WINONA, Minn. – State Representative Gene Pelowski, D-Winona, introduced a bill to reload the state’s disaster relief fund. The fund has run low covering fire damage from rioting in Minneapolis last summer. Pelowski wants the fund replenished to $30 million. The fund has been depleted to $4 million by repairs to damaged police and other buildings and public infrastructure. Pelowski acknowledged Republican opponents, who say that Governor Tim Walz never should have spent the money because the damage wasn’t a natural disaster. To sidestep the distinction, Walz recently proposed a public safety fund to cover damage from civil unrest.
