Recent changes to the state's property tax rules are increasing taxes on apartment owners, and many of them may pass those costs on to their tenants. High demand and few vacancies aren't helping the situation for renters.

But many homeowners will see their tax bills increase anyway because lawmakers cut the Market Value Homestead Credit as part of a debt deal to end the government shutdown earlier this summer.

MPR cautions that property taxes can be a complex thing in Minnesota. Most increases will be in the single digits.

The Los Angeles Times recently dropped in on Glenville, Minn., where the SoyMor plant has started up again. The paper says plants across the nation are ramping up thanks to a federal tax credit and renewable energy mandates. An industry trade group says production could break records this year.

The Minnesota Senate needs to trim $2.1 million, and MPR says jobs are a likely target. The cuts come as part of the state budget agreement that ended a historic standoff over the summer.

Minnesota Public Radio takes a look back at the year and finds two trends in how communities across the state are wrestling with budgets. Property taxes, which have been rising for more than a decade, continue to go up as local governments try to make up for losses in state aid. Many municipalities are also cutting into their own budgets and payrolls to find savings on the other end.