Daily Digest: House passes tax cut bill

Good morning, and welcome to Friday and last day of March. Seems like it's been a long week and a long month, but luckily there's still time for the Digest.

1. The Minnesota House passed the first part of its budget plan Thursday, a $1.35 billion package of tax cuts. The tax relief comes in the form of targeted income tax credits, increased exemptions for Social Security income and property tax cuts for farmers and businesses. House Speaker Kurt Daudt, R-Zimmerman, said it’s a signal that tax cuts are the main GOP focus this year when splitting up a projected $1.65 billion surplus. (MPR News)

2. DFL Gov. Mark Dayton says he will announce what he intends to do with a reinsurance bill on Monday. The House and Senate passed the  $542 million bill Thursday that's designed to stabilize the individual insurance market in the state. The reinsurance measure is intended to reduce pressure on individual policy premiums for 2018. The program would be contingent on a federal waiver, and state officials hope federal money will cover some of the cost. If it doesn’t, the money would be drawn from the state’s general treasury and a health-care account. (MPR News)

3. Minnesota’s effort to comply with the federal Real ID law has been resurrected at the state Capitol. The Senate late Thursday passed a modified version of the Real ID implementation bill that it voted down several weeks ago.  The latest Senate bill would still begin the process of putting Minnesota drivers’ licenses in line with federal standards. But it leaves out a contentious section related to administrative rule making. Many DFL Senators feared that the language in that section of the bill would block unauthorized immigrants’ ability to someday obtain drivers’ licenses. Current rules prevent the issuing of licenses to unauthorized immigrants. (MPR News)

4. Minneapolis is pushing back against President Trump's executive order on immigration enforcement that threatens to withhold federal funds from so-called "sanctuary cities." City Council members on Thursday received an update from a task force which did not recommend that the city soften its stance. Under Trump's executive order called "Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States," so-called sanctuary cities or jurisdictions shield people who are here illegally. It says those cities "willfully violate Federal law." "That's just not true. We are not violating federal law," said Minneapolis City Attorney Susan Segal. (MPR News)

5. Authorities in the Twin Cities have confirmed five drug-related deaths linked to carfentanil, a synthetic opiate used to sedate animals. Though it's not approved for use in humans, investigators warn that heroin users may be taking it inadvertently. Carfentanil is federally approved to immobilize large animals such as elephants for surgery, and two salt-sized specks of the opioid can cause instant death, a local emergency room doctor said Thursday. (Star Tribune)

6. President Trump threatened Thursday to try to knock off members of the House Freedom Caucus in next year’s elections if they don’t fall in line. In a morning tweet, the president warned that the powerful group of hard-line conservatives who blocked the health-care bill last week would “hurt the entire Republican agenda if they don’t get on the team, & fast.” The president vowed to “fight them” as well as Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections, a threat that his allies said was intended in the short term to make members of the Freedom Caucus think twice about crossing him again. But Trump’s vow was met with defiance by many in the group, including some who accused him of succumbing to the establishment in Washington that he had campaigned against. (Washington Post)

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.