Month: May 2020

The Minnesota National Guard will be fully mobilized to the Minneapolis and St. Paul area according to Governor Tim Walz in a press conference Saturday morning.  Minnesota’s Adjutant General Major General Jon Jensen said that by mid-afternoon nearly 2,500 guardsmen are expected on scene. The Minnesota National Guard is estimated at 13,200 soldiers, although not all are eligible for activation due to the need to complete their training according to Jensen. Jensen also said federal resources and personnel have been requested. 

This story will be updated as more information becomes available. 

Announced during an early morning press conference by
Minnesota’s Adjutant General, Maj. Gen. Jon Jensen, “Governor Walz
authorized the National Guard to increase our strength by one-thousand
soldiers to support civil authorities.”

Last night, an additional 200 soldiers were activated, bringing the total to
more than 700 soldiers and airmen on state active duty just before midnight.

The Minnesota National Guard continues to maintain a presence in the Twin
Cities in support of local civil authorities. Our citizen-soldiers worked
throughout the night escorting Minneapolis Fire Department teams on numerous
missions and soldiers provided security at traffic control points at
Nicollet Mall in support of the state patrol.

The Minnesota National Guard is prepared to protect life, protect property
and restore order.

This represents the largest domestic deployment in the Minnesota’s National
Guard’s 164-year history.

The Department of Natural Resources has set new deer population goals that reflect Minnesotans’ diverse perspectives about deer.

“We really appreciate the perspectives brought to the table,” said Barbara Keller, DNR’s big game program manager. “We took what we heard seriously as we set goals.”

The DNR sets deer population goals – how much of an increase or decrease is desired in a deer population in a particular deer permit area – as part of managing the state’s wild deer herd.

The DNR set goals for 36 of the state’s 130 deer permit areas, generally those located in northwestern and western Minnesota. This was the first area of focus, and the DNR will be covering other areas in future years. The goals set in 2020 provide the framework for annual decisions on deer season regulations and are intended to be in effect for the next 10 years, with a midpoint review at five years.

The DNR gathered information and feedback from over 700 online survey respondents, online comments, and conversations with area wildlife managers. The DNR also used a new workshop format to facilitate eight small group discussions to both scope issues and create recommendations. These workshops replaced citizen advisory committees and public meetings that were used during deer goal setting in 2015.

Participants reviewed information related to deer populations, harvest trends, habitat, browsing impacts and public health and safety. They also provided feedback on locally important deer management factors. People can find key issues that influenced the goal changes detailed by permit area online.

In the first year of the renewed goal-setting process, the DNR focused on areas in the northwestern and western parts of the state. In general, the goals are to increase deer populations in the north, stabilize populations in the northwest and west, and slightly decrease populations in the central portions of the areas addressed this year.

“We are really happy with the participation and conversations we had,” Keller said. “We look forward to hearing from others in coming years.”

Agricultural producers can now apply for USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), which provides direct payments to offset impacts from the coronavirus pandemic. The application and a payment calculator are now available online, and USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) staff members are available via phone, fax and online tools to help producers complete applications. The agency set up a call center in order to simplify how they serve new customers across the nation.

“We know Minnesota producers are facing a tough time now, and we are making every effort to provide much needed support as quickly as possible,” said SED Joe Martin, state executive director for FSA in Minnesota. “FSA is available over the phone and virtually to walk you through the application process, whether it’s the first time you’ve worked with FSA, or if you know us quite well.”

Applications will be accepted through August 28, 2020. Through CFAP, USDA is making available $16 billion for vital financial assistance to producers of agricultural commodities who have suffered a five-percent-or-greater price decline due to COVID-19 and face additional significant marketing costs as a result of lower demand, surplus production, and disruptions to shipping patterns and the orderly marketing of commodities.

“We also want to remind producers that the program is structured to ensure the availability of funding for all eligible producers who apply,” SED Martin said.

In order to do this, producers will receive 80 percent of their maximum total payment upon approval of the application. The remaining portion of the payment, not to exceed the payment limit, will be paid at a later date nationwide, as funds remain available.

Producers can download the CFAP application and other eligibility forms from farmers.gov/cfap. Also, on that webpage, producers can find a payment calculator to help identify sales and inventory records needed to apply and calculate potential payments.

Additionally, producers in search of one-on-one support with the CFAP application process can call 877-508-8364 to speak directly with a USDA employee ready to offer assistance. This is a good first step before a producer engages the team at the FSA county office at their local USDA Service Center.

APPLYING FOR ASSISTANCE
Producers of all eligible commodities will apply through their local FSA office. Those who use the online calculator tool will be able to print off a pre-filled CFAP application, sign, and submit to your local FSA office either electronically or via hand delivery. Please contact your local office to determine the preferred method. Find contact information for your local office at farmers.gov/cfap.

Documentation to support the producer’s application and certification may be requested after the application is filed. FSA has streamlined the signup process to not require an acreage report at the time of application and a USDA farm number may not be immediately needed.

ADDITIONAL COMMODITIES
USDA is also establishing a process for the public to identify additional commodities for potential inclusion in CFAP. Specifically, USDA is looking for data on agricultural commodities, that are not currently eligible for CFAP, that the public believes to have either:

1. suffered a five percent-or-greater price decline between mid-January and mid-April as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,
2. shipped but subsequently spoiled due to loss of marketing channel, or
3. not left the farm or remained unharvested as mature crops.

More information about this process is available on farmers.gov/cfap.

The Grand Forks Police Department has created a memorial fund for the family of Grand Forks Police Officer Cody Holte who was killed in the line of duty during a shootout in Grand Forks after responding to a request for backup from the Grand Forks Sheriff’s Office.  Holte also served as in the North Dakota National Guard as a 1st Lieutenant. Holte, a native of Hendrum and a 2010 graduate of Norman-County West, leaves behind a wife and 10-month old son. Information from the Memorial Fund is below –

The Grand Forks Police Department would like to announce the creation of a memorial fund in Officer Cody Holte’s name.  The fund will be accessible only by Officer Holte’s family and is sanctioned and affirmed as such by the Grand Forks Police Department.

The fund information is as follows:

Cody Holte Memorial Fund
First State Bank
2500 32nd Avenue South
Grand Forks, ND  58201

A GoFundMe campaign has been created for the family of Grand Forks Police Officer Cody Holte who was killed in the line of duty during a shootout in Grand Forks after responding to a request for backup from the Grand Forks Sheriff’s Office.  Holte also served as in the North Dakota National Guard as a 1st Lieutenant. Holte, a native of Hendrum and a 2010 graduate of Norman-County West, leaves behind a wife and 10-month old son. Information from the go fund me page, which has raised nearly $35,000 in less than 24 hours is below –

On May 27 our state lost one of its finest, when Officer Cody Holte of the Grand Forks police department was killed in the line of duty. Officer Holte was also a First Lieutenant in the North Dakota Army National Guard. Cody dedicated his life to serving his community, state, and nation, always putting the needs of his Soldiers and the citizens he served above his own.

He served as the commander of Det 2, 815th Engineer Company and was a true Soldier. Cody was a selfless leader who spent countless hours preparing his unit for upcoming missions. He led from the front and always put his Soldiers’ needs before his own. Lt. Holte performed every duty to the best of his ability and mentored and motivated his Soldiers to the highest level of readiness.

1st Lt. Cody Holte, 29, assigned to the Lisbon-based 815th Engineer Company was killed in the line of duty in Grand Forks N.D. Holte enlisted in the Army Reserve in 2010, he later commissioned as a 2nd Lt. in the N.D. Army National Guard in 2015, where he served until the time of his death.

Cody lived in Grand Forks, ND with his wife and 10 month old baby boy who were his pride and joy.

Our hometown hero will be remembered for his grin, his kind loving heart and his love for his country and family. Cody will forever be our hero.

Donated funds will be given to his wife and son as they begin to navigate this tragic loss.

With love,
Friends of the Holte family

To view the GoFundMe, please visit: https://gf.me/v/c/3mps/officer-cody-holte-memorial

The Minnesota Department of Health announced they have conducted 233,8738 COVID-19 tests with 23,531 positive tests.  There have been 996 COVID-19 related deaths.
Polk County has 60 positive cases, Pennington County has ballooned to 17, and Marshall County has 10 positive cases.  All the info is listed below –

Data is for cases that were tested and returned positive. All data is preliminary and may change as cases are investigated. Many data points are collected during case interviews. Data presented below is for all cases, regardless of interview status. Data for cases pending interview may be listed as “unknown/missing”.

Not all suspected cases of COVID-19 are tested, so this data is not representative of the total number of people in Minnesota who have or had COVID-19. Cumulative numbers are since Jan. 20, 2020.

• Minnesota COVID-19 Public Dashboard
• Minnesota’s COVID-19 Response and Preparation Capacity
• CDC: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Cases in the U.S.
• Minnesota COVID-19 Modeling