforce:

• If you truly want to prepare your workforce for the future, you need to look at it in terms of the generational supply chain. This means you need to have a balance of workers of different ages and make a constant, consistent effort to hire and train younger people to replace retiring baby boomers. Read the Business Week article.

Education:

• Nate Haler stood in a metal booth at Hastings High School one recent morning, spraying primer on disassembled parts of a tractor his great-grandfather used to ride. The 18-year-old has worked with his teacher and classmates on the tractor every week for months in an auto class. ...In an era of high-stakes testing under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, educators say they also want to provide students with skills they can use to find jobs. Read the Pioneer Press article.

• Minnesota's Bioscience Community is hosting Building on the Foundation on Wednesday, April 30 from 1:00 - 4:30 p.m. at the Minnesota History Center in St. Paul. Speakers for the event include: Fred Bader Ph.D., vice president of Global Operations for Centocor, Inc.- A Johnson & Johnson Company; Don Gerhardt, president and CEO of LifeScience Alley and Dale Wahlstrom, CEO of The BioBusiness Alliance of Minnesota. To RSVP and view current agenda, log on to Minnesota Bioscience.

• The community's interest in the I-35W bridge project continues to grow as progress becomes more visible on the construction site. MnDOT's I-35W Bridge weekly e-mail updates are a great resource for the most up-to-date information, up-close photos of construction activities and interesting descriptions of progress on the site. Sign up for updates or view previous updates.

City of Hopkins:

• Park Nicollet and the Hopkins Business and Civic Association invite the public to attend the 4th annual Hopkins Health Fair on Wednesday, April 23 from 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. at the Hopkins Center for the Arts. Admission is free and there will be a variety of vendor booths, kids corner, expert booths, cooking demonstrations and more. For more information, read the event invitation.

City of Plymouth:

• The City of Plymouth is hosting a Plymouth City Sampler in the Plymouth City Hall lobby on Saturday, April 26 from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. This informal event will provide attendees the opportunity to learn more about the city and its services and meet local elected officials. A light breakfast and information tables will be available. For more information and to learn about the severe weather preparedness and safety presentation taking place during this event, visit the City of Plymouth Web site.

Wayzata Public Schools:

• The Wayzata Public Schools art department and the Wayzata Bay Center are hosting 2008 Focus on Art, a district-wide art show, from April 26 through May 11 at the Wayzata Bay Center. The event will feature student art from the 2007-08 school year. For more information, visit the Wayzata Public Schools Web site. In other news from the district, the CMS Knowledge Masters placed as the top international team and also took top state and national honors (read more), and three EMS students took top honors in the WordMasters Challenge (read more).