Tuition Breaks, Nursing Home Help Among Session's 1st Bills

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Free vocational college tuition for Minnesota high school graduates? Student-loan forgiveness for working in specialized fields or rural communities? Tax breaks for the mining and timber industries? A prohibition on performance bonuses for Minnesota health exchange executives?

Those are among the first bills trotted out Thursday in the early going of Minnesota's legislative session.

Senate-leading Democrats and majority House Republicans rolled out competing sets bills that represent the top priorities of each.

Both are pitching targeted student-debt forgiveness programs. The Senate DFL has the plan for tuition-free classes at two-year colleges as a way to incentivize technical education. The House GOP wants the industry-specific tax credits along with other tax cuts.

The opening bids set up five months of deliberations over new policies and a new state budget.

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