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St. Cloud State University
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Campus & State
Published:
Thursday, April 7, 2005
Benton approves meth ordinance
The Benton County Board approved a meth lab clean-up ordinance Tuesday that allows the county to declare a lab site a public health nuisance and requires the property owners to clean it up.
If the property owners fail to clean up the site, the county can tack a special assessment on their property taxes. County commissioners said land owners might be more reluctant to report meth labs if they know they will be held financially responsible.
Benton County has filed 316 drug-related charges since January 2004. Seventy-seven of those charges were meth related.
Attorney Robert Raupp told the St. Cloud Times that the number of first-degree drug offenses doubled from 2002 to 2003. Raupp attributed this to an increase in meth production in the area.
Teacher strike makes slight headway
One of the longest teacher strikes in Minnesota history, in Crosby, made headway Wednesday with a tentative agreement after eight weeks of striking.
Teachers voted to ratify their contracts at about 1 p.m. Wednesday, said attorney Harley Ogata. The school board voted at 2 p.m.
The two sides met for the first time Tuesday since negotiations stopped March 16. Teachers came to the school board immediately after 30 of the 87 teachers were proposed to be cut. The cuts were to be finalized next month.
The teacher cuts were based on a projected $1 million the district lost in state aid. The money was lost due to 200 students leaving the school since the strike began.
The initial strike started because of a dispute over health insurance issues.
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