Elements Begin To Emerge Of Walz Agenda For Rural Minnesota
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- New Gov. Tim Walz won't release his first budget until Feb. 19 but some elements of his agenda for rural Minnesota are already emerging.
Walz is Minnesota's first governor from greater Minnesota since Rudy Perpich left office in 1991.
The Democratic former congressman from Mankato has provided some glimpses recently about his plans for the parts of Minnesota that lie outside the Twin Cities metropolitan area, an expanse that often complains of getting shortchanged.
Walz says he wants the state to pick up a greater share of the costs of K-12 education to reverse a widening gap between rural and urban districts. He wants to restore local government aid to 2002 levels, an increase of about $30 million. And he's promising a "moonshot type of approach" toward expanding rural broadband.
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