Good morning, and happy Tuesday. Let’s take a look at the Digest.
1. The jury in the manslaughter and firearms case against St. Anthony police officerJeronimo Yanez began deliberations Monday afternoon following closing arguments by the prosecution and defense. Prosecutors contend thatYanez shot recklessly, killing Philando Castile. “Yanez was the only one in this entire case who says Castile pulled a gun from his pocket," Jeffrey Paulsen told the jury, adding that Yanez was to blame for the incident and was “not the victim."Defense attorney Earl Gray argued that Yanez thought Castile was going for a gun. “He’s not lying. He said he thought he was going to die," Gray said of his client. "Why else would he do this?" (MPR News)
2. Gov. Mark Dayton and Republican legislative leaders are set to meet this morning to talk about what to do next. The Legislature has hired a lawyer for a likely lawsuit against Dayton for vetoing their funding. A contract signed Friday covers the scope and hourly cost of the Legislature's legal representation. The firm Kelley, Wolter and Scott will charge lawmakers half its normal hourly rate for the work, but that still ranges from $90 an hour for paralegal time to $325 for principal attorney Doug Kelley. The governor’s line-item veto nixed roughly $130 million from House and Senate operating budgets. That action has left the legislative branch without ongoing money for operations when the new fiscal year begins in July. (MPR News)
3. Gov. Dayton used a new monthly revenue report Monday to bolster his opposition to provisions in the Republican-crafted tax bill that he reluctantly signed last month. The May revenue review from Minnesota Management and Budget shows net individual income tax receipts were $117 million lower than the February forecast. That number offset higher than expected receipts from the sales tax, corporate tax and other revenues. In total, revenues were down $63 million, or 4.1 percent. In a statement, Dayton said the report reaffirms the uncertainty of the state's financial future "It also underscores the dangers created by the Republicans' irresponsible tax bill, which will cost our state an estimated $5 billion over the next decade," Dayton said. (MPR News)
4.A nearly 10 year effort to upgrade Minnesota’s driver’s license and vehicle registration computer system has “adequate” management and security controls, but delays and vague missives have “eroded confidence in the project,” a state review found. A new web-based information system called the Minnesota Licensing and Registration System was supposed to be operational in 2014, but after spending nearly $60 million on it, only a tiny portion of the upgrade is online, according to a report released Monday by the state legislative auditor. (Star Tribune)
5. Iowa wants the federal government to help bail out the state’s individual health insurance market, which has emerged as a leading example of troubles with the federal Affordable Care Act. In recent months, two leading carriers have announced plans to exit Iowa’s individual market for 2018, which means Minnetonka-based Medica could be the only insurer offering coverage to individuals statewide next year. Medica officials, however, have said they can’t continue the Iowa business without changes that would help stabilize the market. Several health plans have dropped the Iowa market after losing millions of dollars. Minnesota lawmakers this year spent hundreds of millions of state dollars to try to stabilize the individual market. (Star Tribune)
