Minnesota Management & Budget (MMB) will release its November Budget and Economic Forecast today. We will have to wait till 11:30am for full details, but the headline number is striking:…
The latest Thinking Minnesota poll was conducted last week, and the top choice for what to do with the budget surplus for Minnesotans was once again permanent tax cuts. Twenty-seven percent of respondents…
State government in one pie chart. As we get ready for tomorrow’s reveal of the current status of Minnesota’s budget, it’s worth reviewing where all the money goes. The single…
A report from the administrative law judge tasked with reviewing proposed amendments to the state’s licensure rule for teachers has been released. The 86-page report responds to rule changes to…
It’s the same old story, but with a cruel twist for taxpayers. Like other public transit systems, the Duluth Transit Authority continues to run half-empty buses, still lagging far behind…
For years, Minnesotans have been told that our state should pass the same energy policies as Germany, which has subsidized wind and solar power, shut down its nuclear and coal-fired…
Last week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released data showing that the United States economy added 263,000 jobs in November. Some, such as Senator Elizabeth Warren, saw this as unequivocally good news:…
Isaac Orr joins Jon Justice to talk about the push from wind and solar groups to pass aggressive climate legislation now that Minnesota liberals are in full control of the…
I recently posed the question, “How much money should public schools spend per student?” Depends on who you ask. School spending is easily one of the loudest debates in education,…
Robert Rapier is a chemical engineer with more than 25 years of international engineering experience in chemicals, oil and gas, and renewables, who writes for Forbes and Utility Forecaster. In…
State and local taxes and spending Pine and Lakes Echo Journal: Nisswa taxpayers likely to see 12% hike in city taxes Rochester Post Bulletin: Letter: Tax increases in a time…
Between November 15th and 16th, leaders of the G20 met in Bali, Indonesia, for their annual summit. Like the past couple of years, growing income inequality was one of the…
Three articles appeared in the 12/2/23 edition of the Star Tribune that should resonate with those who understand the importance the police play in the future of Minneapolis. The first…
Ilhan Omar was arrested during a 2013 visit of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to the city. The sitting President of the Federal Republic of Somalia will hold an event at the…
Teacher enthusiasm over the direction of K-12 education is higher among educators at charter schools and private schools than district schools, according to a recent EdChoice national poll collected by Morning…
The third large free-food nonprofit suspended by the state Department of Education (MDE) appeared in the state Court of Appeals yesterday. Youth Leadership Academy, d/b/a Gar Gaar Family Services, is…
The Star Tribune’s Editorial Board recently called for the reinstatement of the national assault weapons ban. My response is below. “Time to reinstate assault weapon ban” ignores a glaring gap. …
Walker Orenstein of MinnPost wrote an article detailing the energy and climate agenda of key Democratic lawmakers in Minnesota now that the DFL has total control of the House of…
It’s common knowledge that Metro Transit ridership has tanked since the pandemic, still down roughly 50 percent this year versus 2019. To be sure, a lifestyle shift that’s led far…
They say “demography is destiny.” For Minnesota’s sake, let’s hope not. A headline about public education caught my eye the other day. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that: Minneapolis Public…
Nearly half of teachers feel their school is political, according to a recent EdChoice national poll collected by Morning Consult, “which is significantly greater than the one-third of school parents…
Compared to many other metropolitan areas in the country, the Twin Cities metro — or rather the Minneapolis-St. Paul- Blooming Statistical Area (MSA) area as defined by the Bureau of…
Eight Minnesota schools were recently recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as National Blue Ribbon Schools for 2022. The state is allotted eight nominations based on the number of…
The Korean War can lay claim, along with World War One, to being the United States’ “forgotten war.” Perhaps this is because it was, in a sense, inconclusive. At the…