Born: 11/25/59
Married: Spouse Andy Dawkins, 2 children.
Occupation: Attorney, college instructor.
Education: BA, Carleton College; JD, University of Minnesota.
Elected: 1992, re-elected 1996, 2000, 2002.
Term: 4th.

Born: 11/25/59
Married: Spouse Andy Dawkins, 2 children.
Occupation: Attorney, college instructor.
Education: BA, Carleton College; JD, University of Minnesota.
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2009 State Senate Voting Record
Description	Preferred Position	This official's vote compared with the preferred position
CIVIL JUSTICE: HF 417, Insurance Recovery - Scheid Amendment: This is the amendment that would have eliminated the one-sided loser pays system for awarding attorney fees in commercial coverage disputes. The Chamber supported the amendment. It passed on a vote of 32 to 31.	Y
CIVIL JUSTICE: SF 82, False Claims Act - Betzold Amendment: This is the amendment that allowed businesses that discover inadvertent billing errors on government contracts to correct the errors before the penalties of the False Claims Act are applied. The Chamber supported the amendment. It passed on a vote of 41 to 16.	Y
CIVIL JUSTICE: SF 140, Consumer Fraud Act - Final Passage: This bill would have defined every lawsuit brought by an individual under Minnesota’s consumer fraud act to be in the public interest. The Chamber opposed the bill. It passed on a vote of 35 to 28.	N
EDUCATION: SF 1328, Omnibus K-12 Finance Bill - Dahle Amendment: This amendment would have eliminated the alternative teacher certification provision from the bill. The Chamber opposed the amendment. It failed on a vote of 30 to 36.	N
EDUCATION: HF 2, Omnibus K-12 Finance Bill - Conference Report: This is the conference report on the omnibus K-12 finance bill which waived the Graduation-Required Assessment for Diploma (GRAD) math requirement for high school students to receive diplomas. While there were positive aspects to the bill, the Chamber continued to oppose the bill because the moratorium on the GRAD math assessment outweighed its positive aspects. It passed on a vote of 49 to 16.	N
ELECTIONS: SF 1331, June Primary - Robling Amendment: This is the amendment that would have eliminated the June primary from the bill. The Chamber opposed the amendment. It failed on a vote of 24 to 38.	N
ELECTIONS: SF 182, Redistricting Reform - Final Passage: This is the final passage of an elections reform bill which created an independent commission for the purpose of drawing legislative lines during redistricting. The Chamber supported the bill. It passed on a vote of 39 to 28.	Y
ENERGY: SF 550, Energy Omnibus Bill - Dille Amendment: This amendment removed Minnesota’s ban on new nuclear generation. The Minnesota Chamber supported the amendment. The amendment passed by a vote of 42 to 24.	Y
FISCAL: SF 2074, Omnibus Tax Bill #1 - Final Passage: The omnibus tax bill included a net tax increase of $2.6 billion. The Chamber opposed the bill. It passed on a vote of 35 to 31.	N
FISCAL: HF 2323, Omnibus Tax Bill #1 - Conference Committee Report: This is the conference committee report on the original omnibus tax bill. It increased taxes by about $1 billion by creating a 4th personal income tax bracket, a new tax on interest income and increasing alcoholic beverage taxes. It also contained the up front exemption for capital equipment purchases, an angel investor tax credit and the K-12 education shifts. The Chamber opposed the bill. It passed on a vote of 35 to 1.	N
FISCAL: HF 885, Omnibus Tax Bill #2 - Conference Committee Report: This is the conference committee report on a second omnibus tax bill. It increased taxes by about $1 billion by creating a 4th personal income tax bracket, a new tax on interest income and increasing alcoholic beverage taxes. The Chamber opposed the bill. It passed on a vote of 44 to 20.	N
HEALTH CARE: HF 705, HSA Preventive Care - Motion to Reconsider: This vote was on a motion to reconsider the Prettner-Solon amendment. The amendment eliminated the requirement for Health Savings Account plans to cover preventive care. The Chamber supported the amendment and opposed the motion to reconsider. The motion failed on a vote of 30-34.	N	-
TRANSPORTATION: HF 1309, The Omnibus Transportation Funding Bill - Final Passage: The bill allocated revenue for road and transit projects statewide and eliminated Met Council’s transit operating budget shortfall without new taxes. The Chamber supported the bill. It passed on a vote of 63 to 4.	Y
This official's percentage on this voting record:

2010 Minnesota Senate
Description	Preferred Position	This official's vote compared with the preferred position
On HF 2037: Marty Amendment - Foreign Source Income	N
On HF 2037: Final Passage	N
On SF 1761: Final Passage	N	-
On SF 2757: Final Committee Passage -- The bill authorizes the Board of Teaching to adopt rules for teacher preparation and licensure programs. This bill meets all the requirements for the Race to the Top application. The Minnesota Chamber supported the bill. It passed on a vote of 11-7.	Y
On SF 345: Final Passage - Enhanced Drivers` License	Y	-
On SF 355: Nuclear Moratorium Repeal - Doll Committee Amendment -- The Doll amendment links removal of Minnesota`s moratorium to action by Congress, effectively linking our state`s energy policy to Washington, DC. The amendment also contained complicated and controversial financing restrictions that would reduce the possibility that a new nuclear plant would be proposed in Minnesota, even if a permanent waste solution were achieved by Congress. The Minnesota Chamber opposed the amendment. The amendment passed on a vote of 9-6.	N
On SF 2510: Koch Amendment - Workforce Development Fee	Y
This official's percentage on this voting record:

Symbol Key:
	Voted with the preferred position
	Voted against the preferred position
-	Did not vote