Mike Mullen//July 2, 2014
Mike Mullen//July 2, 2014
1) Early estimates put public property damage in Minnesota from flooding at $32 million, and that’s without all of the damaged counties reporting, according to the Star Tribune.
Hennepin County has about $14 million in damage. That’s compared to $9.2 million in Carver County. The total cost estimate so far comes from 21 counties, though more roughly 40 will have some sort of damage by the end of the flooding. Minnesota has already far surpassed the $7.3 million threshold necessary to get federal aid, but a presidential disaster declaration is still forthcoming.
In some cases, private insurance won’t cover damages to homes from flooding. That’s similar to mudslides — like the one at the University of Minnesota — Gov. Mark Dayton said.
2) Minnesota’s budget reserve is now $811 million, helped by a $150 million payment into the account on Tuesday, Minnesota Public Radio reports.
The additional cushion came out of last session, when Democrats dedicated the safety net funding to the reserve. There’s also $350 million in a state cash flow account.
“Minnesota has finally turned the corner on a decade of deficits that shortchanged our students and stymied needed progress for our state,” Gov. Mark Dayton said in a statement. “We turned a $6.2 billion deficit into a surplus, repaid all the $2.8 billion previously borrowed from our schools, made important new investments in education and job creation, and increased the reserve to its highest level in history.”
3) GOP gubernatorial endorsee Jeff Johnson nabbed US Rep. Erik Paulsen’s support in his August primary race against the rest of the Republican field.
Johnson and Paulsen worked together during their time in the state House of Representatives, an email announcing the endorsement notes. It also calls on supporters to cast a no-excuse absentee ballot in favor of Johnson. This is the first year that voters and campaigns can take advantage of the loosened restrictions on absentee voting, and it has become a new tool for campaigns to get voters in the bank before election day.
“Jeff Johnson is a tireless leader for spending restraint and has the experience necessary to help Minnesota become a state where businesses expand and create jobs again,” Paulsen wrote in a statement. “Jeff’s character and integrity will make him a great Governor for Minnesota.”
Johnson faces businessman Scott Honour, former Rep. Marty Seifert and former House Speaker Kurt Zellers in the primary. The victorious nominee will take on Gov. Mark Dayton in November.
COMINGS & GOINGS