Rep. Dean Phillips late in filing disclosure; PAC pledges cash to DFL women; Walz's team heads abroad

U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips is the only House member from Minnesota who has not filed a mandated financial disclosure form.

The yearly forms "include information about the source, type, amount, or value of income of Members," according to the House Clerk's Office.

The other seven House members from Minnesota have all filed theirs. They can be found online, on the House Clerk website.

Phillips, a Democrat, is an heir to a Minnesota liquor fortune who has launched several other successful businesses. A spokeswoman said he filed for an extension in April and that filling out his form takes longer "given the complexity of Dean's finances."

Super PACs and other groups are expected to once again pour tens of millions of dollars into the presidential and congressional races in Minnesota in 2020. But signs are emerging that the fight for control of the state Legislature will attract significant outside spending, too. This week, EMILY's List, a Washington, D.C.-based political action committee that backs Democratic women who support abortion rights, announced plans to spend an unprecedented $20 million on state legislative races this cycle. Minnesota, one of the only states in the country with a divided Legislature, is one of the group's top targets.

During a press call this week, EMILY's List senior director of state and local campaigns Geri Prado said flipping Republicans' three-vote majority in the state Senate is "definitely at the top of our list." Supporting female DFL incumbents in the House will also be a priority.

"We'll be engaged in both, absolutely," EMILY's List President Stephanie Schriock said.

Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan departs Friday on the administration's first official trip abroad, leading a delegation of state lawmakers on an 11-day tour highlighting Germany's efforts to promote sustainability in the agriculture and energy sectors.

Gov. Tim Walz said this week that "plans are in the making" for an inaugural trade trip of his own. The DFL governor mentioned unspecified African nations, Japan and Southeast Asia more generally as trade partners he'd like to develop further.

"We're looking potentially in the fall to try and explore some of those markets, both the agricultural side of things where we're really earning, and we want to make sure those are continuing to expand, but also looking at ... a lot of robust interest in manufacturing," Walz said at a news conference Monday.

In the meantime, Walz said he's taking an "aggressive and robust" approach to the issue, meeting with leaders from Canada, Mexico and elsewhere as he seeks to "re-establish trade partners and open up new markets."

"We think now, with the federal government not being very effective even in bilateral trade agreements, that the states are going to have to pick that up," he said. "To the best of our ability, we want to do that and expand those opportunities."

patrick.coolican@startribune.com

torey.vanoot@startribune.com