Minnesota

Bentonville, ARK., October 5, 2007 -- the Minnesota Department of Health announced it is investigating four cases of E. coli O157:H7 infection in Minnesota residents associated with eating frozen ground beef patties manufactured by Cargill Inc., and purchased from Sam’s Club beginning August 26, 2007 with an expiration date of February 12, 2008 at Eagan, Maple Grove and White Bear Lake locations.    » read more »

Friday October 12, 6-10 pm - Sat October 13, 2-10 pm - Sun October 14, noon-5 pm

September 4, 2007 - The St. Paul Art Collective / Saint Paul Art Crawl
Lowertown & Downtown, St. Paul Minnesota

Saint Paul Fall 2007 Art Crawl
Oct 12-Friday evening, 6-10 pm
Oct 13-Saturday afternoon, 2-10 pm
and Oct 14, Sunday-12-5 pm
NEW: Extended Evening Hours on Saturday    » read more »

October 4, 2007 -- Private health insurance premiums in Minnesota grew by 7.2 percent per enrollee in 2006, up from 4.5 percent in 2005, according to a new report by the Health Economics Program at the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). Growth in health plans’ expenses per enrollee increased from 7.2 percent in 2005 to 8.9 percent in 2006, while enrollees’ average out-of-pocket cost grew by 15 percent.    » read more »

Agreement will protect jobs, wildlife habitat and outdoor recreational opportunities

October 3, 2007 -- Saint Paul – Minnesota Governor Pawlenty today announced the single largest conservation project in Minnesota in a decade. State and private money has been used to purchase working forest conservation easements on more than 51,163 acres of forest in Itasca and Koochiching counties.    » read more »

As state government workforce ages, steps will be taken to plan for the future

October 2, 2007 -- St. Paul – To ensure that state government is able to successfully carry out its mission now and in the future, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty today signed an executive order that requires all state agencies to conduct workforce planning to deal with potential labor shortages. The number of state employees retiring annually has increased by 32 percent over the last five years.    » read more »

October 2, 2007 -- Minnesota Governor Pawlenty today signed an executive order making the Statewide Radio Board (SRB) the coordinating entity for Minnesota’s Statewide Interoperability Executive Committee (SIEC). The SIEC’s mission is to develop a statewide plan to increase interoperability with public safety communications equipment.    » read more »

Departments of Health and Employment and Economic Development to implement latest HUD grant

September 28, 2007 -- A $1.4 million federal grant will allow the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), together with the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) and other partners, to speed up the removal of lead paint hazards from Minnesota homes and reduce the number of children endangered by lead paint.

Lead is a known toxin that can impair children’s development and may even cause death at high levels.    » read more »

New initiative focuses on building rural Minnesota’s small business base

September 25, 2007 -- Saint Paul – Saying that small business is the backbone of Minnesota’s economy, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty today proposed a comprehensive new program to stimulate rural economic development. The initiative - Strategic Entrepreneurial Economic Development (SEED) – is designed to help strengthen communities and expand the small business base throughout Minnesota.    » read more »

September 17, 2007, ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Many residents who suffered damage from the August severe storms and flooding have registered for federal disaster assistance and afterwards received a loan application from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). So far, 3,637 SBA loan applications have been distributed in southeastern Minnesota - but only 618 have been returned.    » read more »

Sept. 17, 2007 -- Following several youth suicides in Beltrami County in 2004, the Minnesota Department of Health was asked to compare the suicide rate in the county with the rest of Minnesota.

The department’s analysis shows that between 1990 and 2005, Beltrami County had the highest rates of suicide in the state among people ages 5 through 34: the county’s rate was 21 per 100,000 population as compared with 9 per 100,000 for the state as a whole.    » read more »

September 17, 2007 -- Saint Paul – The following is a statement from Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty regarding U.S. Congressman Jim Ramstad’s announcement that he will retire from Congress at the end of his current term. Congressman Ramstad was first elected to represent Minnesota’s 3rd congressional district in 1990, after serving 10 years in the Minnesota State Senate:

“Jim Ramstad has been a tremendous public servant in our state for nearly 30 years. He is one of our nation’s most thoughtful, hardworking and effective leaders.    » read more »

September 13, 2007 -- Minnesota health officials are alerting the public to be on the lookout for a measuring device containing radioactive materials, which was reported stolen from a pick-up truck in Forest Lake.

The device is believed to have been stolen sometime last night. The theft was reported to MDH at approximately 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. The device was owned by Asset Management, a local firm involved in construction work.    » read more »

Initiative First Bipartisan, Governor-Led, National Effort to Promote Clean Energy Policies Across the States

September 12, 2007-- WASHINGTON— The National Governors Association (NGA) today committed to promoting clean energy policies across the country as NGA Chair Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius officially launched the Securing a Clean Energy Future initiative.    » read more »

Flood relief package supplements Governor’s executive funding actions

September 12, 2007 -- Saint Paul – Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty signed a bill early this morning, appropriating $157.3 million of disaster relief funding for the flood-ravaged counties of southeastern Minnesota. The result comes at the close of a special session, called by the Governor to fund recovery and rebuilding efforts in the region.    » read more »

September 11, 2007, ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Residents of southeastern Minnesota affected by recent severe storms and flooding are urged to be alert for and report potential fraud during recovery and rebuilding efforts, according to officials from Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM) and the U.S Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).    » read more »