Good morning, Minnesota. Happy Monday!

Here's the latest news from across the state to start your day. ☕

WEATHER

🌡️ We're in for a cold week with below-normal temperatures during the day and subzero nights.

❄️ We'll see some light snow in southern Minnesota both Monday and Wednesday.

Get the latest weather news on Updraft.

Kickstart arrives for Minnesota lawmakers after standoff in session’s opening weeks

A kickstart is in store this week as the Minnesota House gets into a groove after spending the first month of the legislative session in a standstill.

Starting Monday, committees are charging ahead and will review a slate of bills ranging from anti-fraud measures to repeal pushes on laws passed in recent years.

Opening statements set in trial of Feeding Our Future leader

Opening statements are set for Monday morning in the second trial to stem from what federal prosecutors say was the "single largest" fraud scheme perpetrated in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prosecutors contend that Aimee Bock, the founder of the defunct Twin Cities nonprofit Feeding Our Future, was at the center of a conspiracy to fleece taxpayer-funded child nutrition programs out of $250 million.

NASCAR on ice? Cars, community drive Minnesota’s frozen lake racers

Cars traveling at high speeds and on glare ice might sound like a disaster in the making. But for dozens of drivers in Otter Tail County, the combination is a recipe for winter fun. Meet the Bass Lake racers.

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NEWS ROUNDUP

🦌 Public input sought on elk restoration plan in northeast Minnesota. Once a management plan is in place, the goal is to move about 12-20 animals a year for five or more years until there is a "healthy, sustaining population in the northeast." Fond du Lac's proposal called for between 100 to150 elk.

📸 Photos: Luminary Loppet illuminates the winter night at Lake of the Isles. The fresh morning snowfall and cold evening temperatures Saturday provided perfect conditions for the Luminary Loppet at the Lake of the Isles in Minneapolis.

🏀 Southside Red Bears basketball helps Native youth find community, but its future is uncertain. A change in the Minneapolis youth league system could spell the end of the beloved southside team. Coach Muck-Wa Roberts says his program helps Native teenagers stay out of trouble and become future leaders.

🧑‍⚖️ Minnesota joins lawsuit against Trump's move to restrict gender-affirming care. The order calls for removing coverage for gender-affirming care from federal health insurance policies and directs criminal enforcement against medical professionals and patients involved in such care.

📈 Midwest manufacturers are feeling optimistic about 2025 despite a down year in 2024. Despite the sector's contraction last year, respondents expect a strong rebound in 2025. Nearly half said they expect an increase in orders. And about 40 percent of respondents said they expect to raise prices.

📜 For high school sports, decisions loom: Follow Trump or state law on transgender athletes. Minnesota's governing body for high school sports says it will follow state law and continue to allow any transgender athletes to compete.

⚖️ Judge sentences Feeding Our Future defendant to 3 1/2 years, citing 'flagrant fraud.' Sharon Ross of Big Lake pleaded guilty in early 2024 to stealing $2.4 million from taxpayer-funded child nutrition programs as part of what federal prosecutors in Minnesota say was a $250 million scam involving 70 people.

🏈 Randy Moss makes an emotional return to the ESPN set following his cancer treatment. Hall of Famer Randy Moss made an emotional return to ESPN's NFL coverage of the Super Bowl two months after he took a leave from his job to get treated for cancer.

MUST LISTEN

🎧 New Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth on priorities, vision for 2025 session. Under a new power-sharing deal, Demuth will be speaker at least through next year. She spoke with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer on Friday morning about her priorities and vision for the House.

🎧 Daughter of 'skiing savant' speaks to coach's legacy as Lindsey Vonn makes comeback.At the age of 99, Erich Sailer is still out at the slopes, cheering on his progeny and granddaughters, Lulu and Greta, who are now training under one of Lindsey Vonn's former coaches.

🎧 Listen to today's headlines on our Minnesota Today podcast.