Responding to a new U.S. Census report that shows incomes have fallen by 14 percent for African-Americans in Minnesota since 2013, Gov. Mark Dayton (D) announced the creation of an office within the state Department of Employment and Economic Development specifically aimed at helping people of color...

Dayton bashes poachers In the wake of the arrest of three men found to illegally have more than 3,000 pounds of snapping turtle meat, hundreds of turtle shells and 23 live turtles, MINNESOTA Gov. Mark Dayton (D) said he is considering renewing his efforts to get Gopher State lawmakers to increase...

Dayton Out of Hospital MINNESOTA Gov. Mark Dayton (D) was briefly hospitalized last week after fainting at a public event. The 69-year-old Dayton, who also underwent elective back surgery last December, was released after one day. Doctors believe he was suffering from dehydration. (ABCNEWS.COM) ...

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) proposed offering six weeks of paid leave for new parents in state employ, the first move in what is expected to be an effort by DFL lawmakers to pass legislation providing the same benefit to all Gopher State workers. Under Dayton’s proposal, 35,000 workers would...

MN Gov. Issues Bee EO MINNESOTA Gov. Mark Dayton (D) issued Executive Order 16-07 , which limits the use of pesticides that harm the Gopher State’s honeybee population. The governor’s order directs the state’s Department of Agriculture to verify that the application of neonicotinoid...

Calling impending health insurance price hikes “a very serious problem,” Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) said reforming the six-year-old healthcare system must be a priority for state and federal lawmakers in 2017. Dayton’s comments in the wake of a recent announcement that health care...

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) and legislative leaders laid the groundwork for a post-election special session aimed at helping Gopher State residents deal with dramatic health insurance premium hikes set to go into effect in January. Dayton met privately last week with House Speaker Kurt Daudt (R) to...

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) said he is evaluating options for treatment for prostate cancer. Dayton revealed last month he had the disease after he collapsed while giving his annual State of the State address to lawmakers. Dayton said he is weighing both surgery and radiation therapies and will make...

Nine more states last week joined the newly-created U.S. Climate Alliance, a coalition to uphold the tenets of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, an international coalition aimed at combatting the impacts of global climate change. The coalition was formed by Gov. Jerry Brown of California, Jay Inslee...

CA Gov Brown to Host Global Climate Conference Saying it’s “up to you and it’s up to me and tens of millions of other people” to battle global climate change, CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) announced last Thursday that the Golden State will host a gathering of the world’s...

Dayton Legislative Funding Veto Overruled A MINNESOTA judge ruled that Gov. Mark Dayton’s (D) May 30 veto of funding for the Gopher State Legislature was unconstitutional. Ramsey County District Court Chief Judge John Guthmann said Dayton had exceeded his executive authority. Dayton said he...

RAUNER SIGNS TWO IL ANTI-HARASSMENT BILLS : ILLINOIS Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) signed two measures last week aimed at curbing sexual harassment in the Prairie State statehouse. The measures require all lawmakers, lobbyists and state employees to undergo sexual harassment training every year, beginning...

The Minnesota Supreme Court gave Gov. Mark Dayton (D) a significant victory last week, upholding his line-item veto of the Gopher State Legislature’s operating budget. The court, however, declined to rule if Dayton’s actions were intended to coerce GOP leaders back to the budget bargaining...

EDWARDS TO CREATE LA HARASSMENT ASK FORCE : Weeks after his chief of staff resigned amidst sexual harassment allegations, LOUISIANA Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) said he would soon issue an executive order directing executive branch state agencies to review their sexual harassment policies and set up...

BAKER OUTLINES $300 MILLION CLIMATE CHANGE PLAN : On the heels of several massive winter storms, MASSACHUSETTS Gov. Charlie Baker (R) outlined a plan to borrow $300 million to put toward efforts to combat climate change in communities all along the Bay State seaboard. The bill would require all coastal...

Saying that “Maine people value their privacy, online and off,” Gov. Janet Mills (D) signed one of the toughest data privacy measures in the nation last week. Under SB 275 , which Mills signed last Thursday, Pine Tree State Internet providers will be prohibited from using, selling,...

Surrounded by a bevy of athletes including LeBron James, Diana Taurasi and Katelyn Ohashi, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed legislation last week that makes the Golden State the first to allow college athletes to profit from the use of their image and likeness. Newsom signed SB 206 in spite...