government

If all goes according to plan, the city of Farmington will welcome a new finance director on Sept. 20. Farmington resident Robin Hanson has accepted the city's offer to become the finance director. She has been offered a starting salary of $76,448. City administrator David McKnight...

The Daily Beast article brought back several painful memories of my experience as the only boy at an all girls school. According to the article, a public middle school in West Virginia is being sued by the American Civil Liberties Union for separating boys and girls into single-sex...

When Congress returns to Washington in September, it needs to do more than hold a few political posturing votes before going home to campaign. Even if a continuing resolution to fund government is passed as expected, there are still serious unresolved issues that should not be left...

ST. PAUL -- Legislators have the duty to write ballot titles for proposed constitutional amendments, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled today, eliminating those that Secretary of State Mark Ritchie rewrote earlier this year. The court also ruled that a proposal to require Minnesota...

ST. PAUL -- The Minnesota Legislature overwhelmingly today approved $180 million for communities damaged by summer floods and wind storms. The House voted 125-3 for the measure, with the Senate following 60-7. The entire special session took less than two hours, and an expected House...

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Mark Dayton is asking the federal government for additional money to develop Minnesota's health insurance exchange required under President Obama's Affordable Care Act. Republican lawmakers have criticized Dayton's push forward with the exchange and stayed...

The city of Farmington will put nearly $55,000 into repairs at the old Rambling River Center, with the hope that one day, those repairs will help sell the building. On Monday, the Farmington City Council approved a plan to replace the building's roof and do necessary asbestos abatement....

Farmington city officials have considered a noise ordinance before, but after the past weekend a few council members are more serious about getting one in place. Council members got complaints both Friday and Saturday when outside events were held at Tailgaters as part of the new...

BEMIDJI – The historic Beltrami County Courthouse was once used to sentence criminals, but the Beltrami County Jail will soon use the vacant space to expand outpatient services to jail inmates in hopes of lessening the number of repeat offenders. “How many times have you heard...

ST. PAUL -- Minnesota legislators will return to St. Paul on Friday to approve $168 million in disaster relief for floods and other storm damage in June and July. An agreement Gov. Mark Dayton and legislative leaders signed at 11:27 a.m. today allows no other action during the session,...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress' nonpartisan budget analysts are projecting a $1.1 trillion federal deficit for 2012, the fourth straight year the government's shortfall will exceed $1 trillion. The Congressional Budget Office also says it expects the economy to continue recovering at...

BEMIDJI – The city’s public access television channel has requested the city’s help in expanding and improving its services. Mike Bredon, the executive director of Upstream TV, appeared before the Bemidji City Council Monday evening to request $20,000 in fees and $20,000 in...

The terrorist menace is proving quite useful to the U.S. government, much as the communist menace did many years ago. What could be more convenient than tagging dissenters and opponents as “giving material aid to terrorists”? There’s even an anti-terrorism law now that discourages...

Widely suspected of believing in nothing, Mitt Romney’s choice of a True Believer as his running mate plays well as public theater. As a TV performer, Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan is as winsome as Sarah Palin, and far better at faking sincerity. Although women are generally smarter...

BEMIDJI — Beltrami, Cass and Itasca Counties, along with American Indian tribes in the area, have collaborated to deliver a resolution to Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton, asking for financial assistance for the $3.3 million in storm damage the counties accumulated this summer. Dayton...