 Good evening everyone. I'm Josh Peterson and for Dennis Wyman. Thanks so much for joining us tonight. The Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources made a stop in Brainerd today to talk with area representatives about the governor's proposed budget and how it affects issues in the area. Reporter Rachel Johnson has more. The Commissioner of the Minnesota DNR made a stop in Brainerd Thursday to discuss Governor Timwell's proposed budget and how it will affect our natural resources. We are really pleased to be here in Brainerd today at the Northland Arboretum to talk with a group of folks who are really passionate about DNR issues. Local stakeholders and community members gathered at the Northland Arboretum to meet with the Commissioner. We had a wide ranging discussion. We talked about aquatic invasive species funding. We talked about funding for responding to chronic wasting disease. We talked about public waters protection funding. Some of the main concerns that the stakeholders voiced were aquatic invasive species and the recent fighting of chronic wasting disease in Crowing County. Earlier this month a wild deer in Crowing County tested positive for chronic wasting disease moving the issue into the spotlight. One was turned over to us that was found dead and it was thin and it was screened for the disease. Very routine. Unfortunately it came back infected and actually we have the whole carcass that we brought down with the diagnostic lab in University of Minnesota and it was concluded to die from the disease. The Minnesota DNR hopes to combat CWD before it becomes a problem and they are happy that the budget will help them to do that. The governor has proposed 4.5 7 million dollars in general fund funding over the next biennium and so I think a couple things. One is it allows us to have the funding that's needed to act quickly and act aggressively. Overall, Commissioner Strowman and the DNR are pleased with the governor's budget proposal and are hopeful that it will allow them to put issues like CWD and invasive species in the forefront. I think it just highlights the importance of chronic wasting disease across the state. It's also important to recognize this isn't just something that hunters should be funding. This is a resource that is shared by everybody in the state and having some dollars identified to support that work beyond just hunting licenses really sends that message that it's important to everyone. Reporting from Brainerd, Rachel Johnson, Lakeland News. Now in addition to combating chronic wasting disease and protecting waterways the governor's proposed budget also includes funding to support forest management, state trail maintenance and fisheries management. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.