Politics & Policy
Can Minnesota county budgets survive coronavirus?
Counties face falling revenues and increased demand for services during coronavirus pandemic.
Economy
Sports
How do you run a regional sports network when there are no sports?
At a time when Fox Sports North is normally gearing up for one of its busiest stretches, COVID-19 has brought the sports calendar to a halt. So how does Minnesota’s regional sports network choose what to put on TV?
Economy
Unemployment benefits for Minnesota freelancers have started, but not everyone has been paid yet
While DEED has already processed 10,000 applications since implementing the program on April 24, it still has a ways to go.
MNopedia
In the space of a year foragers practically wiped out the ginseng supply in Minnesota’s Big Woods
The appeal of hunting ginseng came from the cash paid for it — hard currency was scarce after the financial crash of 1857.
Health
Small farms are immune to safety investigations, even when a worker dies
In 1976, a few years after OSHA was created, Congress attached a rider to the agency’s budget that exempted farms with 10 or fewer employees from enforcement. The rider is included every year.
Economy
Minnesota’s farmers markets will be open soon. But they’re going to look different
COVID-19 has prompted drastic changes in the way farmers markets are planning to operate.
Environment
In the ‘climate refuge’ city of Duluth, a fight brews over the hometown utility
For those pushing for a carbon-free Duluth, the biggest roadblock may be a company that has long been critical to the region’s economy — and its identity: Minnesota Power.
Health
The daily coronavirus update: Up to 100,000 Minnesotans could go back to work Monday
Minnesota also announced 21 deaths and 221 new COVID-19 cases.
National
Congress set to replenish small business rescue funds
Congress will add funds to the Paycheck Protection Program, even amid reports of misuse of the program.
Economy
Minnesota’s Cook County has no confirmed COVID-19 cases. But it’s seen the highest jump in unemployment anywhere in the state
Cook’s economy relies heavily on tourism, but it’s not clear when the tourists will come.
MNopedia
A pay cut prompted the 1889 Twin Cities streetcar strike
On April 11, 1889, six hundred Minneapolis streetcar drivers walked off the job. Three hundred St. Paul drivers and other workers struck the following morning.
State Government
How the Walz administration is developing its plans for restarting Minnesota’s economy
Walz has not released a comprehensive plan for reviving business in Minnesota yet, a subject of growing frustration among some Republicans, but his administration has been working behind the scenes over the last week to build its strategy.
Economy
The employment sectors that have seen the biggest share of unemployment applications during the COVID-19 crisis
Some areas have seen a third or more of their workforce file for unemployment.
