Midwest
Minnesota lawmakers debate constitutional amendment to protect abortion and LGBTQ rights
Minnesota lawmakers launched their debate Monday on far-reaching legislation to amend the constitution to protect abortion and LGBTQ rights.
The Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment would be among the nation’s most expansive protections of abortion and LGBTQ rights if it is approved by lawmakers this session and then by voters on the 2026 ballot.
MINNESOTA LAWMAKERS INITIATE DEBATE ON PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE BILL
Over 100 people crammed into the legislative hearing room Monday. Supporters wore green clothes and buttons that said “ERA YES” while opponents wore bright red shirts that said “NO CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT to kill unborn babies.”
Betty Folliard, whose group ERA Minnesota has been pushing for such a measure since 2014, testified in support, as did members of Gender Justice — an advocacy organization for gender equity — and OutFront Minnesota, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group.
A green sign that says “YES on ERA!” is held by a supporter of the proposed Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment at the Minnesota Capitol building in St. Paul, Minn., Feb. 12, 2024. The proposal would be among the most expansive protections of abortion rights and LGBTQ rights in the nation if it is approved by lawmakers this session and then by Minnesota voters on the 2026 ballot. (AP Photo/Trisha Ahmed)
“This isn’t just about reproductive justice,” Folliard said in an interview. “It’s also about pay inequity, historic stereotypes and discrimination that keep on being overlooked, generation to generation to generation.”
The amendment’s wording would prohibit the state from discriminating against anyone on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability or sex — including gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. The state also couldn’t discriminate over a person “making and effectuating decisions about all matters relating to one’s own pregnancy or decision whether to become or remain pregnant.”
Minnesota already has a non-discrimination law, the Human Rights Act, that applies to individuals, businesses, schools and other institutions. The constitutional amendment would apply to state government, and would protect certain laws — including recent ones that have made Minnesota a refuge for out-of-state people seeking an abortion and gender-affirming care — from being repealed by future lawmakers and administrations.
Carrena Falls testified in opposition. She said she’s a college student in the Twin Cities who is “repulsed” by the proposal, which would “enshrine a radical abortion agenda into our Constitution.”
Others who testified against the proposal included members of Minnesota Family Council, a Christian advocacy group; Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, an anti-abortion group; and Minnesota Catholic Conference, a policy organization for the Catholic Church.
Rebecca Delahunt, director of public policy at Minnesota Family Council, said she’s concerned the ERA would grant children a constitutional right to gender-affirming care.
Republican House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth said she is “very disappointed” that Democrats developed the proposal without Republican input. Her motion to submit the proposal to questioning in other House committees failed along party lines.
Democrat House Majority Leader Jamie Long’s motion advancing the proposal to the House floor succeeded with a 9-5 vote along party lines.
“These rights are so incredibly important,” Long said. “We know that Legislatures can change, and we know the courts can change. But the Constitution is the one thing that we know will stay in effect.”
If approved by the Legislature, voters in 2026 would be asked: “Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to say that all persons shall be guaranteed equal rights under the laws of this state, and shall not be discriminated against on account of race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability, or sex, including pregnancy, gender, and sexual orientation?”
If approved, the amendment would take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.
Last year, a different Minnesota ERA proposal passed in the Senate but did not get a final vote in the House.
Democratic Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, a chief author of both proposals, said several Democrats wanted the ERA to do more to protect transgender and reproductive rights. She said recent attacks on transgender people and the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court have been top of mind for many Democrats.
Democrats have only narrow majorities — their margin is just one vote in the Senate — so they need the support of most in their party if Republicans oppose the legislation. If placed on the ballot, the constitutional amendment would need to be approved by a majority of all voters casting ballots, not just a majority of those voting on the question.
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What to know about PCBs and their impact on the Great Lakes, Wisconsin
PCBs are a class of more than 200 chemicals that are known to cause cancer.
An invasive shrimp is swimming in Lake Superior. This is the last Great Lake to be invaded — all five Great Lakes now are infested by the crustaceans..
Researchers for the first time have confirmed a breeding population of an invasive Black Sea-native shrimp in Lake Superior.
The number and extent of the shrimp’s spread in Lake Superior is not clear. However, there is a breeding population in the Duluth.
The findings by researchers at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, Lake Superior Research Institute at the University of Wisconsin Superior, and the Hobart and William Smith Colleges in New York, published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research in April, found that the shrimp are now reproducing and surviving year-round in the Duluth-Superior Harbor, the farthest west the European species has been confirmed.
“Samples we collected in 2025 from two locations in the Duluth-Superior Harbor, a major inland shipping port in the Great Lakes, contained juveniles, adult males, and (pregnant or with young) adult females, indicating a self-sustaining population. Additionally, we document earlier evidence from 2018 samples we collected in the harbor that contained two juvenile specimens,” the article in the Journal said.
In an interview on the CBC’s “Superior Morning” show with Mary-Jane Cormier on June 10, lead researcher Donn Branstrator, of the University of Minnesota, said studies in the Duluth-Superior Harbor this spring after ice was off the lake found adult males and females.
“It’s pretty clear evidence of overwintering,” Branstrator told Cormier. “It would be very unlikely for the population to extinguish (at this point).”
Branstrator told Cormier ongoing bi-weekly research in the harbor, and along the Lake Superior shoreline will exam those questions.
According to the research, the non-native shrimp, about a quarter to half inch long, were first detected in the lower Great Lakes in 2006 in lakes Michigan and Ontario. By 2008, they were found in lakes Huron and Erie as well.
“It has also spread to Oneida and Seneca Lakes in New York … as well as the St. Lawrence River and various canals in northern New York State,” the research said.
Branstrator said the Black and Caspian sea region natives, also have spread throughout Europe into areas they were not native. He said they likely hitchhiked with ballast or bilge water, but the exact mechanism will never be known.
What we know about bloody red shrimp.
What is a bloody red shrimp?
Bloody red shrimp are small crustaceans native to the Black Sea and Caspian Sea region of Europe. They are adapted for fresh and brackish water.
This freshwater shrimp can be ivory-yellow in color or translucent, but exhibits pigmented red pigment cells in the carapax and tail, according to the USGS.
The quarter to half inch long shrimp feed on both phytoplankton and zooplankton at various stages of life.
While relatively small, they are among the larger creatures in the Great Lakes feeding on those food sources.
“They are very large bodied, at the upper end of what we consider zooplankton,” Branstrator said.
Branstrator said the shrimp live in near-shore environments and like to hide in crevices during the day, making use of dock pilings, breakwaters and other human-made structures.
They come out at night and “swarm” together in groups of up to 135 per square foot, the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant said.
Bloody red shrimp have a lifespan of about nine months, grow to adults in just 45 days, and an produce up to four generations per year. Females have been documented to carry up to 66 eggs in a clutch. Broods carried by females in the Muskegon population ranged from two to seven.
Where have the shrimp been found?
The shrimp have spread throughout Europe and now have been found in all five Great Lakes, as well as some locations away from the lakes.
The recent study found a breeding population in the Duluth, Minnesota, harbor, the first in Lake Superior.
According to the research, the non-native shrimp, about a quarter to half inch long, were first detected in the lower Great Lakes in 2006 in lakes Michigan (near Muskegon) and Ontario. By 2008, they were found in lakes Huron and Erie as well.
A single specimen was found in Duluth in 2017, and two were found in 2018. It wasn’t until 2025 that the researchers found a sustaining population when they captured 81 individuals.
How did the shrimp arrive in the Great Lakes?
The shrimp likely hitched a ride in the ballast water of ocean-going vessels, although Branstrator noted during an interview on CBC’s “Superior Morning” that we will never know for certain.
He added that the shrimp have multiple opportunities to hitch rides with vessels during the shipping season.
What impact will the shrimp have on Lake Superior and the Great Lakes?
Branstrator said that question hasn’t been answered. They feed on the same sources as other water-dwelling creatures, but they are large enough that small fish may find them to be a new food source.
Are any shrimp native to the Great Lakes?
The opossom shrimp is a Great Lakes native and looks similar to the bloody red shrimp.
Missouri sportsbooks took $256,364,814 in wagers in May 2026, the lowest monthly handle since the market launched, yet operators posted their strongest revenue month yet at $21,250,814 on an 8.29% hold. The state collected $2,131,872 in tax. Six months after going live on December 1, 2025, Missouri has flipped the usual relationship between volume and revenue: handle keeps settling while revenue keeps climbing, because hold has risen steadily as the launch-period promotions fade. Online betting made up $252,593,427, or 98.53% of all wagers. Figures come from the Missouri Gaming Commission.
Missouri Sports Betting by Month, Since Launch
| Month | Handle | Online | Retail | GGR | Hold | State Tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 2025 | $543,039,131 | $538,881,520 | $4,157,612 | $20,758,443 | 3.82% | $521,201 |
| January 2026 | $385,138,868 | $380,412,197 | $4,726,670 | $6,703,555 | 1.74% | $137,873 |
| February 2026 | $277,005,418 | $273,285,304 | $3,720,114 | $10,301,007 | 3.72% | $1,214,627 |
| March 2026 | $329,355,588 | $324,060,170 | $5,295,418 | $20,757,550 | 6.30% | $2,178,985 |
| April 2026 | $273,397,863 | $269,884,804 | $3,513,059 | $20,284,270 | 7.42% | $2,028,427 |
| May 2026 | $256,364,814 | $252,593,427 | $3,771,387 | $21,250,814 | 8.29% | $2,131,873 |
Six Months In, Revenue Sets a Record
May marks a milestone worth pausing on. Missouri’s revenue reached its highest point yet even though its handle sank to a new low, a sign the market has moved past the giveaway-heavy launch phase and into steadier economics. Across its first six months, the state has now taken roughly $2.06 billion in total wagers, produced about $100.1 million in operator revenue, and delivered $8.2 million in tax. Crossing $100 million in cumulative revenue in half a year underlines how quickly Missouri established itself as a mid-sized market.
Handle Settles as the Launch Surge Fades
The volume side keeps normalizing. December’s $543 million opening was inflated by launch-day demand and heavy sign-up promotions, and handle has stepped down almost every month since, landing at $256.4 million in May, less than half that peak. Part of the decline is seasonal, with the sports calendar thinning as the basketball and hockey postseasons wind down and football stays months away. Part is simply the novelty wearing off. Mobile sportsbooks in Missouri continue to carry the market almost entirely, at 98.53% of May handle, a share that has held above 98% in every month since launch.
The Hold Keeps Climbing
The defining trend is the win rate. Hold ran at 3.82% in December, bottomed at 1.74% in January, then rose in four straight steps to 3.72%, 6.30%, 7.42%, and 8.29% in May. That climb is the engine behind the record revenue: as operators pull back the free bets and bonus play that suppressed early margins, more of each wagered dollar sticks. An 8.29% hold is still below the double-digit figures common in older markets, which suggests Missouri’s margin has further room to firm up as the market matures.
Compare All U.S. States
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Like his father, Zack Erstad is a Husker. Erstad, the son of Hall of Fame baseball player Darin Erstad, joined the Nebraska men’s golf program on Tuesday.
Zack signed with the Huskers one month after winning a state championship at Lincoln East. With the Spartans, Erstad was a two-time NSAA champion. He was Class A’s individual runner-up in 2026. The previous year, Erstad claimed the Nebraska Junior PGA Championship title.
Erstad said joining the Huskers is a dream come true. The Nebraska newcomer grew up playing baseball and hockey. However, he focused solely on golf while in high school.
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