Politics & Government

WATCH LIVE: Senate Gets Final Vote on Revised Vikings Stadium Bill

It was a legislative all-nighter; watch the Senate take the final stadium vote this morning.

One final hurdle for a Vikings stadium remains: Senate passage of a reconciled bill that was approved by the House this early this morning.

Wright County area Reps. Bruce Anderson, Joyce Peppin and Joe McDonald all voted against the bill early Thursday. Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer, who is running in November for the new Senate seat representing St. Michael, Albertville and Otsego, aslo was a "no" vote.

We have live coverage of that Senate debate and vote, which was expected to start around 9 a.m. However, at 10 a.m. the Senate had yet to convene.

Find out what's happening in St. Michaelfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Earlier this week, Minnesota's House and Senate passed two different versions of Vikings stadium bills. Yesterday, it was the job of a conference committee made of members of both chambers to negotiate a workable melding of the bills that would appease the team and the legislature.

Around midnight, the committee announced it had reconciled such a bill, and the Vikings were on board.

Find out what's happening in St. Michaelfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Then, at 3:30 a.m. Thursday, after a couple hours of debate, the House of Representatives passed the reconciled bill 71-60.

The Vikings' new share of the $1 billion stadium is set to be $477 million, up $50 million from what the team said its cap was earlier this spring. Minneapolis will still pay $150 million, with the state's share coming in at $348 million.

According to the Star Tribune, under the bill, the state will pay its share with revenue from electronic bingo and pull tabs, but in the event those revenues fall short, a series of so-called blink-on taxes would activate, including a 10 percent admissions tax on stadium luxury seats and a sports-themed lottery game predicted to produce at least $2.1 million per year.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

More from St. Michael