A fifth special session gets underway today at the State Capitol. Governor Walz called the session to extend his COVID-19 emergency powers for another 30 days. Republicans have criticized the governor for not including them in the process of making key decisions about the pandemic. Walz says “if (Republicans) have a better way that they can do testing for Minnesotans, and they want to run it through the legislative process, I have been open to that from the beginning.” It’s expected that once again, the Republican-led Senate will vote against the extension and the Democrat-majority House will vote in favor of it. It remains to be seen whether lawmakers reach an agreement on a long-delayed public works bill this special session. A Senate committee this morning held an informational hearing on a $1.3 billion compromise bonding bill that would help pay for infrastructure projects around the state.