Air quality alert ends. Minneapolis to take public comments on separation ordinance

The air quality alert that had been in effect for Minnesota for nearly a week has been canceled. A more favorable southerly air flow is pushing the wildfire smoke north and east. Over the weekend, many Minnesotans limited their outdoor time in poor air. Others dealt with the smoke to enjoy cooler temperatures.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered at the Gov. Walz’s residence in St. Paul Sunday to urge divestment in Israeli companies and weapons manufacturers. Walz is the chair of the Minnesota State Board of Investment, which manages over $140 billion in state funds. According to the governor’s office, less than one percent of funds are invested in companies that benefit Israel.

Minnesota taxpayers can use a relatively new online tool to get a sense of what they're paying to the state and where it is going.  A 2023 law created a type of digital receipt for taxpayers that estimates how much of the money they pay in goes to spending categories in the state budget.

The Minneapolis City Council on Monday takes public comments on its separation ordinance, which limits how police interact with federal immigration enforcement.

Nine people have been diagnosed with measles in Wisconsin. The state's Department of Health Services says the confirmed cases are in a county north of Green Bay. These are the first cases of measles in Wisconsin this year. Minnesota has had five cases of measles so far in 2025. Measles is so contagious, if one person gets it, up to 90 percent of the people around them may also become infected if they are not vaccinated.

A busy freeway off-ramp in the east metro is now closed for more than two months. MnDOT says the ramp from eastbound Interstate 94 to Radio Drive in Woodbury is closed through mid-October as crews replace a traffic signal system.

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