ST. PAUL — For the second year in a row, the Minnesota Legislature passed an omnibus bill for veterans and military affairs. Members of the Commander’s Task Force, to include American Legion Department of Minnesota, had pushed for the veterans omnibus bill so that it […]
By Allen Lund Guest Column, The Minnesota Legionnaire In May, the Minnesota House and Senate passed their Omnibus Tax Bill. It was signed into law by the governor. Included in the bill are major changes to electronic pulltabs and electronic linked bingo. Both games will […]
The tax bill has passed and electronic pulltab games will be decimated in exchange for a nominal tax reduction, audit changes and a cap on manufacturer revenue shares. We expect the revenue losses to be 100-150 million dollars. The Tribes pushed for a full rollback […]
By Vincent J. “Jim” Troiola, National Commander, May 31, 2023 Dear American Legion Family Members and Friends, During my travels, I’ve had the pleasure to meet face-to-face with men and women currently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. These are not customary meet-and-greets with a simple […]
‘It’s going to be further back than when they came out’ By Tim Engstrom The Minnesota Legionnaire ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Legislature on May 21 sent Gov. Tim Walz a tax bill that provides some tax relief for charitable gambling but scales back electronic […]
As you are all aware, electronic gaming rules have been changed by our state representatives. Why they did this is unexplainable and will eventually hurt our American Legion programs and post operations. A summary of the changes follows; SUMMARY OF 2023 LAWFUL GAMBLING STATUTE CHANGES […]
May 30, 1920: Paris Post 1 Commander Col. Francis Drake represents The American Legion to help oversee Memorial Day observances for fallen U.S military personnel buried in temporary cemeteries across Europe. May 30, 1921: Four unknown American soldiers of the Great War are exhumed from […]
By JUSTIN WM. MOYER • THE WASHINGTON POST • May 29, 2023 WASHINGTON — Thousands of Harley Davidson motorcycles revved up outside the Department of Defense’s headquarters. Excited children waved American flags at passing riders while the more timid among them plugged their ears to […]
In the 2023 legislative session, we veterans were able to get a lot — a second omnibus bill, an expansion of the post-9/11 bonus for servicemembers lawmakers missed last year, bonding-bill funding for much-needed improvements to the Hastings Veterans Home, a formula that lets homeless […]
Military Times: By Leo Shane III • May 22, 12:00 PM Ahead of Memorial Day remembrances, Department of Veterans Affairs officials have added 300,000 new names to their online registry of deceased veterans and service members interred at national cemeteries across the country. The four-year-old Veterans […]
From the National Adjutant, Daniel S. Wheeler; You may recall part of our decision to invest in INDYCAR marketing was to amplify our message on one of the biggest stages in sports. The Indy 500 is one of the largest sporting events in the world […]
By BRIAN MCELHINEY • STARS AND STRIPES • May 20, 2023 Bill Lins stuck it out in the U.S. Marine Corps for as long as he could. Enlisting in 2004, Lins, 38, served in Iraq in 2006 and 2007. On that last deployment, his unit […]
Scheels Top 20 Rankings Rankings for Div. I teams in Minnesota American Legion Baseball are released every Thursday during baseball season. This is the preseason rankings. (The first in-season ranking comes out June 8.) 1. Mankato Post 11 National 2. St. Paul Hamline Post 418 […]
15 May 2023 • Military.com • By Rebecca Kheel Billions of dollars of veterans benefits could be imperiled if the U.S. defaults on its debts, though the full extent of the fallout is uncertain because of the unprecedented nature of a default. About $12 billion […]
American Legion National Convention Sites and Dates Year Dates Location 2023 Aug 25 – 31 Charlotte, North Carolina 2024 Aug 23 – 29 New Orleans, Louisiana 2025 Aug 22 – 28 Tampa, Florida 2026 Aug 28 – Sept 3 Louisville, […]
Racer.com; By Marshall Pruett • May 13, 2023 7:04 PM ET Christian Lundgaard led most of the opening lap of the Indianapolis Grand Prix, but the polesitter quickly fell prey to Alex Palou who used superior tire strategy and pace to lead 52 of the 85-lap […]
By ROSE L. THAYER • STARS AND STRIPES • May 12, 2023 The requirement to live in a state for more than 90 days before applying for citizenship could be waived for military spouses under a new bill introduced Friday by House lawmakers. Reps. Marilyn […]
Nonprofits worried about reduction in gambling revenue ST. PAUL — They said it wasn’t going to happen. Then it happened. A bill amendment to scale back e-pulltabs came out April 17. The same amendment took the long-sought-after tax cuts to charitable gambling and reduced them […]
Sen. Kaine introduces national version of state anti-housing discrimination law for veterans, low-income families By Ian Munro • The Virginian-Pilot • May 01, 2023 at 7:32 pm Sen. Tim Kaine reintroduced a 2018 bill meant to stop housing discrimination against veterans and low income families […]
Sen. Amy Klobuchar introduces bipartisan legislation for military veterans By Noah Caplan • Published: May. 1, 2023 at 11:21 PM EDT • Updated: 8 hours ago ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – Eric Andringa is a retired Lieutenant Colonel. In his 28 years of service and 18 […]
‘They’re Not Able to Cover Their Rent’: Housing Top Concern as Congressional Panel on Military Life Starts Work Military.com 25 Apr 2023 • Military.com • By Rebecca Kheel Enlisted personnel and junior officers are very concerned about being able to afford housing, the chairman of […]
Military Times By Meghann Myers • Apr 25, 04:20 PM The United States Vietnam War Commemoration is calling on all Vietnam War veterans and their families to head to the National Mall May 11-13 for a “welcome home” event featuring performances, speakers and a chance […]
Earns $25K Scholarship, National Championship INDIANAPOLIS (April 23, 2023) – A home-schooled senior from Indianapolis capped a busy weekend of competition in her home city by earning a $25,000 college scholarship and first place in The American Legion High School Oratorical Scholarship Program – “A […]
The American Legion MAR 24, 2023 The Department of Veterans Affairs recently announced that surviving spouses or children of a veterans who died from a PACT Act-related condition may qualify for VA benefits, including monthly benefits through the VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) Program. Surviving […]
National Legislative Division Weekly Update From The American Legion National Organization The American Legion held a press conference with Sens. Todd Young, R-Ind., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., who have led the bipartisan effort to repeal the 1991 and 2002 AUMFs. The two senators have raised […]
Statement on situation at Hastings Veterans Home attributed to Department Commander Jennifer Havlick March 20, 2023 The American Legion Department of Minnesota has a Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Committee that routinely visits the Minnesota Veterans Homes and other places where veterans of our state receive […]
Associated Press: By TARA COPP and LOLITA C. BALDOR • today WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a number of improvements in access to mental health care on Thursday to reduce suicides in the military, but held off on endorsing more controversial recommendations […]
March 17, 1919: Lt. Col. Thomas W. Miller of Delaware, a former member of Congress who enlisted as an infantryman in the Army after an unsuccessful re-election campaign, brings the final day of the Paris Caucus to order. Without a gavel to start the meeting, […]
By Linda Dvorak This past month I had an email from a concerned member wondering why we don’t emphasize our programs more and often talk membership. This is a very good question and one that deserves an answer. First of all, as we all know, […]