U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., has introduced a bill to ban copper-nickel mining on nearly a quarter-million acres of federal land in the same watershed as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

The bill would make permanent a 20-year ban on that type of mining on 225,000 acres of Superior National Forest land in the Rainy River Watershed, which is shared with the BWCAW.

The status of mining in that watershed and Twin Metals, which wants to build an underground mine, tailings storage facility and processing plant upstream of the BWCAW along Birch Lake, has bounced back and forth depending on who is in the White House. The mineral withdrawal, or pause, would expire in 2043, but Republican President Donald Trump has vowed to reverse it.

Smith’s legislation is similar to a bill introduced in the U.S. House by Rep. Betty McCollum, a Democrat from St. Paul, but both bills are unlikely to pass as a Republican majority controls each chamber.

“The Boundary Waters must be protected for today, and future generations,” Smith said in a news release Wednesday. “The impartial science and data show unequivocally that copper-nickel sulfide mining poses an unacceptable risk to the Boundary Waters.”

The mineral withdrawal and rejection of Twin Metals leases were first enacted in the final days of the Obama administration. The Trump administration then reversed those moves, but they were later reinstated by the Biden administration, which also released an accompanying U.S. Forest Service study that said hard-rock mining in the Rainy River Watershed could pose an environmental threat to the BWCAW.

According to Save the Boundary Waters, Smith’s bill is the first in the U.S. Senate that would offer additional protections to the BWCAW in nearly 50 years. The last was the 1978 Boundary Waters Act, which was signed into law by President Jimmy Carter.

“Former Vice President Walter Mondale remained devoted to permanently protecting the Boundary Waters, calling it ‘the obligation of each generation,’” Ingrid Lyons, executive director of Save the Boundary Waters, said in a news release. “Today, Senator Smith is building upon this legacy.”

The bill specifically targets sulfide ore mining, Smith said. That means the mining of metals like copper, nickel, gold and cobalt found in sulfide-bearing rock. Opponents fear pollution from this type of mining could leach out and pollute water downstream.

The bill exempts the mining of taconite, iron ore, gravel, sand and gravel from the ban, Smith said.

“Mining is an important driver of Minnesota’s economy and the pride of every Iron Ranger. I support mining, but not this mine in this precious place,” Smith said.

Smith’s bill is slightly less restrictive than the current mineral withdrawal, which bans all hard-rock mining, including the mining of iron ore and taconite, which is a type of iron ore, on those quarter-million acres; however, as the Duluth News Tribune previously reported, there are no known taconite deposits on the withdrawn land and only two parcels contain any sort of iron formation — a small amount of native iron ore, which hasn’t been mined in the state for almost 60 years.

U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, a Republican from Hermantown who has reintroduced a bill to reverse the mineral withdrawal, said in a news release Wednesday that Smith was “an out of touch Democrat trying to prevent the responsible development of the Duluth Complex.”

The Duluth Complex in northeastern Minnesota formed 1.1 billion years ago when the Midcontinent Rift tried to pull North America apart, sending magma up and leaving behind deposits of copper, nickel and other metals.

“With the introduction of this legislation, Senator Smith has once again proven herself to be anti-union,” Stauber said. “Fortunately, Senator Smith is in the minority and retiring soon, so any chance of this legislation becoming law is virtually impossible.”

Smith will be retiring at the end of her six-year term in 2027.

The office of U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., did not respond to the News Tribune on whether she would sign on as a co-sponsor to Smith’s bill or if she supported or opposed the mineral withdrawal continuing.

In a statement, Twin Metals spokesperson Kathy Graul said the company opposed any ban on mining in the region.

“Any attempt to permanently ban mining across a significant area in northeast Minnesota runs contrary to both our nation’s goals of bolstering mineral supply chains and the state of Minnesota’s decarbonization efforts,” Graul said. “This region sits on top of one of the world’s largest undeveloped deposits of critical minerals that are vital in building clean energy technologies, creating American jobs, and bolstering our national security.”

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Minnesota legislators are weighing a new tax on social media platforms that could raise $334 million in the next four years as the state faces a multibillion-dollar deficit later this decade and uncertainty surrounding federal funding.

Under a proposal introduced by Senate Taxes Committee Chair Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, large social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X would pay a tax on the collection of user data, which they sell to advertisers.

What lawmakers said is a first-of-its-kind state tax would be based on usership for platforms with 100,000 or more monthly users in Minnesota. It would scale up depending on the number of users on the platform, with the top bracket applying to platforms with 1 million or more users.

“For many years now, social media platforms and businesses have taken our information, our identifying information, and used it to make millions and millions of dollars,” Rest told the Senate Taxes Committee as she presented her bill on Wednesday. “We hope we can modernize the way in which our tax systems work, recognizing the world has greatly changed.”

Revenue expected to grow

Undated courtesy photo of Minnesota Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope. Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Senate.

If the new social media tax were to take effect as a part of this year’s two-year state budget, it would raise about $46 million in its first year. That amount is expected to grow to more than $90 million annually in the following three years, according to an analysis by the Minnesota Department of Revenue.

The Senate and House tax committees heard versions of the bill Wednesday and held it over for possible inclusion in a larger tax package bill later in the session. It could face a tough path forward in the House, where Republicans and Democrats both have 67 seats. GOP lawmakers say the state shouldn’t pass any new taxes and should focus on rolling back the large expansion of spending that happened under Democratic-Farmer-Labor controlled government in 2023.

Rest and other supporters who testified in favor of the new tax said it would ensure that large companies profiting off user data — which they get by providing otherwise free services — are paying their fair share in Minnesota.

“This bill proceeds from the very reasonable premise that this extraction of value should be taxed the way the extraction of many other valuable natural resources are taxed,” said University of California — Davis law professor Darien Shanske, whose work focuses on state and local tax policy.

Economic disruptions and federal budget cuts caused by President Donald Trump also could mean more stress on state resources in the months and years ahead, supporters said.

“This bill is badly needed because it provides revenue that could be used to help those that will be hurt if the social safety net is shredded,” said Phillip Sandro, a retiree with health issues living on a fixed income who spoke for the progressive faith group Isaiah.

Supporters also argued that negative social consequences from social media platforms, such as potential harm to younger users’ mental health, warrant taxation because of the cost they pose to society. Politicians have targeted companies like Facebook parent Meta in recent years after studies showed that excessive teen social media use was tied to psychological distress.

GOP says state should curb spending

Minnesota is set to have a $456 million budget surplus in 2026-2027, but as lawmakers put together a two-year state budget this spring, a $6 billion deficit looms in the following 2028-2029 fiscal year. Early proposals from the Governor’s Office, House and Senate have largely centered around billions in cuts, but Democratic-Farmer-Labor senators and representatives have left new taxes on the table.

Republican Senators questioned the need for any new taxes when the state grew spending by 40% in the last budget passed in 2023, which saw state spending top $70 billion and used most of a record $18 billion budget surplus.

“The reason why the state of Minnesota is facing a $6 billion structural deficit is because of the overspending, the unsustainable spending over the last two years,”  said Sen. Jeremy Miller, R-Winona. “When you spend more than the revenue coming in, it’s unsustainable; it’s simple math.”

Sen. Jeremy Miller, R-Winona. (Dana Ferguson / Forum News Service)

Opponents also said a tax on social media platforms will hurt small businesses in the state who rely on targeted advertising to reach local and regional customers. New social media taxes would mean big companies would pass the cost along to smaller business customers, argued it would limit access to targeted ads.

“Minnesota’s consumers, small businesses, retailers, family farms and even newspapers that would feel this squeeze,” said Deb Peters, a lobbyist with Americans for Digital Opportunity and the Association of National Advertisers. “Taxing advertising, especially online, raises prices for everyone.”

Business interests also noted that passing a law targeting social media with a new tax could attract legal action. The Internet Tax Freedom Act, originally passed in 1998, protects online businesses from state and local government taxes that apply only to digital commerce, wrote the Midwest branch of TechNet, a group representing technology executives.

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The St. Paul City Council approved the creation on Wednesday of a new committee, internal to the council, that will meet regularly to discuss financial matters related to police, fire, code enforcement and other public safety spending.

The effort to create a new regularly standing committee within the council was approved 5-2 and led by Council Member Anika Bowie, who said greater oversight will allow elected officials and the general public a forum to better understand how tax dollars are spent.

St. Paul City Council member Anika Bowie. (Courtesy of the City of St. Paul)

Bowie said council committees already meet monthly to discuss the city’s libraries, water department or general budget. Following the approval of the city charter in 1970, the city council maintained a public safety committee as part of its early subcommittee structure from 1972 to 1978, though it was later merged with a licensing committee and then repealed entirely.

“I think public safety deserves that same attention,” said Bowie, who was announced in January as the future committee chair. “Public safety is no less important. … This vote is about managing our council business better … (and) making sure we have adequate time to hear from our department heads. … It’s about giving our public a transparent space to understand and engage.”

Following extensive back-and-forth with the mayor’s office last year over heavy police overtime spending, Council Member Nelsie Yang was announced in January as the future vice-chair of the committee under Bowie. On Wednesday, Yang said she had withdrawn her support for the effort she once planned to help lead.

Council Member Matt Privratsky joined Yang in casting the sole “no” votes, with Yang expressing concern the committee would be duplicative to the work of the council’s existing budget committee, among other efforts. The city, for instance, already has a 15-member Neighborhood Safety Community Council, which works the city’s Office of Neighborhood Safety to evaluate public safety outreach grants and develop annual priorities for the department.

St. Paul City Council member Matt Privratsky. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

“There’s already questions being referred over to me about whether something that is going to be referred over to the council is going to be in the budget and finance committee, or the public safety committee,” Yang said.

Bowie was supported in her vote by Council Member Cheniqua Johnson, who had voiced some skepticism last month based on a lack of outreach at the time to the Office of Neighborhood Safety, as well as police and fire officials. Johnson on Wednesday said Bowie took that feedback to heart and done her due diligence, and the latest version of the resolution was worded in a manner that had swayed her vote.

“I think it’s important that if we’re establishing any committee, that we’re doing so in partnership with the same departments,” Johnson said. “You did take a lot of the feedback into consideration. … The things that are listed here are within the scope of the council and what the council is (assigned) to do.”

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The chief executive officer of the Minnesota Wild weighed in on St. Paul’s rent control ordinance Wednesday, as did a community impact director with the St. Paul and Minnesota Foundation and a real estate broker with a background in affordable housing.

With St. Paul’s housing construction numbers dragging lower last year than at any time since 2013, the three letter writers joined a cadre of others who say it’s time to end rent control for new housing construction, as well as buildings that received their certificate of occupancy after 2004, as the mayor and three council members have proposed.

“Prominent buildings at the core of our city are being vacated, abandoned and boarded up,” said Matt Majka, CEO of the Minnesota Wild, in a letter to the St. Paul City Council bemoaning the state of downtown. “We must do everything we can to reinvest in these properties and reposition them as housing.”

But Deborah Schlick, a resident of the city’s West Side, took the opposite tack, arguing that the city already watered down the 2021 voter-approved rent stabilization ordinance with a number of amendments and was poised to shred it to “Swiss cheese” with yet another, an affront to renters that now comprise nearly half the city.

“In this economy, there is time to do this right,” wrote Schlick, in her own letter to the city council. “Put a hold on any decision. Between interest rates and tariffs, no one is rushing to build anywhere. Build a thoughtful, effective strategy to ensure low wage workers and people unable to work can afford to find a home in St. Paul.”

The city council held public hearings Wednesday on two hot-button questions likely up for votes in early May. At the urging of St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, housing developers and certain affordable housing advocates who have called rent control a well-intentioned but failed effort, the council is contemplating exempting any construction that received its certificate of occupancy after 2004.

North End homeowner Adam Dullinger, left, speaks against a proposed amendments to the St. Paul rent control ordnance during a public hearing before the St. Paul City Council in council chambers at St. Paul City Hall on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Scapegoating rent control for the housing slowdown?

Carter and several council members have said those changes should move forward hand-in-hand with a raft of proposed tenant protections also vetted through a public hearing on Wednesday.

City officials have expressed alarm that only 293 housing units were constructed in St. Paul last year, down from more than 1,400 in 2019, and only a few dozen of last year’s new units were non-subsidized, market-rate housing. They’ve pointed out that multiple rent-controlled cities offer exemptions for new construction, including Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.

Matthew McMillan, a renter, noted that while St. Paul has struggled to draw interest from the development community, housing construction also plunged in cities that do not have rent control. Given high interest rates and other economic challenges, an attorney with the Housing Justice Center, based in St. Paul, told the council the city is “scapegoating” rent control for construction slowdowns increasingly evident throughout the Twin Cities.

On the city’s East Side, “one in three Ward 7 renters pay over half their income to rent,” said another speaker, who identified himself as a graduate student who studies the housing industry. “This is absolutely a supply issue. … It’s a downtown issue. But rent control is not the cause of those problems.”

Some critics expressed fear that creating a two-tier system will offer extra incentive to developers to tear down older, naturally affordable properties and replace them with pricey new units exempt from rent control.

“Trickle-down affordability is both grossly insufficient and … unjust,” said another renter, pointing to limited recent construction and high rents in Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Denver and other cities without rent control.

Opponents say goals not met

Rent control’s opponents have argued that the blanket policy has done more to protect wealthy renters from large hikes than to protect the poor, given that many owners of older properties have been granted exemptions to the rent caps because of high maintenance costs, inflation and property tax increases.

In a letter to the council, real estate broker Renee Spillum, a former director of real estate with the University of Minnesota Foundation’s Real Estate Advisors, said she once spent seven years struggling to find financing to build new apartments in a low-income Minneapolis neighborhood. St. Paul’s rent control ordinance has made a difficult slog even harder, she said.

“I want more competition in St. Paul between landlords, not less,” Spillum wrote. “The only way that happens is adding more units. And the only way we add more units in our city is not to make it impossible for developers to raise equity capital to build here.”

Scott Cordes, chief operating officer of affordable housing developer Project for Pride in Living, told the council Wednesday that rent control has had too many “unintended consequences,” such as limiting affordable housing production at the Highland Bridge development, where affordable units have only moved forward at three of 10 parcels.

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Rent control, budget, acrimony, attendance issues dog St. Paul City Council