MN United has pledged to help support 15 legislators who voted for the same-sex marriage bill.

The organization that lobbied to legalize same-sex marriage in the Legislature is vowing to help raise money for 15 lawmakers who voted in favor of the bill.

The Minnesotans United PAC announced plans to support 15 legislators -- dubbed the "Minnesota 15" -- on Thursday. The group only released the first five names this week, and all are DFLers so far.

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Photos: Wisconsin Legislature, UW-Madison.

Rep. John Nygen (left) says the center can find housing elsewhere; Andy Hall, the nonprofit's executive director, says he was "blindsided" by the news.

Wisconsin Republicans want to boot a nonpartisan journalism watchdog organization off the UW-Madison campus.

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Synthetic drugs are a perennial target in the Legislature.

Synthetic drugs are already illegal in Minnesota, but lawmakers believe there's more work to be done to "combat the spread of the sale" of these and other controlled substances across the state.

House Speaker Paul Thissen, D-Minneapolis, announced this week he's starting a committee to study the issue and recommend policies next legislative session.

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The new law will move mentally ill offenders through the system quicker.

As of July 1, the state will be legally obligated to move mentally ill offenders out of jails within 48 hours of a judge signing a civil commitment order.

Designed to move people with mental illnesses to treatment quicker, the measure was included in the Health and Human Services omnibus bill passed by the Legislature this session, which Gov. Mark Dayton signed into law Thursday.

"It seemed like the best interest of the inmate had been forgotten," says bill author Sen. Julianne Ortman, R-Chanhassen. "This will ensure that we don't have anyone languishing without treatment in jail."

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The Senate will vote on the gay marriage bill Monday.

On Thursday afternoon, the House voted 75-59 in favor of a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in Minnesota.

The tally came after a three-hour floor session. The bill was expected to pass, and many legislators wanted to put their mark on the historic moment with a few words.

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Taxes Committee Chair Rod Skoe says the tax plan could help wipeout the state's deficit; Dayton won't support any hike on middle- or lower-income families.

The DFL-controlled Senate will take up its $1.9 billion tax plan this afternoon in what we expect will be a grueling debate that could last well into the evening.

Among the most contentious proposals: repealing the state's tax exemption on clothing.

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Photo: Tony Nelson for City Pages

Rodreick is already planning to reintroduce the bill next year.

It's been a frustrating week for Matthew Rodreick.

Committees in the House and Senate have released their budgets for health and human services programs, and a bill that would fund curative spinal cord injury research in Minnesota is absent from both. Rodreick originally brought the idea for the bill to Senate chief author Jeff Hayden, and has tirelessly lobbied for it over the past few months, even releasing a documentary to draw public support that featured Vikings punter Chris Kluwe spending a day in a wheelchair.

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Photo: Tony Nelson.

Matthew and Gabe Rodreick posing for our January feature.

For supporters of a bill that would fund progressive spinal cord research in Minnesota, these next few days will be crucial in convincing legislators that their cause is worthy enough to make the cut.

As of this morning, the bill -- known as the Jack Jablonski/Gabe Rodreick Bill, after two young Minnesotans who suffered life-changing spinal cord injuries -- is not included in the Health and Human Services Finance budget in the House, authored by committee chair Rep. Tom Huntley, D-Duluth.

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Photo: Youtube Screenshot.

Sen. Scott Dibble, chief author of the Senate bill, presenting a photo of a boy raised in a same-sex household in closing remarks.

As predicted by many, bills to legalize same-sex marriage in Minnesota passed key committees in the House and Senate Tuesday.

After almost three hours of testimonies and discussion, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 5-3 in favor of the bill just before 3 p.m. The House Civil Law Committee followed suit a few hours later, moving the bill forward by 10-7 vote.

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Today's hearings could be a crucial step in answering that question.

Update [2:55]: After almost three hours of testimony and discussion, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the bill with a 5-3 vote. The House committee will vote later this evening.

It's a pivotal day in Minnesota's fight over the legalization of same-sex marriage.

The House Civil Law Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee will both hear testimony and eventually take up votes on gay marriage bills today, and if the AP has done its math correctly, the smart money is on both bills moving forward.

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