Detroit Lakes City Council to debate cannabis ordinance at July 11 meeting

Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – Members of the Detroit Lakes City Council are expected to debate and vote on the first reading of a new cannabis consumption ordinance for the city.

The discussion will be held during the council’s regular meeting on Tuesday night and would effectively ban the use of cannabis products in any public setting.

Under the new ordinance, cannabis-product consumption within the Detroit Lakes city limits would be confined to private residences, including the yard of that property.

Consumption would also be allowed on private property, not generally accessible to the public, as long as that person is allowed to have those products on their property.

Lastly, under the proposed city ordinance, cannabis consumption will be allowed at establishments or specially permitted events that allow for consumption on-site.

The ordinance also states any person in violation of the ordinance would be guilty of a petty misdemeanor and required to pay a $200 fine.

On August 1, Minnesota’s new cannabis law goes into effect, which will allow individuals to possess up to 2 ounces of the cannabis flower in public and will also allow up to two pounds of cannabis to be stored at a person’s residence.

The Detroit Lakes City Council meeting begins tonight at 5 p.m. on the third floor of the Becker County Courthouse.

$352 million error found in MN tax bill

Officials at the Minnesota Department of Revenue discovered a $352 million error in the $3 billion tax cut bill lawmakers passed this springs, but state leaders promised to fix it before it would take effect.

Paul Marquart, commissioner for agency, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Friday that his staff caught the error when they were reviewing the nearly 400-page bill.

By mistake, legislators used the 2019 standard deduction for the 2024 tax year without including four years of adjustments for inflation, which means most taxpayers’ standard deduction would be $1,600 smaller.

Marquart said the error would cost single filers $110 and married couples $210 on their 2024 taxes. 

Adding, about 2.3 million returns would be affected if the law isn’t changed.

State Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston, said mistakes sometimes happen when staffers are working overtime at the end of a session to finish everything.

He also said sometimes, lawmakers can resolve a problem by sending a letter explaining their original intent, but he admitted this one is big enough that it will likely require a law change.

Davids said: “Mistakes are made, but this is a doozy. That being said, it’s nothing we can’t fix if we work together as soon as we get back and just correct it. I would hope no one would be opposed to correcting it.”

Story by Associated Press

Target to expand teacher discount to 20% and include entire purchase

Target is launching an offer for U.S. teachers that will give them a one-off 20% discount ahead of the new school year.

The discount is part of the Minnesota retailer’s Back-to-School sales, which this year is even more generous to teachers than last year.

In 2022, Target gave teachers 15% off school supplies at its stores and online, but now it’s extending it to all goods, with teachers able to access a one-time 20% discount for their entire shopping trip either in stores or online.

The offer is available between July 16 and August 26, and is open to all teachers in K-12, homeschool, daycare center, and early childhood learning center teachers, as well as university and college professors and vocational/trade/technical school teachers. Valid identification must be presented to access the deal.

West Central Initiative gives annual report; $1.2 million in grants and loans since January 2022

Members of West Central Initiative, the nonprofit community foundation that serves a nine-county area in west-central Minnesota, presented their annual report to members of the Becker County Board last week.

During the meeting, Rebecca Lynn Peterson, director of development for the organization, said, since January 2022, West Central Initiative has made more than $1.2 million in grants and loans available to different entities throughout Becker County.

“Since January of 2022, we’ve made over $1.2 million of grants and loans in Becker County,” said Peterson. “Many of those are through your DL Community Fund and other community funds, like the Becker County Historical Society having a fund with us along with some other donor-advised funds … and, we’re pretty proud about this, some small grants to fire departments in (Becker County).”

She also highlighted a new program the nonprofit is spearheading, aimed at recruiting more candidates to run for local elected office at all levels government, called: The Rural Democracy Project.

“This is by no means to encourage our local officials to not to run for office, but to encourage new candidates to think about running for office,” she said. “We realized, in our nine-county region with school boards, city councils, and county commissions, we need a plethora of people to run for office, way greater than the metropolitan areas. And so, we got funding from the McKnight Foundation to fund our Rural Democracy project.”

The program will consist of two, weekend-long public leadership training courses on Sept. 29-30 and October 6-7 for anyone interested in learning more about serving in local government.

Also, the nonprofit will be holding a longer 6-month public leadership program and implementing a rural democracy network with the mayors of all 82 communities within West Central Initiatives area of operations.

According to the nonprofit, since 1986, West Central Initiative has provided more than $8.9 million in grants and funding to Becker County.

That funding has led to more than $7 million in increased assets for Becker County and $9.1 million in extended loans and grants through the organization’s donor and federal relief funds.

Peterson also mentioned they are currently seeking input for the organization’s climate action plan and encouraged the Becker County Board and other entities to submit their comments and recommendations to make their plan stronger.

For more information on the West Central Initiative’s grant and loan programs, or to submit comments to their climate action plan, visit their website at: wcif.org.

Free summer meals for Minnesota students enters second week

We’re into the second full week of free meals for Minnesota students under the age of 18.   

Gov. Tim Walz put his signature on the universal school meals bill last March, providing free breakfast and lunch to all K-12 students, regardless of their parents’ income. 

Many Minnesota students who depend on school meals during the school year can, in most cases, get up to two free meals a day this summer at nearly 500 locations across Minnesota.  

State Education Department’s Emily Honer said they choose sites where there’s likely a preponderance of families who need assistance.

“The parent or guardian should not have to worry about looking to find out about eligibility or not,” said Horner. “If there’s that Summer Food Program site, that child can get a meal.”

There are a number of locations in the listening area where kids under 18 can get free meals this summer, including: the Boys and Girls Club in Detroit Lakes, Frazee Elementary, Lake Park-Audubon high school, the Callaway Boys and Girls Club, Ogema School, New York Mills public schools, the Boys and Girls clubs in Mahnomen, and Pelican Rapids Secondary and Viking Elementary. 

To find the nearest location, get the “Free Meals for Kids” app or go to the Minnesota Department of Education website.

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