Capitol View for May 10

Good morning. Go Wolves. Or if you spend any time around Tom Scheck, simply (or incessantly), “Naz Reid.”

Tomorrow is Statehood Day in Minnesota. And that means state officials are readying to swap out current state flags and seals for the new designs adopted last year. Dana Ferguson reports that about 120 state flags scattered across the Capitol complex will be among the first to get swapped out. Local governments will be able to make the adjustment on their own time. Some people have already put the new banner up outside their houses, but others have only begun flying the old flag in protest.

The Minnesota Senate passed a bill Thursday boosting the penalty for purchasing a firearm for someone not legally allowed to have one on a party-line vote of 34-33. But that’s likely to be all they can get through the chamber in terms of gun restrictions. Sen. Grant Hauschild, DFL-Hermantown, said he wouldn’t support a bill that would require gun owners to lock, unload or store a firearm when it’s not in their possession, nor another that would require owners to report a firearm stolen within 48 hours. Democrats hold a one-vote advantage in the chamber, so while the bills passed the Senate last week, they’re unlikely to advance this year. “For me, it didn't make sense to have an unenforceable law that wouldn't make anyone safer up north so I just wanted to make sure I let folks know that I was coming out against it,” Hauschild told Dana.

It’s crunch time at the Capitol. Two House leaders drop in on Politics Friday this week to help set the stage for the final week of the 2024 session. House Majority Leader Jamie Long and House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth discuss what’s still in play and what’s not. Tune in or listen via the MPR News stream at noon.

A sequel to yesterday’s bonding item: Talks are occurring all around the Capitol on this bill that has bipartisan interest. House Speaker Melissa Hortman gives the bill a 50-50 shot of passing because it will require Republican votes to do so. “We might be at that moment where we just need instead of sliding offers back and forth, we maybe just need to be in the same room and have a conversation,” she said. The State Patrol headquarters building project was a topic of internal DFL discussion in a leadership meeting with the governor yesterday. It’s a priority of Gov. Tim Walz. The goal is to have a bonding deal by Tuesday to allow for ample time for bill drafting and passage. Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy was more bullish, putting odds of a bill getting through at 75 percent. “I do feel good about it,” she said. We’ll know for certain by May 19 — the last possible day to actually pass bills.

The demonstrations and encampments on college campuses nationwide seek to have schools shed investment ties to Israel over its military actions in Gaza. But what does that actually mean or entail? Anika Besst sought to break that down . It’s a good primer as the University of Minnesota’s Board of Regents hears from proponents of the divestment push today. Their ability to address the governing board was a component of an agreement to take down a tent encampment last week on the school’s main mall. Hillel members will also have speaking time.

Second-hand shoes are getting expensive! Minnesota has designs on securing the ruby slippers made famous by the “Wizard of Oz.” Those storied slippers have quite the history, including a time they were pilfered. Their recovery has led to questions about where they will ultimately land. They could go up for auction and fetch a pretty penny — or millions of them. Dana Ferguson reports that a bill awaiting final approval would earmark $100,000 from a dedicated sales tax fund to facilitate negotiations toward a possible purchase. There is an expectation that other money from other non-state sources would have to be used to acquire them if Minnesota is to have a shot.