| A first-of-its-kind compact between the state and the White Earth Nation will allow cannabis sales by the tribe off reservation land. Melissa Olson has more on what led up to the agreement and the broad strokes. Not everything is nailed down; a tax revenue deal is still being put together. But for the tribe, the cannabis business arm it operates will be able to open up as many as eight dispensaries around Minnesota. Sovereign tribes that are within Minnesota’s boundaries have moved quickly to establish legal marijuana enterprises as the state moves slowly but closer to granting general business licenses. White Earth will also regulate those new businesses under its existing law. It’s really a first for a tribal nation across the country to do that outside of tribal lands. The full 37-page compact (plus addendums) signed by tribal chairman Michael Fairbanks and Gov. Tim Walz can be found here. It is in place in perpetuity but the state and the tribe agree to meet every seven years to decide whether to change the terms.
Lawmakers who’ve been stuck on different budget areas face a 5 p.m. deadline to button up agreements or step aside so legislative leaders and the governor can wrap them up. Some legislators went right into working group meetings Tuesday on budget areas that were still being negotiated. Education, health, human services, environment, commerce, energy and transportation were among them. Members of the respective working groups met with leaders behind closed doors to give and update and extract provisions that could slow down compromise. Some said they were on the cusp of agreement, others said they still had a ways left to go. Walz has said he’ll call a special session when all budget provisions are agreed to.
Some of the first working groups to show fruits of their work involve the bills around natural resources and taxes. The environment and natural resources bill negotiators filed first into the governor’s cabinet room Tuesday afternoon to meet with legislative leaders and Walz to talk through disagreements on their bills. They were in and out in about 15 minutes. Members of the group said one of the big sticking points in negotiations was easing up restrictions around permitting, which some Republicans and the governor say slows down business development and growth. The House GOP lead from that group, Rep. Josh Heintzman, of Nisswa, said they made progress on that issue. "There have been four months of negotiations, and in just the last hour, a deal was reached,” he said. “So I believe that is kind of the kingpin in this discussion that needed to be resolved so the rest of the pieces could fall into place." A final bill has yet to take shape. But other sticking points have to do with the amount of funds from the Minnesota Lottery going to community grants and other environmental and natural resources programs. Heintzman said the bill might include a provision to open up bass fishing season year round — something Rep Jim Nash, R-Waconia, pushed for during the legislative session. The taxes panel was the first to actually meet in public. They went through competing ideas and traded a few possible offers. But this will be one of the last bills to get finalized for strategic reasons, given that most late-breaking items can get stuffed into the tax bill as a last resort.
Minnesota’s high school sports authority and a range of public officials are being sued over rules for transgender athletes. Elizabeth Shockman reports on a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday by a conservative advocacy group and three female softball players contends Minnesota is violating federal law by allowing trans athletes to compete. It’s the latest in an intense legal and political fight over policies meant to accommodate transgender people in society. The Minnesota State High School League has allowed students to participate on teams that best align with their gender identity for 10 years. The policy has faced more pushback in recent times because President Donald Trump campaigned on and then banned transgender athletes from participating in women’s and girl’s sports. His ability to override state laws has been a source of friction.
Lawmakers took a few cues from a rare election outcome and legislative shakeups that followed as they drafted election law changes this year. A number of modifications are part of a state and local government and elections bill that was the last one approved before the regular session closed Monday night. Its election provisions made a series of changes that will mostly affect election administration, but also put the onus on voters to return absentee ballots sooner. Dana reports that voters who cast absentee ballots on Election Day will see an earlier deadline to turn them in — 5 p.m. You can read more about the rewrites here. This bill is on its way to Walz’s desk and is expected to get his signature.
There is a high — or low — point of the bill, depending upon who you ask. It's a new policy that prohibits polling places from being in or directly adjoined with a place that serves or sells cannabis. The new language mirrors existing law that prohibits polling places in areas that allow liquor sales. | 
