Forest Service closing Boundary Waters amid extreme heat, wildfires

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

GOP leaders have made some changes to Minnesota House committees.   The Judiciary Policy and Finance Committee will become a budget division that reports to the Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee.  Speaker Kurt Zellers wrote to staff that Judiciary Chair Rep. Steve Smith of Mound will no longer chair the committee due to "personal reasons."  GOP Rep. Ron Shimanski of Silver Lake will chair the new division.  Smith is the 

The House GOP is also adding a new subcommittee.  The Energy Subcommittee will be chaired by GOP Rep. Tom Hackbarth of Cedar.  Zellers said the new subcommittee will "provide opportunity for greater input and transparency of this important legislative issue."  The new subcommittee will be added to the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Policy and Finance Committee.

The move comes just nine months after Zellers 

 Hackbarth's role as chair of the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Policy and Finance Committee.  The suspension came after St. Paul police confiscated a loaded handgun from Hackbarth after he was spotted with the weapon holstered to his hip in the parking lot of the Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Paul. (

 Hackbarth called to say that he voluntarily gave his gun to police after they requested it but it was returned to him within 24 hours).  Hackbarth later 

Politics and Government News

MN House makes committee changes

Go Deeper.

Like this?

News you can use in your inbox