Dayton acts on final batch of bills

Gov. Mark Dayton today completed action on bills passed during the 2011 regular session by vetoing an education policy bill and signing five other bills.

In a letter explaining the veto, Dayton wrote that the measure "prohibits the Commissioner of Education from adopting Common Core Standards, which 42 other states have adopted." Dayton also noted that he is reluctant to sign and education bill that doesn't provide for early childhood education.

The bills Dayton signed included an omnibus technical tax bill, a bill which provides for settlement of claims against the state, a bill that allows for a property owner to detach their property from one municipality and annex to an abutting municipality with the support of at least one of the municipalities, the omnibus judiciary bill, and a bill to expand Gold Star license plate eligibility to surviving legal guardians and siblings of a veteran who has died while serving honorably in active military service.

UPDATE

Rep. Sondra Erickson, R-Princeton, chair of the House Education Policy Committee, said she was disappointed by the veto.

"I am afraid that the governor has shown he is more interested in playing politics than signing reforms into law, reforms that could turn around a number of our schools," Erickson wrote in a news release. "With his signature, Governor Dayton could have put us at the forefront of reform, but with his veto we're stuck standing in place for another year."

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.