DEED Commissioner Shawntera Hardy will lead the fifth annual Commissioners on Wheels tour – set for Sept. 18-20 – with a focus on innovation, manufacturing, workforce, energy and food production. The trip will include stops in 11 southeastern communities: Hastings, Red Wing, Winona, St. Charles, Lanesboro, Chatfield, Rochester, Austin, Claremont, Owatonna and Faribault.

State agency commissioners will visit businesses and locations over the three-day tour, including Red Wing Shoe Co. in Red Wing, Envirolastech in St. Charles, EZ Fabricating in Chatfield, Kerry Ingredients in Rochester, IBM in Rochester, Al-Corn Ethanol in Claremont, Hormel Institute in Austin and Faribault Woolen Mill Co. in Faribault.

One goal of the trip is to increase awareness of Minnesota Business First Stop, which Gov. Mark Dayton created in 2012 to help businesses cut through red tape when working with state agencies.

DEED serves as the lead agency of Minnesota Business First Stop. State agency leaders on the trip represent:

Department of Agriculture 
Pollution Control Agency 
Department of Natural Resources 
Department of Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation 
Department of Revenue 
Department of Labor and Industry 
Department of Commerce 
Department of Transportation