December 2, 2016

With Greitens on board, Missouri lawmakers introduce right-to-work proposals

JEFFERSON CITY • Missouri inched closer to becoming the 27th state in the nation to adopt a right-to-work law on Thursday.

On the first day for members of the Legislature to begin introducing legislation for the 2017 session, Rep. Bill White, R-Joplin, was among those unveiling a proposal he says will help bring businesses and jobs to the state by limiting the ability of labor unions to collect dues from members.

The measure was among a handful of initiatives introduced Thursday that offered a glimpse of what could become Gov.-elect Eric Greitens first-year agenda.

The new governor, a Republican, is a political newcomer who has outlined a pro-business agenda mixed with a push for more anti-corruption laws. Greitens has said he would sign a right-to-work measure into law, ending years of frustration for GOP lawmakers who have been blocked in their push for the change by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/with-greitens-on-board-missouri-lawmakers-introduce-right-to-work/article_c007a74f-8e5d-5958-8eca-553e14394734.html

December 2, 2016

VA may have infected 600 veterans with HIV and Hepatitis

Source: McClatchy

Nearly 600 veterans could have been infected with HIV, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C at a Veterans Affairs facility in Tomah, Wis. because a dentist didn’t properly clean his instruments.

The Tomah VA is investigating the dentist, who has not been fired but was removed from patient care. According to acting Medical Center Director Victoria Brahm, the dentist was using his own equipment for routine dental exams, then cleaning it and using it again. This violates VA rules, which require use of disposable equipment to ensure sterility.

“It was purposeful that he was violating VA regulations,” Brahm said at a news conference Tuesday. “During all of the orientation, he used all of our equipment. He used it appropriately, so it was very purposeful from what we found in our investigation that he knew exactly what he was doing, and preferred to use his own equipment against procedure.”

The doctor has not been identified, complying with federal employee protections. He was one of four dentists employed by the VA, where he worked between October 2015 and October 2016.

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/news/nation-world/national/article118293798.html

December 2, 2016

If Brownback joins the Trump administration, would a Kansas budget fix follow?

Could Kansas more easily address its budget problems if Gov. Sam Brownback leaves the state for a new job?

The answer, from some lawmakers and analysts, appears to be yes — with important qualifications.

The question would have been inconceivable a year ago. Brownback, elected to a second term in 2014, was fully expected to serve his entire second term and leave office early in 2019.

But persistent rumors of a job for Brownback in Donald Trump’s new administration have led to a discussion among a handful of lawmakers about the impact a Brownback resignation would have on next year’s legislative session, which is expected to be difficult.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article118207273.html

December 2, 2016

Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System unfunded liability nears $5.6 billion

Iowa's largest public employees' pension fund has a long-term unfunded liability of nearly $5.6 billion, but steps are being taken to address the shortfall and have it paid off in 28 years, an independent actuary told state officials Thursday.

A report prepared for the Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System, which has 350,000 members, showed the pension fund had a market value of $28.3 billion on June 30, 2016. State officials said there is no problem providing monthly benefit checks for current retirees and they do not anticipate any difficulties meeting the pension fund's promises in the future.

"The unfunded actuarial liability is a big number, but it is not an obligation that is due right now," said Patrice Beckham, a consulting actuary with Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting, LLC, of Bellevue, Neb. "There is time to pay it off and you need a plan to pay it off, and that is exactly what is in place here."

The report was released as conservative policy groups and taxpayers organizations have been urging the Iowa Legislature to shift IPERS away from traditional defined benefit pension plans, which guaranteed monthly checks to retirees.

Read more: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2016/12/01/ipers-unfunded-liability-nears-56-billion/94735470/

December 2, 2016

Macys closing flagship Minneapolis store on Nicollet Mall, report says

Twin Cities Business magazine reported on its website Thursday that the landmark Macy’s store in downtown Minneapolis — the original Dayton’s department store — will be closing.

The magazine, citing multiple anonymous sources, said the Cincinnati-based retail company informed the city of Minneapolis about the closure but wanted to delay an announcement pending a deal to redevelop the site.

The sources told the magazine that Macy’s intends to publicly announce the closing after the holiday season, and plans to end operations in the first half of next year.

City and company officials did not comment on the report specifically for the magazine.

Read more: http://www.twincities.com/2016/12/01/minneapolis-macys-store-closing-nicollet-mall/

December 2, 2016

GOP senators move into building they fought to stop

Sen. Warren Limmer’s new office in the politically toxic Minnesota Senate Building has a smashing view that includes a close-up of the State Capitol, St. Paul’s High Bridge, the downtown Minneapolis skyline and the northwestern horizon that stretches toward his own district in the Maple Grove area.

“I’ve got it all. I’ll never get any work done,” Limmer joked Thursday, the day he and fellow GOP senators moved into the building they once bitterly opposed — and which many in his party brandished like a weapon against DFLers. “I’ll just sit up here and daydream.”

DFL legislators quietly pushed through funding to build the nearly $100 million stone-and-glass edifice in the final hours of the 2013 legislative session, handing Republicans a potent talking point that many believe was a factor in the DFL’s loss of its House majority in the next election in 2014. “A luxury office building for politicians” is how attack ads described it.

“I think in a couple of very tight races it might have been the deciding factor,” Limmer said.

Read more: http://www.startribune.com/gop-senators-move-into-building-they-fought-to-stop/404127326/#1

December 2, 2016

Dayton has 'expressed concern' about suite use to U.S. Bank Stadium chair

Gov. Mark Dayton said he "expressed concern" about use of two luxury suites at U.S. Bank Stadium to Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority Chair (MSFA) Michele Kelm-Helgen and then accused the media of "sensationalizing" the story while ignoring the success of the $1.1 billion project.

The governor stopped short of giving his "support" for the MSFA's control of 36 tickets to two lower-concourse "Norseman Suites," saying he will wait until he's "got all the facts," possibly in mid-January when legislative auditor Jim Nobles aims to complete a "priority investigation" into the suite use.

On Sunday, the Star Tribune reported that Kelm-Helgen and Executive Director Ted Mondale control access to the two suites, which the Vikings sell for $200,000 to $300,000 for the NFL season, for all events at the stadium.

The MSFA has refused to disclose who is attending the games. They acknowledged they and some of the four MSFA commissioners have brought friends and family to events. Nobles, whose office is nonpartisan, said Wednesday he had opened an investigation.

Read more: http://www.startribune.com/dayton-has-expressed-concern-about-suite-use-to-u-s-bank-stadium-chair/404059036/

December 2, 2016

St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman will not run for re-election

St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman, who has led the city for more than a decade, will not run for re-election next year.

He announced his decision Thursday at a brewery just south of University Avenue, where he touted St. Paul’s growth and accomplishments during his nearly three terms in office. He stopped short of committing to future political plans.

Coleman has said he is considering a run for governor, but did not confirm whether he will enter that race. If he does, he is expected to be one of many people vying for the state’s top political office.

“Obviously it’s something I’ve been thinking about, but today my focus is just about the work that lies ahead for the next year in the city,” Coleman said in an interview, adding that his decision on the governor’s race “will come a little bit later.”

Read more: http://www.startribune.com/st-paul-mayor-chris-coleman-to-make-announcement-about-his-political-future/404027606/

December 2, 2016

Beaver walks into store, finds only artificial Christmas trees, proceeds to trash the place

St. Mary's County (Md.) Sheriff's Office
The suspect in the trashing of a dollar store was captured on camera.


In Maryland, at least one badly behaved beaver is ready for holiday shopping.

The beaver was apprehended at a dollar store in Charlotte Hall, Md., the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement, apparently after browsing the selection of artificial Christmas trees and trashing the place.

The “suspect attempted to flee the area,” as the sheriff’s office put it in a statement, but it was apprehended by animal control and released to an animal rehabilitator — hopefully not just to be released into the wild, but to be taught basic shopping etiquette.

“All joking aside, the beaver was safely rescued by animal control and released to wildlife rehabilitation,” authorities tweeted.

http://www.startribune.com/beaver-walks-into-store-finds-only-artificial-christmas-trees-proceeds-to-trash-the-place/404045326/

December 2, 2016

Report counts nearly 300 sexual assault cases on Minnesota campuses

Nearly 300 complaints of sexual assault were reported to Minnesota colleges or universities in 2015, and 79 resulted in disciplinary action greater than a warning, according to information made public under a new state law.

The report, released Thursday, is the first of its kind to publicly track the outcome of sexual assault investigations on Minnesota campuses.

It shows, among other things, that only 56 percent of the 294 sexual assault complaints resulted in a formal investigation on campus. Many cases were dropped before an investigation could be completed, the report found, in part because victims chose not to cooperate.

The report by the state Office of Higher Education found that a dozen campuses statewide had more than 10 sexual assault complaints in 2015. The University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus, which has some 50,000 students, had the highest number of reported cases, 47.

Read more: http://www.startribune.com/report-tracks-sexual-assault-cases-on-minnesota-campuses/404081966/