Good morning.  The holiday weekend rush has probably begun, but we'll hang in there a bit longer because you demand it.

Top figures in the Trump administration, including the head of the Justice Department, are due in Minnesota today to talk about fraud. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Mehmet Oz are among the officials due at a press conference to discuss a new round of criminal charges in ongoing Medicaid fraud probes. MPR’s Matt Sepic reports on the latest criminal cases involving millions of dollars. They involve a child care assistance program as well as a now-shut housing stabilization program.

The ringleader of what federal prosecutors have called the nation's largest COVID fraud scheme faces sentencing Thursday morning. Last year, a jury convicted Aimee Bock on all seven counts of wire fraud and bribery for leading a conspiracy to fleece taxpayers out of nearly $250 million. Sepic explains who Bock is and how she exploited lax oversight and pandemic-era rule changes to fraudulently claim reimbursement for millions of meals that were never served. Prosecutors are asking U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel to send Bock to prison for 50 years. Defense attorney Ken Udoibok argues that it's unfair to pin the entire loss on Bock, and that the government's math is iffy. Udoibok is pushing for a three-year sentence. Bock is among 79 people charged in the scheme since it came to light in 2022. So far, the longest prison sentence of 28 years has gone to Abdiaziz Farah, the co-owner of a Shakopee restaurant, who was convicted along with four other people at the first Feeding Our Future trial in 2024.

The governor and other leaders praised the Legislature’s bill funding HCMC, to help the large, trauma one hospital. Our colleague Regina Medina reports they say there will be requirements tied to the state's stability funding investment into Hennepin County Medical Center. Jan Malcolm, senior advisor to Gov. Tim Walz and former health commissioner, says there are provisions in the legislation tied to finances that contain some reporting requirements. Malcolm also says there will be transparency in how the funds are used and HCMC's progress along the way. "There is also a task force that's part of the package that is specifically charged with looking at long-term sustainability and other ways, in addition to external financial support, other ways in which the hospital can become stronger,” Malcolm said. The funding includes $205 million this year and another $500 million through the Hospital Stabilization Reserve Account. HCMC is expected to incur $1.7 billion in losses over the next decade due to rising uninsured rates and Medicaid cuts. 

House Speaker Lisa Demuth says there’s no ill-will between her and her daughter Shelisa Demuth after Shelisa penned an op-ed this week criticizing her mother for not bringing a gun bill to a vote. In an interview with MPR News, the speaker said several gun restriction bills came up in committee and failed to advance through the tied panels. And efforts to bring a broader omnibus bill banning ghost guns, assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines failed to garner enough votes to be pulled from the table for a vote. She said she told Senate Democrats early in the session that House Republican leadership didn’t want to take up omnibus bills. She had little to say about Shelisa’s piece in the Star Tribune, other than that the two don’t see eye to eye on that issue. “I think people are on different sides of the issues,” Lisa Demuth said. “So you did see an article and there was an interview and clearly she has a different viewpoint.”

Lawmakers bonded over the bonding bill this session. Brian Arola of MinnPost highlighted the bipartisan relationships that got a $1.2 billion bonding bill across the finish line. Though negotiations throughout the session were tough and not politics-free, DFLer Sandra Pappas and Republican Karin Housley in the Senate and DFLer Fue Lee and Republican Mary Franson in the House built strong relationships that paid off when the bonding bill passed on the last day of session. Arola points out some of that bipartisanship was built from necessity: bonding bills need three-fifths majorities to pass. Also, infrastructure needs cross district lines. Every community in Minnesota, be it red, purple or blue, is affected by aging roads, bridges and buildings. Members of the capital investment committees in each chamber also get to know each other well while trekking all over the state analyzing infrastructure needs in different cities. By the end of session, a colleague called Lee and Franson “Team House” and Pappas called Housley her “bonding bestie.” Housley is set to speak at Pappas’ retirement party later this year.

An innovative housing initiative is getting a trial run in St. Louis County. Legislators and the governor approved $150,000 to establish the Minnesota Nice HomeShare pilot program that would match senior homeowners who have spare rooms with adults in need of affordable housing. The program will handle the technical aspects of renting on behalf of the seniors like collecting and processing rental payments and conducting background checks on potential renters. The program would benefit seniors and renters in St. Louis, Lake and Washington counties.

There is relief among many county workers who will see upgrades soon to their decades-old computer systems. Lawmakers approved $90 million to update technology used to administer federal safety net programs, such as SNAP and Medicaid. MPR reporter Hannah Yang reports , “the MAXIS system that counties use was new at about the time the Minnesota Twins last won the World Series. That was 35 years ago.” The upgrades come at a time where counties are being asked to do more administrative work by the federal government with cuts in federal funding. “When there are changes, the ripple effect through all the levels of government and all the workers who touch those things is complicated and messy and something that we struggle to figure out the best way to make policy around,” said Julie Ring, executive director of the Association of Minnesota Counties. Legislators say more upgrades will be needed in the next few legislative sessions to get the entire system up to speed.

We’re in the dog house. Correction: Sen. Scott Dibble’s pet shop bill did NOT pass. After some fancy legislative maneuvering that shows how hard the Capitol process is to track, the bill was stripped of its language and became the outdoor heritage fund omnibus. That’s the bill that ultimately passed.