The “Four Firkins bill” stands a good chance of passing this year, Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A) said Thursday. Simon said he's been told by the chairs of the House and Senate commerce committees that the legislation will likely be included in each chamber’s omnibus liquor bill. Earlier in this young session, Simon said he was concerned there wouldn't even be an omnibus liquor package. The Four Firkins bill would allow liquor stores to sell store-branded T-shirts and other merchandise. Last year, it was included in the House’s omnibus package, but didn’t make the cut in the Senate. …

After it stalled last year, the “Four Firkins bill” will once again be on the table at the legislature. With the backing of St. Louis Park legislator Steve Simon, the bill would allow Minnesota liquor stores to sell store-branded merchandise. Last year, the legislation breezed through the House and became part of an omnibus liquor package, but the Senate kept the bill out of its omnibus package. A conference committee ultimately killed the legislation. This year, Rep. Simon (DFL-District 44A), who authored the House version of the bill, sees another obstacle. He’s hearing talk from Republican…

Pushing through legislation is rarely easy for lawmakers in the minority. That trend continued for St. Louis Park's three legislators, all of whom are DFLers in a Republican-controlled Legislature. Despite their minority status, they still managed to shepherd a handful of proposals through the legislative process. But many more of their bills stalled or never even got a hearing. Here’s a comprehensive look at how their bills fared this year: Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) Bills introduced: 21   Passed: 4 (Note: Includes companion bills listed below under Rep. Steve Simon.) Claims Against the…

State senators voted Saturday to approve a bill that, among other things, makes it harder to create class-action lawsuits and shortens Minnesota's nation-leading statute of limitation period. St. Louis Park Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) said the bill would "eviscerate Minnesota's consumer protection laws." Chanhassen Sen. Julianne Ortman, (R-District 34) said the measure is needed to ensure swift justice. The bill passed the Senate 36-26. You can watch the full debate in the video above. Latz's comments start at the six-minute mark.

St. Louis Park Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A) re-engaged in the voter ID debate Thursday when he said polls don't tell the whole story of the issue. He said that when asked the question by a pollster, people say requiring a photo ID to vote makes sense because they don't know enough about it. The problem, he said, is it's a big cost for a small problem—not just for the dollars it will take, but how it will "fence out" thousands of honest voters from voting. Although there have been attempts to soften the blow on Minnesota's most vulnerable groups, such as veterans or the elderly, the …

St. Louis Park Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) blames legislative delays on Republicans caught between campaign rhetoric and political realities. In a reversal of fortune, Republicans now face criticism for moving too slow on the budget process. DFLers point out that last year’s House and Senate both passed budget plans by the end of this week in the session. Just a little over a month ago, DFL lawmakers said the GOP was moving too fast to pass bills limiting the scope of government. Latz noted that the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee, on which he serves, passed its omnibus-spending …

Last week, Minnesota legislators returned to their home districts for their traditional Passover and Easter break. With the break over and the session resuming today, St. Louis Park Patch took a look at some of the key bills authored by your legislators—Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44), Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A) and Rep. Ryan Winkler (DFL-District 44B). Sen. Ron Latz  School District Fund Flexibility (SF0166) What it does: Allows school districts to use operating capital for certain school closing costs. Introduced: Jan. 31 Status: No action since introduction; still in the Education…

A bill that would require people to provide a photo ID before voting is making its way through the legislature, but two St. Louis Park legislators have been making their opposition very clear. The House version of the bill, authored by Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer (R-District 16B), cleared a key committee on Thursday and appears to be getting closer to a floor vote. A Senate version has been gaining traction as well. Rep. Ryan Winkler (DFL-District 44B), who represents St. Louis Park and Golden Valley, said in a recent interview with the UpTake that he thinks the bill is an unnecessary expenditure …

The recession has led to claims that the size of government is growing out of control.  But Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A), who represents Hopkins and St. Louis Park, and other DFLers argue that this is not true. In debate at the Capitol last week, Simon pointed to three facts that he says counter the idea of bloated government:  State workers account for only eight percent of the state budget, including salary and benefits; Minnesota has fewer state employees today than it had 10 years ago; Minnesota is the tenth leanest state in the country when you measure state workers per capita. …

Add K-12 education to the already long list of issues that divide DFLers and Republicans. State Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) said the K-12 education bill progressing through the Legislature is “deficient.” The bill would actually increase per-pupil payments to schools. But these gains are offset by cuts or freezes to special education and so-called “integration aid” for large school districts like Minneapolis. Latz—who represents Golden Valley, Hopkins and St. Louis Park—said cuts like those made to special education pit different categories of students against one another—a problem made …

St. Louis Park’s state senator thinks Republican cuts to public safety go too far. Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) and other Democratic senators tried to increase funding for select parts of the $1.2 billion omnibus bill. But the bill cleared the Senate’s Judiciary and Public Safety Committee on Friday below the governor’s recommendation.   Committees are trying to hit spending targets set by Republican leaders in an effort to close the state’s roughly $5 billion deficit. Republicans aim to do that without additional revenue, such as new taxes. DFLers prefer a mix of cuts and new taxes. As a …

With 2010 Census numbers coming out last week, St. Louis Park Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A) wants to renew a push for a bill that he thinks could help de-politicize the redistricting process. Simon’s proposal calls for a panel of five retired judges to draw the boundaries of legislative and congressional districts every 10 years. Each party would get a hand in selecting the commission — the majority leader of the Senate, the minority leader of the Senate, the speaker of the House and the minority leader of the House would each appoint one member. The four judges would then select the …

Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A), who represents St. Louis Park, had a very simple reaction to budget targets released by House Republican leadership on Thursday. “I’m disappointed,” Simon said, “but not surprised.” As expected, Republicans offered a plan that would attempt to balance the state’s projected $5 billion deficit through a series of spending cuts, rather than any tax increases.  Among the planned cuts are $1.6 billion to health and human services, $850 million in tax aids and credits, and $400 million to higher education. Overall, the Republican proposal calls for roughly $34 …

St. Louis Park Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) wants to give businesses a break for upgrading old buildings.  “This Old Shop” — as the legislation that Latz introduced Thursday is called — would give businesses a break on tax assessments that would likely increase with renovations and other investments into old buildings.  The break would apply to buildings older than 45 years with a market value 0f $2 million or less. The tax assessment increases would be abated for 10 years and then phased back over a five-year period.  The proposal is especially attractive to businesses at this point in …

For the second time this session, Rep. Steve Simon finds himself grappling with a significant liquor bill. Two weeks after proposing a bill that would allow liquor stores to sell their own branded merchandise, Simon and his House colleagues are now considering a bill that would give breweries the ability to sell glasses of their own beer on-site. The House bill was introduced Thursday, three days after the legislation was proposed in the Senate. While the bill would extend rights to many breweries, it is being introduced now because Brooklyn Center-based Surly Brewing Co. wants to build a new…

Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A) said Gov. Mark Dayton’s budget, which was released last week, most likely won’t be the ultimate solution at the Legislature, but he called it a good start. Dayton’s two-year, $37 billion budget calls for $4.2 billion in tax increases — many of which would be levied against the state’s top earners — but also a number of cuts, including $680 million to health and human services. Simon said he disagrees with Dayton on the specific threshold used to set the newly proposed top income tax rate of 10.95 percent — Dayton proposes the rate be applied to households …

It’s back to the drawing board for state lawmakers trying to balance the budget. Republican legislators pushed through a bill on a party-line vote that would cut the deficit by $900 million. DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, who criticized the proposal throughout the process, vetoed the bill within hours of its passage. Without enough votes to override the veto, lawmakers will have to set to work drafting a new plan. Even though the final result was predictable, the proposal was contentious in the weeks leading up to the vote. Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44), of St. Louis Park, accused the Republicans of…

It’s become an annual tradition at the Capitol — Minnesota Vikings stadium talk. And last week, St. Louis Park Reps. Steve Simon and Ryan Winkler were there to kick off this year’s chatter. The two are both on the House Government Operations and Elections Committee, which on Wednesday welcomed in Ted Mondale, the new chair of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission, which operates the aging Metrodome. The group began to discuss possible replacement options, but no formal action was taken. Simon said he would have a “healthy skepticism” toward any Vikings stadium bill, noting that he …

Last week, St. Louis Park Rep. Steve Simon was among a number of Democrats who lashed out against a Republican proposal to require a photo ID be produced before someone is allowed to vote. The bill was authored by Republican Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer of Big Lake, and she and other Republicans said the measure is simply a sensical way to better regulate the voting process and ensure no one votes fraudulently. However, Simon said the bill could keep a number of deserving voters — namely, seniors who may no longer have a valid form of photo ID — away from the polls, while also costing the state more …

Controversial Republican budget plans dominated news at the state Capitol last week, and two Democratic St. Louis Park legislators fired off strong broadsides in response. The main piece of Republican budget legislation proposes cutting $840 million of the projected $6.2 billion deficit by keeping spending at 2011 fiscal year levels for local governments, higher education and certain other groups. It asks state agencies to find $200 million in additional cuts. Sen. Ron Latz criticized the bill and its Republican backers. “It looks to me like they are leaping forward without much forethought…