Negotiations continue and conference committees scheduled to meet Tuesday
Following Saturday's discussions with Governor Dayton, legislative leaders walked out of Monday's discussions after less than 30 minutes.
"Things in the legislature never move as quickly as I would like them to and I'm sure the public probably feels the same way," House Speaker Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, said after a short meeting Monday afternoon between Gov. Mark Dayton and GOP leaders. "But we are working hard, we're working well together and I think we will make progress and think there is enough time to get everything done and get together."
Governor Dayton released his counteroffers that he shared with legislative leaders. The sides are still $171 million apart on higher education funding; $151 million apart on funding for public safety and the courts; $81 million apart on economic development; and there's a $5.5 million gap on agriculture.
For higher education, the Governor countered with a budget target of $296 million - approximately $25 million less than his original budget recommendation of $318 million. He maintained his original recommendation for Minnesota State Campus Support at $125 million but reduced his original $25 million recommendation to $10 million to replace ISRS Next Generation.
Negotiations are set to continue Tuesday afternoon.
Late Monday night, notices were posted for conference committees to meet early Tuesday morning. Conference committees are scheduled to adopt final bills tomorrow which will become the Conference Committee Reports. It is unclear when these bills will be scheduled to be heard by the both chambers in floor discussions.
