The former Mayor of Winnebago and his son submitted plea deals on Wednesday for illegally growing marijuana.

Sixty eight year old Scott Robertson and his son, 47 year old Jacob Robertson, both pleaded guilty to an amended charge of third degree misdemeanor possession of cannabis, but Judge Troy Timmerman rejected the plea bargain deals.

The plea deals would drop other charges against them stemming from the unlawful cultivation of more than 23 cannabis plants.

The South Central Drug Investigation Unit and the Faribault County Sheriff’s Office located “approximately 240 plants believed to be marijuana” at three different addresses in Winnebago associated with the Robertsons.

According to the charging documents, the Robertsons previously operated a licensed and regulated hemp cultivating operation.  They each had a license active in 2023, but it expired at the start of the year.  Regulators also require each hemp crop to be registered with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.  They had not registered one since 2021.

Court documents state that none of the labeled plants found on the Robertsons’ properties matched the known and registered hemp seeds and plants permitted to be grown in the state.

Their next hearing is scheduled for August 5^th.

USA Today has named Winnebago Industries as on of America’s Climate Leaders for 2024.

Winnebago Industries ranked 32^nd on the list of 450 companies selected and was the leader in the Automotive & Components sector, achieving a 38.6% reduction in absolute emissions from its 2020 baseline.

USA Today says America’s Climate Leaders were chosen through a through application process, extensive data analysis and a scoring phase.

By 2030, Winnebago Industries says its aim is to achieve a 90% diversion of waste from landfills, at least 50% reduction in absolute greenhouse gas emissions and 30% reduction of freshwater use by 2030.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has announced the approval of Dickinson, Humboldt and Palo Alto Counties for Individual Assistance under the previously approved Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for Iowa Counties where significant damage was sustained form severe storms, flooding, straight line winds and tornadoes that have occurred since June 16^th.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency Individual Assistance Program is already activated for the following counties related to this incident: Buena Vista, Cherokee, Clay, Emmet, Lyon, O’Brien, Plymouth, Sioux and Woodbury Counties.

Dickinson County residents are now eligible for the Iowa Disaster Recovery Temporary Housing Program.

This program is available to survivors whose homes were majorly damaged, destroyed or deemed not habitable in counties currently under a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for both FEMA Individual and Public Assistance.

For more information on disaster related programs and resources available to Iowans, visit DisasterRecovery.iowa.gov.

The State’s Unemployment Rate ticked up one tenth of a percentage point to 2.9% from May to June and the Labor Force Participation Rate ticked down two tenths of a percentage point to 67.8% over the month, according to numbers released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Minnesota lost 3,200 jobs from May to June on a seasonally adjusted basis, with the private sector down 3,330 jobs.  Even with June’s losses, Minnesota has added jobs eight of the last 12 months.  The state’s labor force declined by more than 3,100 people.  Minnesota’s unemployment rate remains low and its labor force participation rate continues to be among the highest in the country.

Nationally, the unemployment rate increased one tenth of a percentage point to 4.1% and the labor force participation rate increased one tenth of a percentage point to 62.6% over the month.

Wages for Minnesota workers again outpaced inflation and national wage growth.  Average hour wages for all private sector workers increased $2.02 or 5.7% over the year.  The Consumer Price Index (CPI), a common measure of inflation, rose 3% over the year, meaning wages increased almost twice as fast as inflation.  Nationally, private sector wages grew 4.7% over the year.

The Faribault County Board of Commissioners met on Tuesday and Christy Kallevig with the University of Minnesota Extension presented the new 2025 agreement to the board.

Commissioner Greg Young says there are some concerns with the agreement, namely that the Extension wants the same amount of money from every county, which for the next agreement period, is an increase of about $19,000.

Young says that amount is hard to justify the increase considering now much less population has compared to other counties.

No decision was made on the agreement and the matter will be taken up at a meeting in the future.