Author: MinnPost

Minnesota’s presidential primary brings a unique challenge for voters: a loss of privacy in declaring party preference.

When Rep. Frank Hornstein proposed creating a task force to look at how to change the structure and makeup of the Met Council, he was aware of the skepticism that often greets task forces, work groups and blue-ribbon commissions. The Met Council itself had already undergone the scrutiny of each of those variations and none resulted in substantive changes in how the regional transit, planning and wastewater treatment agency operates. Why would this task force do anything different? “In my faith we start the Passover Seder with a question: ‘Why is this night different from all other nights?’” the Minneapolis DFLer told his…

The Minnesota congressman’s vote tally appears to meet the threshold his campaign set ahead of the first Democratic primary.

The long-shot candidate is hoping for 20% of the vote in a state where President Biden isn’t officially on the ballot.

A special task force looking at ways to restructure the Metropolitan Council may be struggling to reach a consensus, but it isn’t short on ideas. The Metropolitan Governance Task Force, created in the 2023 transportation budget, is approaching its final meetings before a Feb. 1 deadline. Members have started presenting plans for how to do regional governance differently, and any proposal that wins a majority of the task force would then go to the 2024 Legislature, which would have to approve, amend or disregard any proposals. But reaching a majority might be the hard part. The current Met Council consists of 17…

A loophole in the state’s new recreational marijuana law allowing the sale of high-potency raw cannabis flower to go unregulated will be the subject of a summit next week between regulators, law enforcement and local government associations. The state Office of Cannabis Management is convening the Jan. 11 meeting, along with hemp regulators at the state Department of Health, to discuss with sheriffs and police chiefs how best to respond to possible sales of marijuana in some registered hemp stores. The meeting comes more than a month after it was reported that the new law passed last May did not include raw…

Law enforcement/prosecutors must disclose if an officer was untruthful, engaged in a biased act or violated procedures related to excessive force or handling of evidence.

New 2024 laws at Minnesota State Capitol encompass gun safety, tenant rights, paid sick leave, and corporate campaign finance injunction.

Metro Transit will engage a private security company to provide the new personnel to conduct light rail and bus rapid transit fare checks, enforce a new code of conduct and help riders navigate the system. The contract workers are expected to be on platforms, buses and trains during the first quarter of 2024 as Transit Rider Investment Program (TRIP) employees. Using private contractors rather than Metro Transit staff is a change in plans from what had been envisioned since the Legislature approved a transit safety plan in May. Then, and in the months since, the Met Council had expected to…

WASHINGTON – Rep. Dean Phillips had been considered a shoo-in for reelection to represent a suburban Twin Cities district in Congress. Not anymore. His primary challenge to President Joe Biden has roiled some DFLers in that district who voted for Biden over former President Donald Trump by more than 19 percentage points. And it has left the party unsure of how they can best hold on to the seat in a year in which Democrats hope to regain control of the U.S. House. Phillips is campaigning for the White House in New Hampshire and South Carolina and hasn’t said whether he’ll…