Good morning, and happy Wednesday.
The latest economic update from Minnesota finance officials carries mixed news, reports MPR’s Brian Bakst. Minnesota ended its fiscal year in June with state revenue far outpacing expectations. A quarterly report from the state budget agency shows tax collections were about $3 billion ahead of projections for the year. That’s about 11 percent more than forecasters predicted would come in. But much of that is tied to a business tax change that officials expect will result in higher credits and refunds later. Meanwhile, there could be trouble on the horizon. The Minnesota Management and Budget update says the U.S. economy is clearly slowing due to war abroad, higher product costs and rising interest rates. Significantly lower growth projections could drive down tax collections. The state has considerable money from a projected surplus that hasn’t been spent and a hefty reserve fund. Those would help absorb a sudden downturn.
Good story from Walker Orenstein and Greta Kaul at MinnPost about whether Minnesota law recognizes viability of a fetus outside the womb as a factor in restricting abortion. From the story: There are viability restrictions in state law, yet several legal experts say they’re not enforceable because of a federal court order issued in 1976. So unless that decision is lifted, there is no viability standard in Minnesota. And while a Ramsey County judge on Monday struck down a long list of restrictions on abortion in Minnesota, the district court did not address any viability standard. That’s because the abortion access groups challenging limits didn’t sue over the viability law because they said it was already defunct. But why do so many people think it exists? And why do so many providers of abortion act as if it does? “It’s a mess,” said Laura Hermer, a professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law.
The campaign in Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District could come down to one city in Dakota County. At least that’s what this piece in Politico says: Dakota County is essentially split down the middle. The farmland in the southern part of the county trends red, while the Twin Cities bedroom communities to the north have become dependably Democratic. The 65,000-person-strong city of Lakeville at the county’s center, however, remains staunchly divided. And the way those voters cast their ballots will determine how Dakota — and roughly 60 percent of Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District, one of the most competitive districts in the country — will fare in this year’s midterms. Nearly 100,000 new residents have settled in Dakota over the last 20 years, expanding Minneapolis-Saint Paul’s southeastern suburbs. The county is home to many of the state’s white college graduates, who favored President Joe Biden by 27 points in 2020. However, Dakota is not immune to the economic concerns and inflation spikes that have buffeted Democrats everywhere, even if unemployment sits below 2 percent in the Twin Cities metro area.
The Star Tribune reports that Minneapolis legislators want formal action against city councilmember Michael Rainville after he blamed Somali American young people for violence over the July 4th weekend. The paper reports: Thirteen state lawmakers, in a joint statement, said Rainville's remarks "are representative of a politics which leverages fear and perpetuates systems of inequity and discrimination." "This does nothing to make our city safer," they said. "The suggestion that Somali youth and our Muslim neighbors are disproportionately responsible for recent crime in Minneapolis is as racist as it is inaccurate." Meanwhile, the state's leading Muslim civil rights group is calling on Rainville to hold an urgent meeting with the community, hoping it would help him better understand how his words impacted a group of people already experiencing an increase in anti-Muslim sentiments.
President Biden has nominated a Minnesota attorney to lead a federal agency that provides economic development assistance to Indian Country. The president tapped Patrice Kunesh to be the commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans, which is part of the Health and Human Services department. Kunesh, who's of Standing Rock Lakota descent, led the Center for Indian Country Development at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis and has held other appointed government positions.
Federal prosecutors say a Brooklyn Park man staged politically-motivated vandalism and arson as part of an insurance fraud scheme. MPR’s Matt Sepic reports a federal grand jury indicted Denis Vladmirovich Molla on two counts of wire fraud. In September of 2020, prosecutors say Molla, 29, spray painted "Biden 2020," "BLM" and an Antifa symbol on his garage door and then lit his camper on fire. Molla then allegedly made a false police report and said three unknown males targeted his camper because it had a Trump flag on it. According to the indictment, Molla then submitted an insurance claim for more than $300,000 and received around $61,000. He also allegedly collected another $17,000 from donors to his crowdfunding accounts. Prosecutors said Molla also threatened to report his insurance company to state regulators after it denied some of his claims. A magistrate judge is allowing Molla to remain free as the case moves forward.
KWNO Radio reports that Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller rescued a man whose canoe capsized Sunday on Lake Winona. Miller was fishing with his sons on a dock when the man called for help. “I didn’t even think about it, I didn’t even tell my boys to stay put or anything, I just trusted them to know the severity of the situation and they did. All I said was ‘they’re in trouble I’m going in after [them]'” He said that because of the high intensity of the situation he barely even remembers swimming out to the canoe, but can clearly remember grabbing the man and taking him to shore safely. Other people around the incident, including his sons, helped with the situation by calling 911 and helping Miller get the man safely out of the water, “I’m happy we were there,” Miller said. “When someone is in need of help, I’m just happy people are there to give them that help.” | 