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Tim Walz signs law to improve safety conditions at oil refineries

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

Gov. Tim Walz signed a bill into law Tuesday that aims to improve the safety conditions for workers at oil refineries.Authored by Minnesota Sen. Judy Seeberger, the bill requires a percentage of contracted employees to be trained through a registered apprenticeship program in an effort to prevent accidents.The call for more worker training was emphasized by Seeberger in March when a St. Paul Park Marathon refinery spilled around 20,000 gallons of hot asphalt and sent two contractors to the hospital.“The safety of our communities and our workers is our highest priority, and this legislation is critical to making sure that those who are working in high hazard environments have the best training possible to prevent the risk of accidents,” said Seeberger, a Democrat who represents Afton and Cottage Grove, in a news release.According to a statement from Marathon, the two workers were released the same day and there were no environmental impacts to the area.“Workers in our oil refineries ...

Wild GM Bill Guerin reacts to another disappointment: ‘This season is not a failure’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

As the Wild officially put a bow on the 2022-23 season Tuesday afternoon, general manager Bill Guerin pushed back on the narrative that has long surrounded the organization. In his eyes, the fact that the Wild haven’t been out of the first round of the playoffs since 2015 shouldn’t be the main focus.“They’re not going to put our name on the Stanley Cup if we get to the second round,” he said. “They’re not going to get us a ring. You know what? That’s not our goal.”What is the goal?“We don’t sit here and say, ‘Oh god, we just want to win a round,'” Guerin said. “We want to win the Stanley Cup.”As much as Guerin understands that, yes, the Wild must get out of the first round to do that, his point is that this particular group has nothing to do with the disappointment over much of the past decade.“We have a lot of young players who are just getting going and they weren’t a part of that,” Guerin said. &#...

MN school segregation lawsuit returns to Supreme Court

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

The Minnesota Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in a 2015 lawsuit that, if successful, could lead to an overhaul of policies that have allowed Twin Cities public schools to become segregated by race and family income.The plaintiffs in Cruz-Guzman v. State of Minnesota argue that school segregation in the Twin Cities metro violates the education clause of the state’s constitution, even if lawmakers did not intentionally cause the segregation. However, judges with the Hennepin County District Court and state Court of Appeals say otherwise.Now, the plaintiffs are asking the Supreme Court to weigh in on that question of intent, five years after the same justices revived the case following the district court’s dismissal.If the plaintiffs prevail at the Supreme Court, they envision three paths toward winning the case once it’s back in district court. Freed of the need to prove lawmaker intent, they could persuade a judge that the state has violated the constitution if:• There is ...

Layoffs at 3M’s Maplewood HQ rise to 1,100 with remote workers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

3M Co. has advised state officials that it will lay off 1,100 employees from its Maplewood headquarters, including 500 out-of-state workers who operate remotely.The 1,100 employees noted in a WARN notice to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, or DEED, includes the 600 Minnesota-based layoffs announced last week. Overall, 3M’s restructuring actions will affect 6,000 positions globally, a cost-cutting move that follows sluggish sales figures around the world.3M, a Minnesota-based Fortune 500 company and maker of adhesives, medical and home cleaning supplies, building materials and more, said at the time it would take steps to “further simplify and strengthen our supply chain structure” and “streamline our go-to-market business models” to improve margins and cash flow.The company announced it would also “prioritize investments in high-growth end markets where 3M science gives us a clear competitive advantage.”3M, fo...

Timberwolves will play two preseason games in Abu Dhabi next season

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

The Timberwolves are set for an international trip during the 2023 exhibition season. Minnesota will square off with Dallas twice in a three-day span in October, with the games set for Oct. 5 and Oct. 7 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, the NBA announced Tuesday.Atlanta and Milwaukee played preseason games in the Arabian Gulf last fall. Tickets for the games will go on sale “at a later date,” per the NBA, but games will air on NBA League Pass.“I’m pretty excited about it. I think in general it’s a market that the NBA is trying to reach out into,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch told Paul Allen during his weekly appearance on KFXN-100.3 on Tuesday. “By all accounts, (Milwaukee and Atlanta) had an amazing experience, so we’re looking forward to it. And it should be a good opportunity to get a couple of good games in early against Dallas and a little bit of a cultural experience in for everyone, too.”Allen informed Finch of...

Loneliness poses risks as deadly as smoking, surgeon general says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

WASHINGTON — Widespread loneliness in the U.S. poses health risks as deadly as smoking up to 15 cigarettes daily, costing the health industry billions of dollars annually, the U.S. surgeon general said Tuesday in declaring the latest public health epidemic.About half of U.S. adults say they’ve experienced loneliness, Dr. Vivek Murthy said in an 81-page report from his office.“We now know that loneliness is a common feeling that many people experience. It’s like hunger or thirst. It’s a feeling the body sends us when something we need for survival is missing,” Murthy told The Associated Press in an interview. “Millions of people in America are struggling in the shadows, and that’s not right. That’s why I issued this advisory to pull back the curtain on a struggle that too many people are experiencing.”The declaration is intended to raise awareness around loneliness but won’t unlock federal funding or programming devoted to combatting the issue.Research shows that Americans, who have ...

Drop-in center for lawmaker's kids, comes under probe

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (WTEN) -- The state is looking into a child care center at the Capitol designed for children of lawmaker's. Some are questioning if the center lacks proper protocol for supervising those kids. Since the beginning of this year, room 944A located in the Legislative Office Building, has been providing child care for parents who work in the legislature. This is completely tax payer funded. As previously reported by the Times Union, two legislative aids are in charge of the operations; however the proper licensure has been brought into question. Governor Hochul says because this is a drop-in center and not a daycare center, the the standards are different, "This is just a you know, a few hours a day, when you just have sort of a situation, you don’t have a babysitter so I think that was the premise behind it." Push for universal child care in NY Hochul said this is something the Assembly approached her office about last summer, which is when they put the Assembly in conta...

Saratoga Springs woman sentenced to two years on drug charges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- On Tuesday, Tabatha Heitzmann of Saratoga Springs was sentenced to two years of incarceration and one year of post-release supervision. Heitzmann was charged with Attempted Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Heitzmann was initially arrested after the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office raided 260 Maple Avenue in Saratoga Springs and 104 Holly Lane in Wilton on December 29. According to police, the searches turned up scales, packaging material, fentanyl, cocaine, crystal meth, and Xanax. Heitzmann was one of four suspects arrested following the raids.

Glens Falls' new board game tavern open for play

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

GLENS FALLS, N.Y. (NEWS10) - Have you ever sat down for lunch or dinner with friends and family, and felt like something was missing? If so, a new tavern in downtown Glens Falls has about 600 solutions. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Go Play with Your Food opened at 126 Glen St. last Thursday, offering fresh food and fun for families. Locals have come in with enthusiasm to try out new games or favorites - as classic as Monopoly or as new-age as Betrayal at the House on the Hill."We've seen a lot of people come in and want to stick with the stuff they know," said co-owner Kristen Shaw. "If you want to try something new, we can always recommend gateway games."For the Shaw family, those games include Splendor, where players act as Renaissance-era merchants vying to accumulate trade routes and resources; as well as King of Tokyo, a game of skills between giant monsters, robots, and other characters competing to see who can lev...

Jury finds Saugerties woman guilty of multiple charges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:04:00 GMT

ULSTER, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- On April 27, a jury found Shana Shaw, 28, of Saugerties, guilty of Obstructing Government Administration in the Second Degree, and Resisting Arrest. Shaw faces a potential of 1 year in Ulster County Jail. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The charges stemmed from a hit-and-run accident on July 19, 2022. At the time, Shaw had an active warrant for a pending criminal matter, including resisting arrest.On July 20, police located Shaw in her vehicle. When officers approached her vehicle, Shaw pretended not to be herself and was uncooperative in answering questions, obstructing the officer in furthering his investigation and issuing citations.Shaw then refused all verbal commands to stay at the scene and fled, resulting in a pursuit. Police say Shaw was verbally and physically resistant to her lawful arrest. Footage of the incident captured on a police body-worn camera was played for the jurors.