WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 -- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued the following enforcement news release: The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today announced the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota issued an order of default judgment against and his company, , both based in Minnesota, and , a Wisconsin limited liability company, for their operation of a fraudulent futures trading scheme. The order requires Miller and F2F to pay a $900,000 civil monetary penalty and, j  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Dec. 13 -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following analysis on December 4, 2024, by Tait Berg entitled "Repayment risks grow as farm income declines and farmland loans reprice.": Here are excerpts: * * * A challenging farm economy creates repayment risks for the least-profitable agricultural producers as their loans reprice.1 Interest rates have increased, resulting in higher payments on farmland loans. In addition, producers are experiencing a de  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 -- Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: Earlier this week, the House of Representatives passed language from Rep. Ilhan Omar, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, and Sen. Tina Smith to protect the future of the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock in the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). This legislation provides authority for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to carry out water resources development projects and conduct studies to provide improvements to th  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 -- The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division issued a notice in the Federal Register on Dec. 2, 2024, entitled "National Cooperative Research and Production Act of 1993-Customer Experience Hub". Notice is hereby given that, on October 1, 2024, pursuant to section 6(a) of the National Cooperative Research and Production Act of 1993, 15 U.S.C. 4301 et seq. ("the Act"), The Customer Experience Hub ("CX Hub") has filed written notifications simultaneously with the Attor  more

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, Dec. 13 -- The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources issued the following news release: * * * CWD late-season hunt takes place in select DPAs Dec. 20-22 * * * A deer harvested near Wheaton in western Minnesota during the opening weekend of firearms season has tested positive for chronic wasting disease. The adult male deer was harvested within deer permit area 271 along the Minnesota-South Dakota border. To date, no wild deer with CWD had been previously detected in  more

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, Dec. 13 -- The Minnesota Farmers Union issued the following news release: MORRIS, Minn. - Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen announced the launch of the state's Green Fertilizer Grant Program at the Green Ammonia Summit held Dec. 10 in Morris. "MFU was thrilled to host the Agriculture Commissioner for this announcement and is optimistic about the future of green ammonia and its potential to support family farmers and rural communities," said Minnesota Farmers  more

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, Dec. 14 -- The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission issued the following news release on Dec. 13, 2024: On Thursday, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) began the process of reviewing Xcel Energy's petition to increase rates for its residential and business customers. As part of this rate-case review, utilities are entitled under Minnesota law to recover a portion of their proposed costs through interim rates while the PUC conducts a comprehensive evaluation of  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 14 -- Rep. Michelle Fischbach, R-Minnesota, posted the following statement on Dec. 13, 2024: * * * Following reports of the Federal Bureau of Investigation searching autism treatment centers in St. Cloud and Minneapolis after finding "substantial evidence" of fraud connected to the state-funded Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention program, the Minnesota Republican delegation released the following statement: "Unfortunately, this situation has become the  more

NEW YORK, Dec. 13 -- The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York issued the following news release on Dec. 12, 2024: Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Kristen Clarke, Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, announced today that the Department of Justice, following a comprehensive investigation, has concluded that the Mount Vernon Police Department ("MVPD") engages in a patter  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) applauded the Senate passage of the Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2024, which included provisions of her bill, the Enhancing Native Elders' Longevity, Dignity, Empowerment, and Respect (Native ELDER) Act. Co-sponsored by Senator Tina Smith (D-Minnesota), the Native ELDER Act will improve federal programs and services for Alaska Native, American Indian, and Nat  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 -- Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: This month, U.S. Representative Angie Craig led members of the Minnesota delegation in urging Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to include disaster relief for Minnesota farmers in end-of-year legislation. In recent years, Minnesota has faced extreme weather patterns like droughts and flooding, leaving farmers struggling to break even. USDA's 2024 Farm Sector Income Forecast repo  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 -- Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: Today, U.S. Representative Angie Craig sent a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries urging them to pass legislation significant to Minnesota's Second Congressional District through the House before the end of the 118th Congress.Rep. Craig is pushing to get Minnesotans the support they need to combat the fentanyl crisis, lower costs for families and keep police officers saf  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Dec. 13 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute issued the following white paper (No. 107) on December 2, 2024, by Michael Baker, Susan Carter, and Abigail Wozniak entitled "Peer Effects and Marriage Formation". Here are excerpts: * * * A large literature links marriage to later life outcomes for children and adults. Marriage has declined markedly in the U.S. over the last 50 years, particularly among individuals   more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Dec. 13 -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following analysis on December 2, 2024, by Ayushi Narayan entitled "Pay transparency's rise isn't tied to expected explanations": Here are excerpts: * * * Employers are increasingly providing pay information in job postings despite the fact that a relatively small number of states require the practice. Minnesota will join that number on January 1, 2025, when a law requiring employers to provide pay informat  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 -- The U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service issued the following news release: We at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are proposing to designate critical habitat for four species of endangered freshwater mussels. Habitat for the rayed bean, sheepnose, snuffbox and spectaclecase mussels can be found in 17 states in the central and eastern United States. We are proposing to designate a total of 3,974 river miles of occupied habitat, where many of the uni  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 -- Sen. Tina Flint Smith, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: MINNEAPOLIS, MN Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar (both D-MN) sent a letter pressing Postmaster General Louis DeJoy for answers on recent mail delays across Minnesota, particularly in the Rochester area. The follow-up comes after both Senators led the entire Minnesota and North Dakota Congressional delegations in a bipartisan letter pressing the Postmaster General to improve service fol  more