Good morning, and happy Tuesday.
Federal authorities charged 10 more people Monday in connection with the alleged fraud in school nutrition programs. MPR’s Matt Sepic reports: One of the new defendants — Lul Bashir Ali — operated a small storefront restaurant in Faribault. Authorities say Ali falsely claimed to have served 700,000 meals to children. Mohamed Ali Hussein, the founder of the nonprofit Somali American Faribault Education, allegedly claimed to have served 1.2 million meals over a 10 month period in 2021. Prosecutors say the two received more than $5 million in federal money. Ali and Hussein are charged by criminal information, indicating they’ve waived their right to a grand jury indictment and are expected to plead guilty. U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger said a third defendant, Kawsar Jama, 41, of Eagan, submitted $3.7 million in fake claims and spent at least part of the money on personal items. “She wasn't buying food,” Luger said. “Ms. Jama used phony invoices that she got from others to make it appear as though she was buying food for these 2,560 people.” He said she set up a meal site in Pelican Rapids — a town in northern Minnesota with a population of about 2,500.
Legislators spent most of the day Monday hearing from Minnesota’s tribal leaders. MPR’s Brian Bakst reports: A unique gathering Monday at Minnesota’s Capitol — part history lesson, part plea for awareness — gave leaders of 11 federally recognized Indian tribes the focused attention of state lawmakers on issues of significance. They all had time to address a joint session of the Legislature to reflect on the tribal presence in Minnesota while asking state leaders to include them in shaping laws affecting their members rather than have decisions imposed on them. “We see you everyday. But do you see us?” said Kevin Dupuis, chair of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. “We're not invisible. We know we're not invisible. But sometimes the system looks at us or puts it in a perspective that we are invisible.” This wasn’t the Legislature’s first Sovereignty Day, but it’s the first time both the House and Senate both participated. Most other items of session business were put on hold for the day.
In Mille Lacs County, a long-running legal dispute between the county and the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe has already cost nearly $8 million in legal fees. As MPR’s Kirsti Marohn reports, some want the Legislature to pay the legal bills: The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe sued the county in 2017, after the county terminated its cooperative law enforcement agreement with the band. Although the lawsuit was over policing, the real issue at stake is whether the band's 61,000-acre reservation, established nearly two centuries ago by federal treaties, still exists. The county has long argued that later treaties and acts of Congress dissolved the original reservation. It contends the band has only about 4,000 acres held in trust by the federal government. Some Republican state lawmakers who represent the area have introduced bills that would require the state attorney general to reimburse Mille Lacs County $7.8 million for the legal fees. They say the higher costs are the result of Gov. Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison reversing the state's longstanding position on the reservation question, and they say the county shouldn't have to bear the full cost.
MPR’s Elizabeth Shockman has a profile of the state’s new education commissioner: The majority of Minnesota students are below proficiency levels in math and just over half are proficient in reading — a sharp decline since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. And national culture wars are making their way into school board elections and meetings. Taking over as the new head of the state’s education department will not be an easy task. But Willie Jett, 58 says he’s ready. And he adds he always wanted to have a positive impact on the lives of young people. “Access and opportunity for young people — that's kind of been a kind of a life calling,” Jett said. “Commissioner of education in the state of Minnesota, you're talking about 880,000 students, over 2200 sites… that outreach, and that impact across the state — that was one of the big draws.”
Democrats have a one vote majority in the state Senate. The Star Tribune looks into whether Democrats will stick together when some tough issues come up, including gun control, legal marijuana and the tax on Social Security. Short answer: Stay tuned.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter sees what other city residents do, that potholes are bad this year. Really bad. As the Pioneer Press reports , he wants the Legislature to give the city a chance to raise more money to help fix them. “Our potholes are talking to us right now,” said Carter, addressing members of the Greater St. Paul Building Owners and Managers Association in a conference room of the downtown DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel on Monday afternoon. “We’ve had one of the roughest winters ever. We’re expecting probably one of the roughest pothole seasons that we’ve ever had.” It’s not just the capital city that is suffering from visibly pockmarked roads — potholes nearly as large as manhole covers have emerged across Minneapolis and the metro suburbs, as well — but the mayor’s recommended fix is one that will take buy-in from state lawmakers, a potential uphill climb considering competing priorities. The mayor’s administration has said that tripling St. Paul’s local sales tax to 1.5 percent could raise nearly $1 billion over 20 years, funding the reconstruction of 25 well-traveled streets, as well as Parks and Rec offerings such as an East Side community center and a sprawling new athletics complex.
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