The $700 million project is fully funded, but needs congressional action to bypass federal environmental regulations that protects rivers like the St. Croix from construction projects. The bill now goes to the House floor.

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission has unanimously approved the final route for the new high-voltage power line. The 90-mile segment runs from Hampton to La Crosse, Wisconsin. It's expected to be in service by 2015.

DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar is taking the lead in the Senate with the bill aimed to speed up the FDA's approval process. Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen is pushing the bill in the House. Both say the faster the regulation process, the more products will be created, resulting in more jobs.

Federal officials are not second guessing the management of the forest fire that burned more than 140 square miles of Boundary Waters Canoe Area last year. In a series of reports the Forest Service says all regulations were followed. The agency says the fire behaved in ways that were unprecedented for the crews that were fighting it.

Wisconsin Public Service says snow on power lines and trees caused branches and wires to touch power lines, tripping the outages.

Minnesota's most popular casino may soon have approval to sell alcohol. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community awaits approval from the Bureau of Indian Affairs on the request. The tribal council says opening alcohol sales will increase their revenue and help the casino gain more popularity as a tourist attraction.

Occupy Duluth is the latest group preparing for a long-term demonstration. The Duluth News Tribune reports the city has give protesters their approval to converge at Lake Superior Plaza.

A heartbeat monitoring system that allows doctors to monitor a patient's heartbeat from a mobile device was FDA approved Monday. The device was developed by Minnesota-based Preventice in collaboration with the Mayo Clinic. Mayo cardiologists say the new technology should allow doctors to identify problems earlier by monitoring patients outside the hospital.