February 18, 2014 - Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman, for the third year, issued a letter to more than 9,600 licensed CPAs in Minnesota to remind tax preparers of the signs of senior financial abuse. As CPAs prepare tax returns for their senior clients, the Commissioner urges tax professionals to use their expertise to help spot elder fraud and financial abuse.

February 18, 2014 - The Department of Commerce is encouraging Minnesotans to keep furnace exhaust vents, air intake hoods, and chimneys clear of snow and ice in order to keep the heat on and prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

February 10, 2014 - Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman in conjunction with Minnesota’s Petrofund Board filed a $25 million lawsuit against British Petroleum (BP) to recover money for claims paid to the company to clean up contamination from leaking petroleum storage tanks at service stations across the state.

January 30, 2014 - The Minnesota Department of Commerce announced today that Minnesota will receive an additional $15,814,434 in federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funds for the Energy Assistance Program (EAP). The total amount of funds Minnesota has received this year is $114,540,746. The LIHEAP program in Minnesota helps low-income homeowners and renters pay heating bills through grant money paid directly to utility companies and heating fuel vendors on behalf of customers.

January 13, 2014 - The Minnesota Department of Commerce filed a request with the Public Utilities Commission today urging the PUC to open an investigation of rural call completion issues. The Commerce Department’s Telecom Division began its investigation into rural call completion complaints in December of 2012. The investigation included examining dropped calls, call routing problems, long set-up times with false ringing, and carriers changing call signaling information to avoid or minimize access charges. This problem has been identified by communities in Greater Minnesota as a crisis; ranging from a public safety concern to hundreds of thousands of dollars, or millions of dollars, of lost revenue for businesses operating in the affected areas.

January 03, 2014 - SAINT PAUL, MN – Older Americans are scammed out of an estimated $2.5 billion dollars a year and an increasingly prevalent tool used by fraudsters is wire transfer fraud.

December 18, 2013 - SAINT PAUL, MN — Today, in Ramsey County District Court, Maurice Culpepper was criminally charged for allegedly engaging in an elaborate fraud scheme he devised in an attempt to exploit an insurance company. The criminal complaint charged him with one count of Insurance Fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years and $100,000 fine.

December 05, 2013 - SAINT PAUL, MN – Health reform has been headline news for months across the United States, and has generated questions among Minnesota consumers as they look at their health coverage needs during open enrollment. That is why the Minnesota Department of Commerce has a Consumer Response Team helpline and outreach efforts to help cut through the confusion and be a reliable source for important insurance information.

November 26, 2013 - The largest shopping days of the year are now here – the few days where a significant portion of the annual $20 billion are spent on toys in the United States. To help keep dangerous toys out of the hustle and bustle of holiday shopping, the Department of Commerce is reminding parents to stay vigilant about product and toy safety including hazardous chemicals, and to check product recall alerts.

November 19, 2013 - HOPKINS, MN – Minnesota Vikings Wide Receiver Greg Jennings joined Minnesota Department of Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman and Visa Inc. today to tackle the issue of financial literacy improvement head on among Minnesota teens. They announced a statewide effort to improve the money management skills of high school and middle school students with the rollout of Financial Football, a free educational video game and classroom curriculum developed by Visa Inc. The game will be available to every public middle school and high school in the Minnesota by contacting the Commerce Department.