Good morning, Minnesota. Happy Thursday!

Here's the latest news from across the state to start your day.

WEATHER

⛅ We’ll have another pleasant day most of the day and for most of the state. Look for partly cloudy skies. Clouds will increase some in the afternoon and highs will be mainly in the 70s.

🌧️ There will be some spotty showers and possibly thunderstorms developing primarily north and west. More unsettled weather develops this weekend.

Get the latest weather news on Updraft.

Shutdown planning moves into picture amid upbeat talk of completing a Minnesota budget

For weeks, top state leaders have tried to tie up loose ends on a new Minnesota budget. Weeks from now there would be a partial government shutdown if they can’t cross off remaining items.

Minnesota cities maintain plans to remove ‘forever chemicals’ from drinking water

The extended deadline for cities to lower levels of ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water could give municipalities struggling to pay for expensive treatment systems more time to seek financial help from the state or federal government.

NEWS ROUNDUP

🚨 Officials raise concerns about federal search in Minneapolis. Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt said she had concerns about how a June 3 search operation was carried out — particularly the presence of armored vehicles.

📒 Reporter’s notebook: How Minnesotans perceive Asian people and notions of success. Recently released polling data found Minnesotans think it’s harder for Black, Hispanic or Indigenous people to succeed here compared to people who are white or of Asian descent. The results around Asian Minnesotans were intriguing.

🐎 Native-led nonprofit receives grant for youth horse program. Dakota Wicohan, located in Morton near the Lower Sioux Indian Community, was recently named a recipient of the Minnesota Community IDEAS Grant. Funding will help to expand programming opportunities for their program that empowers youth to work with horses while learning traditional teachings.

📱 Minnesota officials warn of scam ‘DMV’ texts. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety said people are receiving scam text messages that threaten penalties if they do not pay up. Department officials are asking people to delete and disregard the messages.

🏛️ Corrections officials begin setting milestones, plans for closing Stillwater prison. Walz and lawmakers involved in the decision said the prison is outdated, unsafe and expensive to maintain. The closure order was part of a bill approved in May and signed into law so it is not affected by the current budget standoff.

🚓 Minneapolis council wants to formalize promise to follow dismissed federal consent decree. Supporters of the plan announced Tuesday they want to modify the city’s current court-mediated agreement with the Minnesota Human Rights Department to include reforms from the dismissed federal consent decree.

🎭 ‘Lovers and Comrades’: Bart Buch’s queer poetic puppet adventure at Open Eye Theatre. The multimedia puppet performance, inspired by Whitman and Lorca’s poetry and queer identities, reimagines their dialogue through modern gay dating apps to explore love, connection and democracy in troubled times.

🚚 Driver escapes serious injury after semi crashes off I-94 in western Minnesota, lands on county road below. The driver of a semi escaped serious injury after a crash along Interstate 94 in western Minnesota on Wednesday that sent the tractor-trailer tumbling down an embankment and onto a county road.

⚖️ Sahan Journal: Derrick Thompson’s brother says he never drove SUV linked to crash that killed 5. The brother of Derrick Thompson testified in court Wednesday that he was not in the vehicle when it struck and killed five young women in Minneapolis in 2023.

MUST LISTEN

🎧 Wildlife and wildfire smoke: When to step in and when to leave nature alone. Tami Vogel, the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Minnesota’s executive director, joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer on Morning Edition to clear up the confusion.

🎧 JCRC leader reacts to attacks in Boulder, uptick in antisemitism. Steve Hunegs, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, or JCRC, joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer on Tuesday to talk about the uptick in antisemitism and its implications.

🎧 Art Hounds: Americana, Sondheim and Twin Cities improv. Art Hounds recommend Americana in the Historic Auditorium, Stephen Sondheim’s musical “Passion” and the Twin Cities Improv Festival

🎧 Living with and reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. MPR News host Angela Davis and her guests talk about the latest research and how to support people who live with dementia and their caregivers.

🎧 Tim O’Brien’s friend, biographer on the Minnesota-raised writer’s ‘life and art.’ A new book recounts O’Brien’s life, including his childhood in Worthington and early adulthood at Macalester College.

🎧 Listen to today's headlines on our Minnesota Today podcast.