WASHINGTON, Nov. 26 -- The U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of the Census has released the following public communication dated Nov. 12, 2024, from the American Civil Liberties Union and Common Cause, along with 34 collaborators: * * * To: Michael S. Snow, Supervisory Program Analyst Decennial Program Management Office Decennial Census Management Division Re: Comment in response to 89 FR 73623, Docket Number 2024-0024 Urging small-scale testing for collecting home addresses to count inca  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Nov. 26 -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following article on November 14, 2024, by Jeff Horwich entitled "How higher property taxes increase home affordability." Here are excerpts: * * * Meanwhile, Texas lawmakers have been on a multiyear mission to lower some of the nation's highest property taxes--and especially to lessen the burden on older adults. Property taxes nearing 2 percent, on average, make homeownership in Texas a more expensive ongoin  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Nov. 26 -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following analysis on Novemebr 15, 2024, by Joe Mahon entitled "Despite generally good harvests, farm incomes declined": Here are excerpts: * * * During the fall, harvests are typically the biggest concern on farmers' minds. But even in parts of the Ninth District where crops look bountiful, crop prices that have been falling for the last two years were a bigger worry this year, according to an October surv  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Nov. 26 -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following analysis on November 21, 2024, by Tait Berg entitled "Over $4 billion of farmland loans will reprice at higher interest rates in 2024": Here are excerpts: * * * Interest rates for farmland loans increased dramatically since 2021, according to recent agricultural credit survey results. Rising nearly 4 percent in the last three years, farmland interest rates, the survey shows, are at the highest lev  more

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, Nov. 27 -- The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources issued the following news release: The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is accepting comments through Dec. 26 on an environmental assessment worksheet to address the second phase of a proposed ATV trail expansion in Koochiching and St. Louis counties. The Voyageur Country ATV Club is proposing up to 125 additional miles of roadway and natural surface trail be included in the Voyageur Country ATV system, conn  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26 -- Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairman and vice chairman, of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: * * * SCHATZ LED EFFORTS ON SENATE FLOOR TO UNANIMOUSLY PASS THREE BILLS * * * U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), vice chairman of the Committee, released the following statements on Senate passage of three bil  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Nov. 26 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute issued the following white paper (No. 106) on November 22, 20224, by Francois de Soyres, Simon Fuchs, Illenin O Kondo, and Helene Maghin entitled "Economic Diversity and the Resilience of Cities". Here are excerpts: * * * We show how local worker flow adjustment margins yield a theory-consistent sufficient statistic approximating the welfare effects of local shocks.   more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Nov. 26 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute issued the following white paper (No. 105) on November 18, 2024, by Stefania Albanesi, Antonio Dias da Silva, Juan F. Jimeno, Ana Lamo, and Alena Wabitsch entitled "New Technologies and Jobs in Europe". Here are excerpts: * * * We examine the link between labour market developments and new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and software in 16 European   more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Nov. 26 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute issued the following white paper (No. 104) on November 14, 2024, by Alex Albright entitled "The Hidden Effects of Algorithmic Recommendations". Here are excerpts: * * * Algorithms are intended to improve human decisions with data-driven predictions. However, algorithms provide more than just predictions to decision-makers--they often provide explicit recommendations.  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26 -- Sen. Tina Flint Smith, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: MINNEAPOLIS, MN U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), a member of the Senate Health and Education Committee, introduced the Get Toxic Substances Out of Schools Act to remove toxic substances from school buildings across the country. The legislation, unveiled on World Children's Day, comes on the heels of a report from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) that found less than half of public schools in the  more