>>State Commerce Officials Concerned About Federal Cuts to Heating Assistance Program
(St. Paul, MN) — The Minnesota Department of Commerce expects the Energy Assistance Program to run out of funds as early as mid-April. Officials say they are deeply concerned about the Trump administration firing all the federal workers charged with distributing funding and administering the Low Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program or LIHEAP. Minnesota was scheduled to receive another 12 to 13 million dollars to help more than 10 thousand households pay their utility bills and prevent power shutoffs. The state has received about 112 million dollars from the feds this heating season.
>>Klobuchar Leads Passage of Resolution to Undo Tariffs on Canadian Products
(Washington, DC) — U-S Senator Amy Klobuchar led passage of a bi-partisan resolution Wednesday evening that would halt tariffs on products from Canada. The Minnesota Democrat told members that Canada is not just our neighbor, it’s our number one trading partner. She says Minnesota exported seven billion dollars in goods to Canada in 2023 including ag products, machinery, and medical devices. Klobuchar said tariffs would hurt one of the “finest relationships in the world. ” The resolution passed with the support of four Republicans. Canadian border state Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins from Maine – and Kentucky Senators Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul.
>>Minnesota Non-profit Wellness in the Woods Hit by Federal Cuts
(Undated) — Wellness in the Woods, a Minnesota non-profit providing peer support services, is having to make major changes to its Warmline phone service because of cuts at the federal level. Communications director Monica Yeadon says the Warmline service provides early intervention with emotional support that can prevent a crisis from escalating. Yeadon says they’re having to make significant changes to their staffing structure, which will certainly impact the availability of service. She says they’re encouraging Minnesotans to contact their lawmakers, and people can help out by donating to their organization.
>>5 Minnesota State-Mankato Students Lose Their Visas
(Mankato, MN) — Five students at Minnesota State University- Mankato have had their student visas terminated. MSU-Mankato President Edward Inch says neither the university nor the students received notification of the termination of their records within the Student Exchange Visitor Information System by the U-S Department of Homeland Security. The changes were only discovered after the university “ran a status check.” The move comes after a wave of high-profile arrests of international students at universities across the country. In the last week, two university students in Minnesota have been detained by ICE.
>>Wolves Owner Glen Taylor to Allow Transfer of Ownership to A-Rod and Lore
(Minneapolis, MN) — Glen Taylor will not appeal an arbitration panel’s ruling and soon transfer ownership of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx to Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore. The final sale of the teams for one-and-a-half-billion dollars is expected to be approved by the N-B-A Board of Governors. The three-judge panel ruled in February that Taylor should not have canceled the sale last spring due to a late final payment. Taylor bought the Wolves for 94 million dollars in 1994. Lore and Rodriguez are committed to keeping the teams in Minnesota but are expected to want a new arena in the near future.
>>Hinckley Man Killed in Crash with Semi on Snow- and Ice-Covered Road
(Hinckley, MN) — The snowstorm was likely a factor in a deadly crash Wednesday near Hinckley in Pine County. The Minnesota State Patrol says a pickup driven by 67-year-old Gary Thompson of Hinckley lost control on Highway 48, slid into the front of semi truck and landed off the road. Troopers say Thompson died at the scene and was not buckled up. The semi driver wasn’t hurt. The report says there was snow and ice on the roadway at the time.
>>St. Paul Man Pleads Guilty in Cryptojacking Scheme
(St. Paul, MN) — Federal prosecutors say a St. Paul man is pleading guilty for his role in an illegal cryptojacking scheme. In February 2020, 44-year-old Joshua Armbrust resigned from Digital River, a Minnetonka-based global e-commerce and payment processing company. Between December 2020 and May 2021, he “crypto jacked” his former employer’s accounts, using them to mine Etherum cryptocurrency. Ambrust’s unauthorized access resulted in $45,000 debt. The mined Ethereum totaled $7,000, transferred to his banking account. Ambrust will be sentenced later.
>>Kickoff to Summer at the Minnesota State Fair Returns
(St. Paul, MN) — The kickoff to summer event at the Minnesota State Fair is returning for its fifth year. This annual celebration, called the Mini Great Minnesota Get-Together, will take place May 22nd -25th. During the event, approximately 40 food and drink vendors will be featured. Attendees can also enjoy live music, games, giant slide rides, a 5K run, and much more. Tickets will go on sale tomorrow (Fri), with admission priced at $13 in advance and $16 at the door.
>>Golden Gopher Women’s Basketball Wins WBIT Championship
(Indianapolis, IN) — The University of Minnesota women’s basketball team is celebrating a 75-63 win over Belmont in the W-B-I-T Championship game in Indiana. Freshman Tori McKinney scored a career-high 26 points for the Golden Gophers last night, Mallory Heyer of Chaska had 18 and 16 rebounds, and Amaya Battle of Hopkins added 17 points. Minnesota led by 14 points at the half and as many as 24 in third quarter. The Maroon and Gold finished the season with a 25-and-11 record.
>>Opening Day for the Minnesota Twins at Target Field
(Minneapolis, MN) — It is Opening Day at Target Field this afternoon (Thurs 3:15pm) as the Minnesota Twins host the Houston Astros. Team president Derek Falvey says fans will notice a few new things at the ballpark when they attend a game. Falvey says there are tremendous food options that will continue to evolve and develop and there’s a grab-and-go market now. Two F-16 fighter jets from the Minnesota National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing in Duluth will perform a flyover during the pre-game. Falvey calls the home opener the “birth of a new season.”
