ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP/WCCO) — Gov. Mark Dayton declared an end to the Minnesota budget stalemate Wednesday, saying he and legislative leaders have tentatively settled the remaining differences on a set of bills that lawmakers will vote on in a special session.
Dayton won’t formally schedule the session until he and leaders of the Republican and Democratic legislative caucuses sign a written agreement on the session’s parameters after reviewing finalized language, the Democrat said in a written statement. But legislative leaders are preparing for a special session as soon as Friday.
Dayton said the three-week standoff between him, a House Republican majority and a Senate Democratic majority has proven difficult.
“The sign of a true compromise is that no one is happy with it,” Dayton said. “Proponents and opponents of various policies across the political spectrum will be as unhappy with certain features as we, who ultimately had to accept them to avoid another government shutdown, the indefinite layoffs of 9,500 state employees and severe disruptions of important public services.”
House Speaker Kurt Daudt, the Legislature’s top Republican, hailed the tentative agreement as solidifying a budget that puts programs such as education and nursing homes first.
“Minnesotans expect us to come to St. Paul and lead by working together,” Daudt said, adding that the roughly $41.7 billion two-year budget will represent one of the smallest percentage increases Minnesota has had recently.
The remaining budget bills include billions of dollars for public schools, state parks, economic development and energy programs and farm assistance, including for poultry producers affected by the bird flu. Three budget bills containing the money had been vetoed by Dayton, who said the initial schools plan had insufficient spending and the other two had policy changes he couldn’t stomach.
Dayton said the last bits of negotiation resulted in $5 million to help people with disabilities find and maintain employment and assist people with mental illness in attaining housing. The agreement also allows for energy rate accommodations for the hard-hit steel industry and gives Rochester flexibility in using local tax dollars toward expansions related to the Mayo Clinic’s Destination Medical Center project.
Aside from waiting on the actual bills, legislative leaders also need to scramble 201 members back to St. Paul. With a nearly $1.9 billion surplus this year, many at the Capitol thought the chances for an overtime session were remote and made June vacation plans.
House Minority Leader Paul Thissen went ahead Sunday with a trip to Europe as part of a bid team for the 2023 World’s Fair. His spokesman said the Minneapolis Democrat was hurrying back Wednesday.
He and other legislative leaders are laying the logistical groundwork for a special session, letting House and Senate members know of the tentative deal on a budget they hope to finalize before the weekend.
Senate Minority Leader David Hann said he started asking his Republican caucus about returning to St. Paul in time for a Friday session after Daudt alerted him to the deal Tuesday night.
“We’re thinking Friday is the day,” Hann said. “We’ll not have everybody here, but we’ll have most of them.”
Full Statement From Gov. Mark Dayton
“We have reached tentative agreements on the remaining bills, which must be enacted to conclude the 2015 Legislative Session. I will call a Special Session, as soon as the four Caucus leaders and I have each reviewed and approved the proposed statutory language and have all signed a written agreement defining the session’s parameters.
“I am pleased that these agreements finally include $5 million to help Minnesotans with disabilities find and maintain employment, and to help prevent Minnesotans with mental illness from becoming homeless. They also add consumer protections to the Energy Intensive Trade Exposed (EITE) rate provision that will help the taconite and forest products industries in northeastern Minnesota. Finally, they add a provision giving the City of Rochester flexibility to use its local sales tax to support the Destination Medical Center economic development project.
“These resolutions to the bills I vetoed three weeks ago have been extremely difficult. Last fall, Minnesotans elected a divided state government, led by people with very different views about the role of government in our society; the optimal levels of state revenues and expenditures; and the policies and programs, which they should support.
“The sign of a true compromise is that no one is happy with it. Proponents and opponents of various policies across the political spectrum will be as unhappy with certain features as we, who ultimately had to accept them to avoid another government shutdown, the indefinite layoffs of 9,500 state employees, and severe disruptions of important public services.”
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