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Outspoken PFAS critic Amara Strande dies from cancer
Amara Strande died of cancer at age 20 after spending her final months lobbying Minnesota lawmakers to more strictly regulate so-called "forever chemicals," which are made by the giant 3M company near her Oakdale high school, where numerous students got cancer.
Legislative week-in-review: Kitchen sink edition
The Legislature is coming down the home stretch and passing the massive omnibus bills that we can be truly confounding to the regular folks among us. Here’s are some of the highlights of this busy week: The Senate is debating a bill legalizing recreational marijuana today (HF100). The House passed a similar bill earlier this […]
Star Tribune lobbies against children’s online safety bill, saying it could bankrupt them
Star Tribune leaders are lobbying Minnesota lawmakers against a bill intended to protect the privacy of children using apps and websites, saying the measure could bankrupt the Minneapolis newspaper.
Bitter pill slipped into the prescription price gouging bill
Minnesota state senators gutted a drug price gouging bill last week in a gift to Big Pharma, advocates for the bill say.
MPD hired officer accused of striking, using stun gun on unarmed Black man
The Minneapolis Police Department hired a Virginia police officer who was charged with — but acquitted of — assaulting an unarmed Black man in distress by Tasering him and hitting him in the head with the stun gun just days after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd on a south Minneapolis street.
House passes bill cracking down on chemicals invented by Minnesota’s 3M
The Minnesota House was poised to pass an environment budget bill Monday that includes a ban on products that contain common but toxic chemicals that 3M invented in Minnesota in the 1940s.
Minnesota House speaker defends alerting authorities after reporter’s confrontation with House aide
House Speaker Melissa Hortman released a statement Friday,,saying an internal House policy forced her to take action against MinnPost reporter Peter Callaghan after a press conference confrontation between him and a party spokesman.
DFL proposes rehabilitating prisoners; GOP calls it ’Get Out of Jail Free’ bill
Senate Democrats were set to pass a $880 million public safety and judiciary bill Friday, including money for youth intervention programs; money for recruitment and retention of police officers; reducing a backlog of forensic evidence at the state crime lab; increased funding to help courts address a backlog of cases; expansion of treatment courts; and funding of multijurisdictional teams that focus on gang and drug crimes.
House passes major elections bill over Republican objections that it’s not bipartisan
The Minnesota House was poised to pass a bill late Thursday that protects the right to vote and makes it harder to run political advertisements without saying who paid for them. The Democracy for the People Act (HF3) includes automatic voter registration; allows 16- and 17-year-olds to pre-register to vote and allows voters to choose to vote by mail by getting on a permanent absentee ballot list.
Conservatives target swing-district lawmakers over bill to control drug costs
Conservative groups are targeting swing-district Democratic lawmakers with ads that portray a drug price gouging bill as a gift to insurance companies and middlemen.
Governor’s plan to send $550 million to cities, counties for cops appears to be on the rocks
Gov. Tim Walz’s proposed $550 million public safety proposal — which would dole out piles of money to cities, counties and tribal governments based on population — appears to be in some trouble at the Legislature.
Misinformation provision in elections bill expected to face legal challenge
A bill making it a misdemeanor to knowingly spread false information with the intent to impede or prevent people from voting is likely to face a legal challenge if it becomes law.