Jan. 26, 2021

Expect increasing cloud cover this evening across much of the state — with lows around zero degrees — tomorrow looks more sunny, with highs in the teens. A chance of snow is popping up for the weekend. Find the latest from Updraft.

Gov. Tim Walz is proposing a tax increase on the state’s top earners to help balance the budget and to further fund Minnesota’s response to COVID-19.

Walz announced a two-year budget plan Tuesday that would establish a fifth-tier income tax rate for an estimated 21,000 households, including married couples making more than $1 million and single filers making $500,000. The change would raise an estimated $403 million over the next two years. Walz stressed that less than 1 percent of taxpayers would see an increase while others would see a tax cut.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka says the budget can be balanced through the use of reserves, and a cut in spending by state agencies.

The daily number of COVID-19 deaths in Minnesota remained in single digits for the second day in a row.

The Health Department on Tuesday reported 727 confirmed or probable cases of the disease — along with eight more deaths. That new daily case count was the lowest since Sept. 29, Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm told reporters Tuesday afternoon.

The pandemic has killed more than 6,000 Minnesotans, with immigrants and some people of color and Indigenous residents hit hardest.

You can get more of the latest news, in just a few minutes, via the Minnesota Today podcast. — Nina Moini | MPR News

At some of MN's large hospital systems, teleworkers, volunteers, construction workers have COVID vaccine advantage

State officials say Minnesota’s medical institutions have taken a liberal view of who should be in the early rounds of vaccination. And it’s come at the cost of making sure shots get to the people who need them most.

Justice Department rescinds ‘zero tolerance’ immigration rule

The Justice Department on Tuesday rescinded a Trump-era memo that established a “zero tolerance” enforcement policy for migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, which resulted in thousands of family separations.

SPONSOR

Biden administration to boost vaccine supply next week

The Biden administration is giving states an approximately 17 percent boost in vaccine next week following complaints around the U.S. of shortages so severe that some vaccination sites had to cancel tens of thousands of appointments with people waiting for their first shot.

Two men plead guilty to arson in Minneapolis unrest

Two men have pleaded guilty to federal arson charges in connection with fires that were set inside the Target corporate headquarters during unrest that followed rumors of a police shooting in downtown Minneapolis last August.

They lost sons to drug overdoses: How the pandemic may be fueling deaths of despair

As drug overdose deaths rise during the pandemic, a former White House economist says social isolation could be partly to blame.

GOP largely votes against holding Trump impeachment trial

Senate Republicans voted overwhelmingly Tuesday against moving forward with Donald Trump’s historic second impeachment trial, making clear a conviction of the former president for “incitement of insurrection” is unlikely.

In Minnesota, a growing interest in reviving the local butcher shop

Last spring, COVID-19 outbreaks tied to major meat processing plants in the state temporarily disrupted the supply chain for pork and other meat products. So consumers turned quickly to local suppliers for the food they were having trouble finding on supermarket shelves.

Preference Center ❘ Unsubscribe

This email was sent by: Minnesota Public Radio
480 Cedar Street Saint Paul, MN, 55101