After the federal government abruptly cut COVID program grants this week, the Minnesota Department of Health is considering layoffs. The department confirmed between 150 and 200 jobs may be cut after the $226 million shortfall. The federal government made the cut because it said the funds weren't needed anymore.

Minnesota's Health Commissioner Dr. Brooke Cunningham says the public still needs good information about vaccines.

And the largest union for state employees is telling its members they will push back on the governor's plan to send state workers back to the office.

Find these headlines and more at mprnews.org.

MDH commissioner: $226 million cuts to federal COVID-19 grants ‘shortsighted’

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Former state Sen. Justin Eichorn has been released under conditions to a halfway house as a criminal case that led to his resignation proceeds.

The Minneapolis City Council is discussing a proposal Thursday to bring violence interruption services to the Cedar Riverside and Elliot Park neighborhoods. A council member who represents the area says his ward has benefitted from these services in the past and needs them back.

Gov. Tim Walz is assuring the public dairy products are safe to consume and purchase after a strain of bird flu was detected in a Stearns County dairy herd. Walz was flanked by state health and agriculture heads, as well as both Republican and DFL lawmakers. The governor’s budget includes $4 million to combat avian influenza.

The state of Minnesota stands to lose millions in COVID-19 funding after the federal government announced Tuesday it would terminate grants to local and state governments.

A new environmental center opened Tuesday in Ramsey County to accept a variety of goods that need to be disposed of or recycled. The nearly 30,000 square foot facility is located in Roseville.

And a board that oversees economic development on the Iron Range has selected a new chair and promised aid to idled mine workers.

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Trump administration says it will pull back billions in COVID funding from local health departments

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Gov. Tim Walz has set a date for a special election to fill an open Senate seat in northern Minnesota, and candidates can start filing for office tomorrow. The 6th District Senate seat came open last week after Justin Eichorn resigned. Eichorn is charged with attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.

That story and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Garty Meister.

A man who pleaded guilty to murder and assault in a 2023 mass shooting at a Minneapolis punk show was sentenced to 23 years in prison on Monday.

The American Civil Liberties Union is suing St. Francis Public Schools for using a third-party website called Book Looks to ban books. The suit argues that banning books violates Minnesota constitutional and state law.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has announced the state has filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to stop the closure of the Department of Education. The filing is part of a lawsuit with 20 other attorneys general that was filed after President Donald Trump announced plans to reduce the department’s workforce by 50 percent. 

And state animal health officials have confirmed bird flu in a central Minnesota dairy herd.

Federal prosecutors have accused former Minnesota State Senator Justin Eichorn of trying to obstruct their investigation related to charges of soliciting a minor.

And the Democratic-controlled Minnesota Senate is staged to vote on a resolution condemning President Donald Trump's pardons of those found guilty of crimes on January 6, 2021.

Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

A man who admitted killing one person and wounding six others in a mass shooting at a Minneapolis punk show in 2023 faces sentencing this afternoon. 

Around 200 people gathered at the Minnesota Capitol on Sunday to protest privatizing the U.S. Postal Service. The rally came after Postmaster General Louis DeJoy announced he had struck a deal with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to reform the agency. Minnesota Democratic Sen. Tina Smith called the move a “hostile takeover.”

State agriculture officials say the invasive emerald ash borer has spread to another Minnesota county. The insects were confirmed over the winter for the first time in Aitkin County near Mille Lacs Lake. The ash borer has now been confirmed in 54 of Minnesota’s 87 counties.

State regulators will get public input this week on Xcel Energy’s request to store more radioactive waste at its Prairie Island nuclear plant.

Bloomington police officials today announced they arrested 14 men during the sting operation that nabbed a state senator earlier this week. The men are accused of trying to solicit sex from minors.

And DFL Governor Tim Walz released his revised state budget proposal today. It includes more cuts in spending.

Those stories and more in today’s evening update. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

Former Red Lake High School students will honor the people who lost their lives during a school shooting 20 years ago. They will lead a ceremony at the high school followed by a remembrance walk.

U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar hosted a town hall meeting Thursday night in Minneapolis. She spent much of the discussion criticizing the policies of President Donald Trump. On Thursday, Trump signed an executive order aimed at closing the Department of Education and returning authority over education to the states. Omar, a Democrat, says dismantling the Department of Education could bring back school segregation.

Cleveland Cliffs says it plans to lay off 630 workers at two taconite mines on the Iron Range. 

Minnesota Sen. Justin Eichorn was in federal court yesterday — the same day he resigned his Republican seat in the chamber — on a charge of attempting to solicit a minor for prostitution.

Former State Senator Justin Eichorn made his first appearance in court since being arrested Monday for attempting to solicit a minor. And Cleveland-Cliffs says it plans to lay off about 600 workers at two taconite mines on the Iron Range.

Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.