Kare11
Minn. House passes bill that would legalize marijuana
The DFL-controlled House passed the bill 73-57 late Thursday night, sending it to the Senate, where Democrats hold a slim one-seat majority.
ST PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota is one step closer to legalizing recreational marijuana for adults.
The DFL-controlled House voted 73-57 in favor of legalizing adult-use cannabis late Thursday night, sending the bill to the Senate where Democrats hold a slim one-seat majority. During Thursday’s vote, five Republicans joined 68 Democrats in support, while one Democrat joined 56 Republicans in opposition.
Should the bill be approved by the Senate, which is expected to take up the bill on Friday, it would then go to Gov. Tim Walz, who has said he plans to sign it. If legalized, Minnesota would be the 23rd state in the U.S. to legalize adult-use cannabis.
Should the bill become law, Minnesotans 21 years and older will be able to buy up to two ounces of marijuana, eight grams of concentrate and 800 milligrams of edible products at a time starting July 1. It would also allow Minnesotans to legally grow a limited number of plants starting Aug. 1.
Negotiators ironed out the final details of the bill earlier this week, including a 10% tax on cannabis products on top of existing sales taxes, and possession limits for cannabis flower of two pounds at home and two ounces in public.
Retail sales wouldn’t start until next year with local governments controlling the location of the stores. This would allow local lawmakers the ability to prevent stores from opening near schools or parks.
Minnesotans who’ve been convicted of misdemeanor or petty misdemeanor possession would also get their records automatically expunged, according to the bill. The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension estimates it will take until August of next year to process all the automatic expungements. Those convicted of sales or other more serious but nonviolent marijuana offenses that will no longer be crimes, or will become lesser offenses, will be able to apply to a special board to get their records cleared or sentences reduced.
“We have done our very best to make this an even handed bill, and the reason I believe that is because I don’t necessarily agree with everything that’s in there,” said Rep. Athena Hollins, D-St. Paul, who voted in favor of the bill. “I think that there are parts of it that are too conservative and that is what gives me comfort that we’re actually moving in the right direction and taking the correct path — a middle ground.”
Rep. Dave Baker, R-Willmar, spoke out against the bill, saying he believed it could lead to addiction.
“More youth will become addicted to drugs because of this bill. Now just let that sink in for a minute. It’s going to happen,” said Rep. Baker, who was one of 56 Republicans to vote against the bill. “They won’t likely die from cannibis but they will become addicted through cannabis.”
Watch the latest political coverage from the Land of 10,000 Lakes in our YouTube playlist:
MINNEAPOLIS — Australian rock icons ACDC are hitting the road for the band’s first North American tour in nine years, and opening night will take place in Minneapolis.
The “Power Up” tour kicks off at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 10, 2025. Tickets go on sale to the general public at noon, December 6 via the ACDC website. The tour includes 13 stops, winding up on May 18 in Cleveland.
ACDC is a legendary Grammy-winning band that was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003. Lead guitarist Angus Young, singer Brian Johnson and crew just wrapped up a European leg of the tour, named after the band’s 2020 album “Power Up” which they weren’t able to play live due to the COVID pandemic.
They are considered by many to be one of the most influential rock bands in history, with over 200 million albums sold worldwide including “Back in Black,” with 50 million albums sold worldwide and counting. ACDC mega-hits include “You Shook Me All Night Long,” “Thunderstruck,” “Dirty Deeds,” Highway to Hell” and “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock and Roll).”
“Is it 100% the answer? No, of course not. But it’s another tool in our toolbox.”
GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. — Did you enjoy a nice, juicy bird this Thanksgiving?
You can thank folks like Loren Brey.
“This is my 35th year working in the turkey business,” Brey said. “We sell just under 3 million fertile eggs a year, employ between 8 and 9 full time people.”
Last November – almost a year ago to the day – the re-emergence of the bird flu threatened to bring down the whole thing.
“We lost probably about 15,000 breeder hens,” Brey said. “The first flock that broke here, we just started them, we had a handful of eggs. And I remember that morning when the USDA crew came to euthanize the rest of them he told me ‘You don’t have to be here, you don’t have to watch this.’ It was tough.”
With the outbreak growing, farmers were looking for anything to mitigate the spread. The Bird Control Group has come up with an idea straight out of a spy film: lasers.
Representative Craig Duhr said it all started with a simple idea in the Netherlands in 2012.
“Literally a guy messing around with a green laser light and moved it over some birds and the birds moved,” Duhr said.
Since then, the company’s global reach has expanded, and the technology has evolved.
Duhr explained how it works.
“Green is the brightest spectrum of light the birds see in. So we as humans will see a green dot out there during the daytime hours. The birds see a whole beam – like a laser beam. And they perceive that as they move through the field or a rooftop or the vineyards as a threat. Something coming at them as a predator. So they want to take flight and get out of that area.”
The group has been working with Minnesota farmers to install the technology. The state meanwhile is offering grants – up to $10,000 per farming operation – to help with the cost.
“Right now, I have five lasers running at roughly $15,000 a laser,” he said.
Brey said it’s working. In fact, he’s having more success with it than any other mitigation strategy he’s tried.
“I would say it’s keeping 70 plus percent of the local birds and migratory birds away from the farm,” Brey said. “In the past, what I’ve noticed is under my eaves or in the trees I would see bird nests. I don’t see any of that anymore. So in my mind it’s been a success.”
For now, there’s hope that these high-tech, laser-beam scarecrows continue to do their job.
“We’ve been seeing some good results with it. Is it 100% the answer? No, of course not. But it’s another tool in our toolbox that is helping us.”
The young victim was driving a Ford Taurus when it went off the road and struck a tree.
LITTLE SAUK, Minn. — A 16-year-old boy died in a crash Sunday night in Little Sauk, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.
The Browerville teen was driving a Ford Taurus northbound on Highway 71 around 10 p.m. when the car went off the road and struck a tree near 150th Street, according to the Minnesota State Patrol website.
Troopers say roads were snowy and icy at that time.
The Minnesota State Patrol is investigating and will release the victim’s identity and any case updates when they become available.
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings