Capitol View for March 20

Good morning. Where do we get our Anthony Edwards dunk-of-the-year posters?

The yellow brick road needs to be overlaid with some bigtime green if the ruby slippers are going to come into the public’s possession. A bill that would leave open the possibility that Minnesota buys the famed slippers that Judy Garland as Dorothy wore in "Wizard of Oz" is still in the mix. They’ll come up for auction later this year. A committee heard the proposal yesterday while dancing around the amount the state might put in. MPR’s Dana Ferguson reports the bill seeks to have the Minnesota Historical Society buy them and put the footwear on display at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids under a proposal up for consideration in the Legislature. The Senate Environment, Climate and Legacy Committee on Tuesday considered the proposal to set aside an unspecified amount of money from Minnesota’s Legacy Amendment fund to buy the shoes and require that they be on public display. Federal prosecutors have estimated the slippers' market value to be about $3.5 million. “If we don't take time to preserve this history, it could be lost to a private collector who puts them in their basement for many years to come,” bill author Sen. Justin Eichorn, R-Grand Rapids, said.

Expect to hear Gov. Tim Walz talk a lot in the coming weeks about the value of vocational-technical education. He offered a preview yesterday at Hennepin County Technical College, where he and other officials appeared to promote $20 million in awards meant to encourage career training in high-demand fields. MPR’s Clay Masters was there and has this report . The occupational categories for the grants were technology, the trades, caring professions, manufacturing and education. Job training is likely to be a key topic of the upcoming Walz State of the State address in Owatonna. See the full list of grants here.

The Minnesota House is back to its full complement. Republican Bryan Lawrence won a special election in a north-central House district on Tuesday, defeating DFLer Brad Brown. He’ll be the 134th House member and replace former Rep. Kurt Daudt, who resigned ahead of the session to take a new job. The party balance remains the same as it was before; Democrats have a 70-64 majority. Lawrence, a 53-year-old cattle farmer and businessman from Baldwin Township in Sherburne County, has been involved in local politics. He previously served on that township board, including as chair. In the House, he will represent a district spanning sections of Anoka, Isanti, Mille Lacs and Sherburne counties. Lawrence, who first ran for the state House in 1996, campaigned in this race on a platform of opposing abortion, defending gun ownership and controlling state spending.

In 2014, state lawmakers bumped up Minnesota’s minimum wage and tied future increases to a measure of inflation. (It was so long ago that a fella named Tom Scheck covered that change.) Some DFL lawmakers say the resulting climb isn’t happening fast enough. As a result, there’s a new push to boost the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour beginning on Aug. 1 — matching minimums in Minneapolis and eventually St. Paul. It would then increase each year until reaching $20 an hour in 2028. Right now, the state has a minimum wage of $10.85 for workers at large employers and $8.85 per hour at small employers. DFL Sen. Zaynab Mohamed says it would help workers keep up with inflation. "The fight for $15 happened almost a decade ago. And despite the steady rise in the cost of living since the year 2012, our state laws have left our minimum wage stagnant, trapping workers in an outdated reality." Republicans were critical of the plan during a committee's consideration. They said it could result in higher prices for consumers. It could be included in a larger labor bill taking shape this year, but it’s difficult to see it happening in this year’s session given the limited discussion and the tough vote it would represent for some lawmakers.

Disability service workers and members of Minnesota’s disabled community packed the rotunda yesterday to call for legislation for increased pay and increased access to care. The rotunda was packed. Disability service workers are pushing legislation that would increase their wages and increase the number of workers in the field. Advocacy groups want to amend the qualifications for certain jobs within the field so more people are able to apply. The program boasted a stacked group, including Gov. Tim Walz and Sen. Erin Murphy. “Something is changing in the work that we’re doing at the Capitol,” Murphy said. “As we made progress, it no longer felt like the community of people with disabilities were a bargaining chip. Instead it felt like the community of people with disabilities were driving change.”