Minnesota
Minnesota lawmakers push bipartisan measures to regulate AI
Trump pushes tech companies to cover power costs for AI data centers
President Donald Trump says major tech companies must pay for the electricity needed to power expanding AI data centers.
Fox – Seattle
A bipartisan group of Minnesota lawmakers are hoping to limit how the artificial intelligence industry operates in the state, arguing that it’s evolving in ways that are harmful and unconstitutional.
Minnesota senators on Monday considered five measures to regulate AI, including a bill (SF 1857) stating that companies that create AI chatbots — like ChatGPT — ensure minors do not access them, and a bill (SF 1886) requiring that companies disclose when a person is communicating with AI.
Sens. Erin Maye Quade, DFL-Apple Valley, and Eric Lucero, R-St. Michael, are leading the bipartisan effort to regulate AI. The duo — who are on opposite sides of the political spectrum — said they aren’t opposed to the technology but urged lawmakers to protect Minnesotans. Maye Quade and Lucero were co-authors of a bill regulating deepfakes — digitally altered photos or videos depicting events that didn’t actually happen — which became law in 2023.
“There’s a recognition that we need to do something to bring controls in place, to uphold the Constitution, to protect privacy and to empower individuals against these multi-billion dollar industries,” said Lucero, who works in cybersecurity, on Monday.
One of Maye Quade and Lucero’s bills (SF 1120) would prohibit the government from requesting reverse-location data, which many law enforcement agencies use when they do not know who specifically committed a crime.
Law enforcement can obtain a warrant that mandates a technology company give them data about which cellphones were in a certain location at a specific time or who has searched for a specific word or phrase on their phones or on an AI chatbot.
Civil liberties advocates argue warrants are supposed to be narrow, and these so-called “reverse warrants” allow the government to conduct widespread surveillance on everyone who was in an area at a given time or on people who are searching for words or phrases. This is a violation of the Fourth Amendment, advocates argue.
Law enforcement officials, including the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, testified against the bill, arguing that it would harm public safety.
“While I certainly appreciate Sen. Maye Quade’s intentions to protect individuals’ privacy rights with such technological capabilities, prohibiting this critical investigative tool would have extensive negative consequences in local and state investigations,” BCA Superintendent Drew Evans stated in written testimony. “It would impact the ability for law enforcement to prevent and solve crimes and to hold individuals accountable.”
A growing number of states are seeking to regulate AI, as more companies seek to capitalize on the technology. Last year, 38 states adopted or enacted around 100 AI-related measures, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
But the federal government has sought to curb states’ ability to regulate AI, as companies are furiously lobbying Congress and the White House to get rid of state regulations. Lawmakers last summer attempted to include a 10-year moratorium on state AI laws in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, but the Senate dropped it.
President Donald Trump in December signed an executive order giving the attorney general the ability to sue states and overturn laws that don’t support the “United States’ global AI dominance.”
Maye Quade said that minors should be prohibited from accessing AI chatbots because the machine could introduce virtually any topic including disturbing content.
Maye Quade said she’s been talking to AI companies about the regulations and believes they could reach a compromise, but she said she’s okay if they oppose the bills.
Maye Quade said that states shouldn’t back down from trying to regulate AI.
“For decades, tech companies have told legislators and the public that damage and destruction from their unregulated products are necessary byproducts of growth and innovation. They have told us that they can do amazing things, like cure cancer, but not comply with 50 different laws in states. We can no longer accept that narrative,” Maye Quade said.
Minnesota Reformer is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
A St. Cloud Tech ninth-grader won the Minnesota State High School League Clay Shooting championship on Friday.
Allie Lauer won the title with a score of 99 and reverse run of 83, while second-place finisher Isabella Blaz (Rosemount) also scored a 99 but a reverse run of 54. LeRoy-Ostrander’s Kimberly Volkart finished in third place with a score of 98.
MSHSL:
“I was nervous coming in because the other girls are older,” Lauer said. “It was nice weather today and things worked out well. Your average (score) doesn’t really matter. Just keep a good mindset and don’t focus on the scores.”
BOYS CLAY SHOOTING CHAMPIONSHIP
Proctor sophomore Lane Graves took home the championship after a grueling three-way, two-round shoot-off against Rushford-Peterson’s Colton Ronnenberg (second place) and Prior Lake’s Jack Benedict.
After Benedict was eliminated in the first shoot-off, Graves outlasted Ronnenberg with a 9-7 win in round two.
TEAM CLAY SHOOTING CHAMPIONSHIP
The Bemidji Lumberjacks took the team title with a total score of 487, one ahead of Lakeville South and five better than both Stewartville and Spring Grove.
St. Cloud’s Stanley Cup Champion Nate Schmidt [GALLERY]
Former St. Cloud Cathedral and University of Minnesota standout Nate Schmidt will bring the Stanley Cup to St. Cloud on August 25th. Here’s a look at his career through photos.
REDWOOD FALLS
— The 64-year-old Redwood Falls man
killed in a rollover crash Saturday in Redwood County
was fleeing police in his vehicle at the time, according to information from the Redwood County Sheriff’s Office.
Francis Albert Rohlik was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash at approximately 7:22 p.m. on June 27. He was northbound on Redwood County Road 7 north of
Belview
when his vehicle left the roadway and rolled at the intersection with 400th Street in Kintire Township, according to
an accident report
by the
Minnesota State Patrol.
Rohlik was not wearing a seat belt, the State Patrol reported. According to the Redwood County Sheriff’s Office, he was ejected from the vehicle during the crash.
Shortly before the crash, at approximately 7:19 p.m. Saturday, law enforcement officers attempted to stop his vehicle for traffic violations on County Road 7 near Belview. The driver accelerated away from deputies and a brief pursuit ensued. After approximately three miles, the vehicle lost control and rolled over near the intersection with 400th Street, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies immediately administered medical aid to the driver. However, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Rohlik was the only occupant in the vehicle.
Assisting agencies included the Minnesota State Patrol, the Yellow Medicine County Sheriff’s Office, Belview Fire Department, Belview First Responders, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, CentraCare Ambulance, and North Memorial AirCare. The Minnesota State Patrol is investigating the crash.
Minnesota
David Doty, Minnesota federal judge who oversaw NFL’s labor disputes for decades, dies at 96
A Minnesota federal judge noted for presiding over “several landmark disputes involving the National Football League” has died at 96, the U.S. District Court announced Monday.
David Doty died Saturday, just three days before his 97th birthday, the court said.
“Judge Doty devoted his entire professional life to serving others — as a Marine, as a lawyer who served not only clients but his community in many ways, and as a U.S. District Judge for nearly four decades,” Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz said. “Despite his remarkable accomplishments, he was a genuinely humble man. He treated everyone — from the guy who shined his shoes to Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court — the same way: with kindness and compassion and a sincere interest in their lives.”
Former President Ronald Reagan appointed Doty to Minnesota’s district court in 1987, and the court said he “continued to maintain a significant caseload until just a few months before his death.”
Doty grew up in Minneapolis and earned his law degree from the University of Minnesota. Before becoming a judge, he practiced law for more than a quarter-century. He also served in the U.S. Marine Corps for six years.
Doty’s ruling in an antitrust case involving the NFL in the early ’90s led to the creation of the free agency system the league still uses. He oversaw decades of NFL labor matters, including a 2011 case that preceded a brief lockout. So influential was Doty in NFL labor matters that owners tried to get him removed from cases on multiple occasions, according to the Associated Press.
The NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero shared a statement from the league on Doty’s death: “Judge Doty devoted his life to public service and the law, presiding over NFL-related litigation for many years during his distinguished career. We express our sincere condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.”
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