Overview
- The governor signed two executive orders Tuesday that create a Governor’s Statewide Safety Council to draft an immediate action plan to prevent mass attacks.
- A companion order directs agencies to quantify gun-violence costs, expand safe‑storage and red‑flag law outreach, and require homeowners insurers to submit firearm‑related policy and claims data for analysis.
- Walz pursued executive action after negotiations on bans of assault‑style weapons and high‑capacity magazines faltered, and he says he will renew the push when lawmakers return in February 2026.
- Citing recent attacks, Walz argued the steps will save lives and called for wider use of Extreme Risk Protection Orders, which his office says have been used about 400 times in Minnesota.
- Republican leaders and the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus criticized the orders as low‑impact or political and urged attention to mental health, intervention, and school security.