WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has released the following public communication on Feb. 3, 2025, from the Minnesota Pork Producers Association, Mankato: * * * On behalf of Minnesota's more than 3,000 family pig farmers, the Minnesota Pork Producers Association appreciates the opportunity to submit the following comments on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) proposed rule t  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 -- NASA issued the following news release: * * * Art Inspired by Exploration: NASA Unveils Architecture Art Challenge Winners NASA asked artists to imagine the future of deep space exploration in artwork meant to inspire the Artemis Generation. The NASA Moon to Mars Architecture art challenge sought creative images that represent the agency's bold vision for crewed exploration of the lunar surface and the Red Planet. The agency has selected the recipients of the art challe  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 (TNSrep) -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following In Focus white paper (No. IF12902) on Feb. 10, 2025. The white paper is written by legislative attorney L. Paige Whitaker and American national government specialists Sarah J. Eckman and R. Sam Garrett: * * * Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act, H.R. 22) and Federal Voter Registration Policy and Law The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act, H.R. 22), would amend the National V  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 -- Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, issued the following news release: * * * Ernst Slashes the Red Tape WASHINGTON - After the Biden administration enacted more than $1.8 trillion in regulations that added 356 million new hours of paperwork, Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Chair Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) is undoing the damage with legislation aimed at disrupting the bloated bureaucracy. Ernst's Prove It Act requires federal agencies to demonstrate that any new   more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Feb. 12 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute issued the following white paper (No. 112) on Feb. 11, 2025, by David Autor, David Dorn, Gordon Hanson, Maggie Jones, and Bradley Setzler entitled "Places versus People: The Ins and Outs of Labor Market Adjustment to Globalization". Here are excerpts: * * * This chapter analyzes the distinct adjustment paths of U.S. labor markets (places) and U.S. workers (people) to  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Feb. 12 -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following analysis on Feb. 4, 2025, by Surekha Carpenter, Matthew Gregg, Michou Kokodoko, and James Melton entitled "As demand for Native CDFIs surges, their capacity lags": Here are excerpts: * * * Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) were created to provide financial services to individuals and small businesses that have been underserved by the traditional banking system. The Center for Ind  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Feb. 12 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis issued the following Economic Research report (No. 665) on Feb. 4, 2025, by Andrew Atkeson, Johnathan Heathcote, and Fabrizio Perri entitled "Reconciling Macroeconomics and Finance for the U.S. Corporate Sector: 1929 to Present." Here are excerpts: * * * We examine how to quantitatively reconcile the high volatility of market valuations of U.S. corporations with the relative stability of macroeconomic quantiti  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration has released the following public communication dated Dec. 27, 2024, from New Flyer of America Inc., St. Cloud, Minnesota: * * * To: The Honorable Veronica Vanterpool Acting Administrator Federal Transit Administration U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590 Subject: Docket No. FTA-2024-0015; Re: Circular FTA C 4220.1F - Third Party Contracting Guidance *  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 -- Rep. Brad Finstad, R-Minnesota, issued the following news release: * * * Finstad, Fischbach, Stauber Call for Swift Appointment of U.S. Attorney for Minnesota in Response to MN Fraud WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Brad Finstad (MN-01), Congresswoman Michelle Fischbach (MN-07), and Congressman Pete Stauber (MN-08) sent a letter urging President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to swiftly appoint the United States Attorney for the District of Minnesota,   more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs released the following testimony by Whitney Gravelle, president of Bay Mills Indian Community, from a Feb. 5, 2025, hearing on legislation to authorize the Bay Mills Indian Community of Michigan to convey land and interests: * * * Aanii, and good morning Chairman Hurd, Ranking Member Leger Fernandez, and Honorable Members of the House Natural Resources Committee's Indian and Insular Affairs Subcommitt  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources released the following testimony by ClearPath CEO Jeremy Harrell from a Feb. 6, 2025, hearing entitled " Oversight Hearing on "Now Ore Never: The Importance of Domestic Mining for U.S. National Security": * * * Good Morning, Chairman Stauber, Ranking Member Ansari and members of the Subcommittee. My name is Jeremy Harrell, and I am the Chief Executive Officer of ClearPath, a 501(c)(3) organization t  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources released the following testimony by Morgan Bazilian, a professor and director of the Payne Institute for Public Policy at the Colorado School of Mines, from a Feb. 6, 2025, hearing entitled " Oversight Hearing on "Now Ore Never: The Importance of Domestic Mining for U.S. National Security": * * * Chairman Stauber, Ranking Member Ansari, and Members of the Subcommittee, it is an honor to appear befor  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released the following testimony by Thomas A. Schatz, president of Citizens Against Government Waste, from a Feb. 5, 2025, hearing entitled "Rightsizing Government": * * * Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, my name is Thomas A. Schatz, and I am president of Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW). CAGW was founded in 1984 by the late industrialist J. Peter Grace and nationally syndicated columnist Jack Anderson  more

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa, Feb. 12 -- The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa issued the following news release: Monroe Thompson, age 40, from Mason City, was sentenced February 7, 2025, to more than 20 years in federal prison after an August 28, 2024, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. Evidence in the case revealed that between May 2023, and August 2023, Thompson was part of an ongoing drug conspiracy based in Mason City, Iowa to distribute meth  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 -- Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: * * * Klobuchar, Smith Call on the New Administration to Reconsider Decision to Deactivate Federal Prison Camp Duluth WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) called on the Trump Administration's Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Acting Director William W. Lothrop to reconsider the decision to deactivate Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Duluth and ensure that BOP employees can conti  more

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, Feb. 12 -- The Minnesota Utilities Commission issued the following decision involving Xcel Energy: * * * INTRODUCTION DECISION ITEMS 1. Details 2024-211 *** E002/RP-24-67; E002/CN-23-212 Northern States Power Co. d/b/a Xcel Energy In the Matter of Northern States Power Co. d/b/a Xcel Energy 2024-2040 Integrated Resource Plan; In the Matter of Xcel Energy's Competitive Resource Acquisition Process for up to 800 Megawatts of Firm Dispatchable Generation. 1. Should the  more

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, Feb. 12 -- The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued the following news on Feb. 11, 2025: * * * MnDOT and Stahl Construction each fined more than $17,000 for discharging sediment-laden water into Nine Mile Creek The Minnesota Department of Transportation and Stahl Construction discharged sediment-laden water into Nine Mile Creek on two separate occasions, according to a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency investigation. The discharges happened during the construction o  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 -- Rep. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, issued the following news release: * * * Nunn Bill to Slash Red Tape for Small Businesses Passes House WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. House of Representatives today passed Representative Zach Nunn's (IA-03) bipartisan bill unanimously to reduce excessive paperwork for small businesses. The Protect Small Business from Excessive Paperwork Act, co-led by Majority Whip Tom Emmer (MN-06), Representative Sharice Davids (KS-03), and Representative Don Dav  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 -- Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minnesota, ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee, issued the following news release on Feb. 11, 2025: * * * Ranking Member Angie Craig Opening Statement at Hearing on the Farm Economy Today, House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Angie Craig delivered the following opening statement at today's full committee hearing titled "Examining the Economic Crisis in Farm Country." Watch the full meeting here. Thank you, Chairman Thompson for o  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 -- Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Washington, issued the following news release on Feb. 9, 2025: * * * Representative Schrier Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Support Local Farmers and Growers Yesterday, Representative Kim Schrier, M.D. (WA-08) introduced the bipartisan Agriculture Export Promotion Act. This legislation would support Washington farmers and producers by increasing investment in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Foreign Market Development Program (FMDP) and Mark  more

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, Feb. 12 -- The Meet Minneapolis, an association that says it promotes and sells the Minneapolis area as a destination for conventions and meetings, issued the following news release: * * * Romance, Reality TV and Local Gems: 'Love Is Blind' Showcases Love in Minneapolis Top Date Spots to Explore Any Time of Year (Minneapolis) Feb. 11, 2025 - When Netflix's "Love Is Blind" premieres Season 8 on Feb. 14, the city of Minneapolis will be the backdrop as the show follows a  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 -- Sen. Tina Flint Smith, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: * * * U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Colleagues Seek Answers on Elon Musk and DOGE's Access to Federal Student Loan Data WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tina Smith, alongside 15 of her colleagues, sent a letter to Acting Secretary of the Department of Education Denise Carter, seeking answers after reports that Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has infiltrated the Department of Education (ED)  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 -- President Trump issued the following fact sheet: * * * President Donald J. Trump Restores Section 232 Tariffs COUNTERING TRADE PRACTICES THAT UNDERMINE NATIONAL SECURITY: Yesterday, President Donald J. Trump signed proclamations to close existing loopholes and exemptions to restore a true 25% tariff on steel and elevate the tariff to 25% on aluminum. * President Trump is taking action to protect America's critical steel and aluminum industries, which have been harmed   more