Minnesota school districts face financial hit; Duluth area nurses go on strike

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher is renewing his call for increased Capitol security following attacks on state lawmakers at their homes. Officials in west central Minnesota say people wanting to help with flood clean-up should contact a service organization such as the Red Cross, rather than just show up.Those stories in more in today’s evening update from MPR news. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

State lawmakers convened at the Capitol Tuesday for the first legislative hearing since two colleagues were shot last month.An effort to start the process of modifying a Minneapolis police reform agreement is now on pause. The Minneapolis City Council has voted to pause the effort to start modifying the existing MPD agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. Supporters of the proposal want the city to add provisions from a federal consent decree that was dismissed by a judge earlier this year to its existing pact with the human rights department.The organization Abbey‘s Hope reached a milestone Tuesday in its effort to match Minnesota kids with life jackets. Scott and Katey Taylor formed the group after their 6-year-old daughter Abbey died following an incident in a wading pool where she got stuck in a filter pump.The historic Stone Arch Bridge in downtown Minneapolis is reopening in full next month.The Minnesota Department of Transportation has temporarily turned off the lights on the Mississippi River bridges at Winona amid an ongoing mayfly hatch. The twin bridges carry State Highway 43 across the river to Wisconsin. The lights attract the insects in swarms and can create dangerous driving conditions.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office has charged two people in what officials are calling a "massive" methamphetamine seizure. A Columbia Heights man is now charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of his 16-year-old son. Jordan Collins Sr. was charged in Anoka County and made his first court appearance this morning.

State lawmakers convened at the Capitol Tuesday for the first legislative hearing since two colleagues were shot last month.An effort to start the process of modifying a Minneapolis police reform agreement is now on pause. The Minneapolis City Council has voted to pause the effort to start modifying the existing MPD agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. Supporters of the proposal want the city to add provisions from a federal consent decree that was dismissed by a judge earlier this year to its existing pact with the human rights department.The organization Abbey‘s Hope reached a milestone Tuesday in its effort to match Minnesota kids with life jackets. Scott and Katey Taylor formed the group after their 6-year-old daughter Abbey died following an incident in a wading pool where she got stuck in a filter pump.The historic Stone Arch Bridge in downtown Minneapolis is reopening in full next month.The Minnesota Department of Transportation has temporarily turned off the lights on the Mississippi River bridges at Winona amid an ongoing mayfly hatch. The twin bridges carry State Highway 43 across the river to Wisconsin. The lights attract the insects in swarms and can create dangerous driving conditions.

Minnesota school districts are facing a new financial hit after learning the Trump administration will withhold tens of millions in education funding.About three hundred nurses and other medical staff went on strike today in the Duluth area. They work at six Essentia Health facilities and are negotiating their first union contracts.Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

The cost of health insurance is soaring for Minnesota school districts and teachers. And the massive budget bill passed by Congress and signed by President Trump over the holiday weekend makes some tax cuts permanent, and cuts spending on Medicaid.

The National Weather Service has confirmed the severe storm that struck Beltrami County in late June was a so-called microburst. Surveys show the “microburst” created a ten-mile swath of destructive straight-line winds — reaching as high as a hundred-and-twenty-miles-per-hour.St. Louis County on Monday opens a temporary collection site for debris from properties affected by wildfires earlier this year. That collection site at the old county garage along Highway 44 in Brimson. It’ll stay open Mondays through Saturdays through the end of July. The Camp House, Jenkins Creek and Munger Shaw fires burned thousands of acres in May and destroyed dozens of buildings, including homes and cabins.A 13-year-old boy died after being struck by a firework on Friday in Mahnomen County.Minnesota is warning people to be on the lookout for door-to-door pest-control scams. Drivers traveling Interstate 35 between Duluth and the Twin Cities will encounter lane closures in Carlton County, starting Monday. MnDOT crews will be wrapping up work that started last year on the Atkinson Bridge. That’ll mean single-lane traffic for both southbound and northbound traffic on weekdays through July 18.

Prosecutors are moving forward with their case against the man accused of killing former DFL House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark. Vance Boelter, 57, is charged in a six-count criminal complaint with the murder of the Hortmans early on June 14 and with shooting and wounding DFL State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette earlier the same night. Boelter is also charged with stalking the lawmakers.A Minnesota Department of Education employee no longer works there after a conservative news site reported on a prior conviction of criminal sexual conduct.And boaters can expect to see extra law enforcement officers on Minnesota waterways Friday and through the holiday weekend.Go deeper with the latest edition of the Minnesota Today newsletter.Prosecution moves forward after alleged Hortman assassin waives hearingsMinnesota education agency employee out after sex-crime conviction surfacesLaw enforcement warns boaters to drive sober this holiday weekendSubscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS.

Minnesota's U.S. House members split along party lines on a tax and budget bill that President Donald Trump plans to quickly sign.That story and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.