Preliminary approval of foreclosure relief bill

The Minnesota Senate has given preliminary approval to a bill that tries to help some homeowners avoid mortgage foreclosure.

Under the bill, eligible homeowners could defer a pending foreclosure for up to a year if they use foreclosure counseling services and agree to make minimum monthly payments. Lenders could avoid the deferment if they negotiate in good faith to help the homeowner keep their property.

The Senate's Republican minority leader, David Senjem, R-Rochester, says the bill goes beyond the appropriate role of government.

"Now we propose through this bill that the Minnesota state government is going to intervene in a private contract, and change that contract and put condition on that contract that really involve two parties. And we were never there to start with," Senjem said.

Governor Pawlenty has opposed the bill. DFL Senator Ellen Anderson of St. Paul says she altered the bill to satisfy some of the governor's concerns.

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