REGIONAL — Gov. Tim Walz took his first executive steps on gun violence Tuesday after months of failed negotiations at the Capitol, signing two orders intended to boost public safety and lay groundwork for broader gun control legislation next session.
The move follows a string of high-profile shootings and unsuccessful efforts to win bipartisan support for bans on assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines. Walz has pushed for a special session since summer, but talks with Republican leaders broke down in September.
“Gun violence has inflicted heartbreak and loss for families in Minnesota and across the country time and time again. Enough is enough,” Walz said in announcing the orders.
He said repeated discussions with Republican lawmakers produced “excuses and stonewalling.”
The actions, while limited, mark the first time a Minnesota governor has used executive authority to address gun violence prevention.
What the orders do
The orders create a statewide safety council and direct state agencies to prioritize efforts to prevent gun deaths and injuries.
Key features include:
• Establishing the Governor’s Statewide Safety Council to develop strategies to prevent mass shootings, domestic terrorism, and ideologically motivated attacks, and to recommend policy and funding.
• Directing the Department of Commerce to work with insurers to collect and analyze firearm-related claims, providing data on the financial and societal burden of gun violence.
• Requiring the Department of Public Safety to expand public education on Minnesota’s Extreme Risk Protection Order law, including tracking and reporting ERPO usage statewide.
• Providing schools and families with safe storage education, including access to gun locks and safes.
Walz and Democratic legislative leaders say the executive actions are a bridge toward more comprehensive reforms expected to be reintroduced when lawmakers return in February.
Walz has been under pressure from parents and advocates following deadly shootings, including the August shooting at the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis that killed two children and wounded dozens, and the June shooting deaths of former House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband in their home.
Red flag law use rises
Minnesota judges have issued ERPOs hundreds of times since the state’s “red flag” law took effect. MPR News reported Tuesday that the orders have been used roughly 400 times.
Walz said increased education and statewide reporting could improve effectiveness and prevent future tragedies.
“These actions today don’t limit your freedoms at all. Being shot dead in your school certainly does,” he said at a news conference with families of Annunciation students and gun control advocates.
The administration said ERPOs and safe storage efforts are proven to reduce suicide, domestic violence, and accidental shootings.
Republicans cry politics
GOP leaders blasted Walz for sidestepping lawmakers and accused him of exploiting grief for political gain.
“Shame on the governor for politicizing tragedy, and shame on him for ignoring bipartisan safety solutions in favor of mockery and lies,” House Speaker Lisa Demuth said in a written statement.
Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson said the executive actions fall short of addressing root causes of gun violence.
“Executive action to study and educate the public on gun safety are not actual solutions to keeping kids safe in school,” Johnson said. “Addressing mental health, intervening before a crisis turns violent, and active safety protocols are real solutions that Republicans support to keep our kids safe.”
Next steps
Walz acknowledged the scope of what he can accomplish without lawmakers is limited. Advocacy groups pushing for stricter gun laws view the orders as progress, but many say the next session will test whether the Legislature can move beyond entrenched partisan divides.
At the governor’s press conference, Annunciation parent Dan Manchon urged lawmakers to act.
“We’re just asking folks to move their feet,” he said. “At least he’s trying to do something. And I just hope everybody can have a conversation and open their minds to potentially what’s best for the kids and how to protect them.”
Walz said the administration spent months researching executive authority boundaries to ensure the orders withstand legal scrutiny.
“There’s frustration,” Walz said. “It’s my responsibility to do all I can to move it. We will continue to do more of it. Parents expect action.”