Good morning and happy Tuesday.
Gov. Tim Walz had the legal authority to mandate face masks when he declared a public health emergency in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled Monday. The Associated Press reports it’s the latest turn in a case that has bounced between Minnesota courts for years. The outcome of the legal volleys could matter in future public health emergencies or inform proposals to change state law. This case challenged a mask requirement in public places and whether the Minnesota Emergency Management Act granted the governor power to impose it. The business owners who sued said the requirement violated their constitutional rights. A three-judge appeals panel unanimously ruled that COVID-19 constituted an "act of nature" that fit within the law that allowed for precautionary steps. The judges pushed aside arguments that a potential lab leak caused the virus and that should have led to a different legal standard.
The Department of Revenue is asking Minnesotans eligible for a rebate check to visit the department's website if they have moved or updated banking information since 2021. People who made $75,000 or less in 2021, or up to $150,000 as a married couple could receive $520 for a couple or $260 for an individual. Higher rebates could go to parents or those with dependents. Revenue Commissioner Paul Marquart told MPR’s Dana Ferguson most people won't have to do anything to get the money. "If your banking information or your address changed, then we will have a portal opening so that people can go online. And they'll have this spot where they can change that." Marquart said Minnesotans need to update their information before July 28 to receive a check. Checks are expected to be sent out early this fall.
A Minnesota lawmaker was arrested last week on suspicion of driving while intoxicated after a state trooper pulled him over. MPR’s Brian Bakst reports Rep. Dan Wolgamott, DFL-St. Cloud, was stopped on a state highway in rural Kanabec County on Friday evening by a Minnesota State Patrol officer. The officer wrote in an incident report that Wolgamott’s vehicle was weaving, lacked a front license plate and had expired registration. The trooper had been on the lookout for a vehicle matching the one Wolgamott was driving after a complaint was lodged about a person drinking in a liquor store parking lot. He was the only person in the car at the time. Wolgamott was arrested for suspicion of driving while impaired, and a fluid sample was taken. He was booked at Kanabec County Jail on suspicion of fourth-degree DWI, according to the incident report, and could be charged as soon as today.
The trial of a Minneapolis man charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol is scheduled to resume today in Washington. MPR’s Matt Sepic reports Brian Christopher Mock is among a dozen Minnesotans accused of being part of the mob that Donald Trump urged to come to the Capitol in a last-ditch attempt to overturn his election loss. Mock is allegedly seen on video shoving two police officers to the ground and kicking one of them. So far he's the only Minnesota defendant to be tried. Mock opted to have a judge rather than a jury decide his fate. NBC News reported that Mock, representing himself, called his son as a witness late last month. A.J. Mock — who'd turned his father in to the FBI — had originally planned to testify for the government, but prosecutors didn't call him. On cross examination, A.J. Mock said he loves his dad and doesn't want to see him go to prison, but that his father was like a broken record when talking about the 2020 election.
State revenue was up 4 percent over the last forecast in February for the final three months of the government fiscal year that just ended, according to a report from Minnesota Management and Budget. For the entire fiscal year revenue was 1.8 percent better than projected. Net income, corporate, and other receipts were above the forecast, and net sales receipts were below the forecast, according to the report. | 