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MINNESOTA BUDGET `Cash for Clunkers' can't salvage Minn. finances ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) The "Cash for Clunkers" car sales program gave a slight lift to Minnesota tax collections but couldn't make up for other state revenue weak spots.

The Minnesota Management and Budget Office reported Monday that tax receipts across all categories were $52 million behind projections. That's 1.7 percent weaker than forecast.

Income taxes were the main culprit. They were $93 million behind expectations. Sales taxes were $20 million short of the goal.

Motor vehicle tax collections were 25 percent ahead of projections. The extra $4 million can be tied to the now-expired clunkers program. It gave sizable federal rebates to people who dumped gas guzzlers and bought new cars.

Corporate taxes also beat expectations by $52 million but still lag last year's totals.

STIMULUS-MINNESOTA Minn. says stimulus supported 11,800 jobs ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) Minnesota finance officials are reporting that federal stimulus dollars supported 11,800 jobs in the state through the end of September.

The state Management and Budget Department says state agencies spent more than $1.6 billion from the stimulus in that time.

Minnesota government is in line for $4.7 billion from the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, with another $4.2 billion worth of tax benefits going to state residents.

Those receiving stimulus dollars were required to report spending and job numbers to federal agencies on Saturday, for a period through the end of September. The next update is due in January.

TAX RECIPROCITY Minnesota, Wis. lawmakers meet to discuss taxes MADISON, Wis. (AP) Wisconsin and Minnesota state lawmakers will send a joint letter to Govs. Tim Pawlenty and Jim Doyle asking them to save a program that allows residents working in one state but living in the other to file one tax return.

Pawlenty announced last month that Minnesota was canceling the 41-year-old tax reciprocity agreement. The states couldn't agree on a plan for Wisconsin to accelerate its payments to help Minnesota's budget.

About 57,000 Wisconsin residents work in Minnesota while 23,000 Minnesotans work in Wisconsin. Because of the imbalance, Wisconsin sends Minnesota money each year.

About five lawmakers from each state met in Minnesota on Monday to discuss the program. They agreed to send the governors a letter asking them to continue negotiating.

MINNESOTA SOLDIER KILLED 2 Minnesota servicemen killed in Afghanistan MINNEAPOLIS (AP) A Marine and an Army National Guardsman from Minnesota have died in combat in Afghanistan.

The father of Marine Staff Sgt. Aaron J. Taylor says he was killed Friday when he was hit by an improvised explosive device while on foot patrol in Helmand province. Clifford Taylor of rural Two Harbors says his son grew up in Bovey and graduated from Greenway High School in Coleraine in 2000.

The Defense Department has not officially announced his death.

But it said Monday that a Minnesota National Guard soldier from Walker died Saturday in Afghanistan.

The Pentagon says 24-year-old Spc. George W. Cauley died Saturday in Bagram. He was wounded when insurgents attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device last Wednesday in Helmand province.

RIVER MYSTERY Missing man's remains found on river island TRENTON, Wis. (AP) The remains of a man who had been missing since March have been found on an island in the Mississippi River near the Wisconsin town of Trenton.

Hunters came across the remains on Sunday morning on an island south of Red Wing, Minn., in the backwaters of the Mississippi. The Pierce County, Wis. sheriff's department says the body had become lodged in debris on the island.

Officers searched the body and found a Minnesota driver's license for 53-year-old Robert More. Dental records confirmed his identity.

More was reported missing on March 28 from his houseboat on the Mississippi near Trenton. Authorities believe he fell off and drowned.

The Pierce County medical examiner says there was no foul play.

MISSING TEENS-WINONA 2 missing Winona teens found in New Orleans WINONA, Minn. (AP) Two Winona teenagers missing for more than a week have been found in New Orleans.

Police were called to a hotel in New Orleans Sunday night after Tychelle Stoos and her boyfriend, Johann Van Deinse tried to check in.

Stoos' grandfather, Larry Stoos, says the hotel clerk called police, probably because the two are 16 years old. New Orleans police called the Stooses about 7 p.m.

Stoos' mother, Tammi, told police she last saw her daughter Oct.

3, when she dropped her off at Van Deinse's home. The boy's father later filed a missing persons report.

Investigators say the two last used their cell phones near Chicago on Oct. 3.

Information from: Winona Daily News, http://www.winonadailynews.com (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 10-13-09 0130CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list