Attorney General Ellison forms Task Force on Future of Minnesota’s Water

Solicits applications through Open Appointments process; sets April 30 application deadline and June start to work of Task Force

Task Force to study issues affecting the stewardship of Minnesota’s water resources; to be ‘not about regulation, but imagination’

March 31, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) – Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced today that he is forming a new Advisory Task Force on the Future of Minnesota’s Water. He is soliciting applications to serve on the Task Force through the State of Minnesota Open Appointments process. The deadline for applying is April 30, 2025. The Task Force will begin its work in June 2025.

Members of the task force will study issues affecting the stewardship of Minnesota’s water resources, explore best practices from examples in practice in Minnesota and other states, and collaborate to develop a broad set of recommendations for policymakers and regulators, advocacy groups and business leaders, communities and individuals.

“I’m forming this task force to jumpstart an important conversation about how we steward our precious water resources into the future, especially in the context of pressures like increasing demand and global climate change. I realize that when an attorney general gets involved in an issue, people think it will be about the fine print of rules and statutes — but that’s not the vision for this task force. Instead, I want it to be not about regulation, but imagination; not about pointing fingers or assigning blame, but about our best thinking for expanding what’s possible for us as stewards of Minnesota’s water,” Attorney General Ellison said.

Applying for the Task Force

Fifteen positions on the Task Force will be filled through the State of Minnesota Open Appointments process. Attorney General Ellison is seeking people to serve from the following backgrounds:

• Three experts or advocates in water conservation
• Three experts or advocates in farming and agriculture
• Three county environmentalists/regulators (must be from different counties and at least one from Greater Minnesota)
• Three experts or advocates in water quality
• Three experts or advocates in tribal issues

The remaining positions on the Task Force will be reserved for four state legislators and representatives of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, the Minnesota Department of Health, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, as well as staff of the Attorney General’s Office.

People interested in serving on the Task Force may apply by April 30, 2025 via the Open Appointments process on the Secretary of State’s website.