Governor, lawmakers reach critical crossroads
After days of talks, and only hours after Gov. Mark Dayton offered legislative leaders specific numbers, budget negotiations changed gears late Monday night with a flurry of activity that may signal either a search for middle ground or the beginning of a prolonged stalemate less than two weeks before the 2017 regular session must end.
Comments from Republican leaders Tuesday morning seemed to indicate that, while either option is still a possibility, talks to arrive at a budget funding state government for the next two years have reached a critical crossroads.
House Speaker Kurt Daudt (R-Crown) and Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka (R-Nisswa) both said the pace of negotiations must quicken or the Legislature will not get its work done by the May 22 deadline. “We have frustration at the slow pace the governor is proceeding with,” Daudt said. “We certainly understand where his priorities are. But we also know that the governor gains leverage if he pushes us to the end.”
Gov. Mark Dayton said at a May 9 morning press conference that he would veto budget bills as they stand now if they are sent to him.
In response, Republicans in the House and Senate met Monday night and reached agreement on a series of conference committee reports that were subsequently published and could be voted on as soon as Tuesday. The
posted conference committee reports
include the omnibus public safety, taxes, health and human services, jobs and energy, state government, environment and natural resources, agriculture and higher education bills.
Daudt said Republicans are preparing a back-up plan in case negotiations fail, but would prefer the talks continue. He added that although the bills are ready to go to the floor ”if we don’t make real progress very soon … basically, immediately,” legislative leaders would be “willing to adjust” them if middle ground is reached. “We hope that we can make progress, that we don’t have to send these bills to the governor,” Daudt said. “But we’d hoped we’d be a lot farther along after our break and, unfortunately, we aren’t.”
Dayton, expecting counteroffers from Republican legislators in response to his updated budget proposals released yesterday, said closing up the conference committee reports
came as “a complete surprise.” Dayton said he would veto every bill if the Legislature passes them without changes. “It signals to me that they’re pulling out of our negotiations, which are intended to avoid the necessity for the bills to go to the floor, then come to me to be vetoed and then go back to right where we are today,” he said.
“They’re setting up this blame game and I don’t think more time is our problem,” Dayton said.
DFL leaders, who have been in negotiations with Republicans and the governor, stood beside Dayton during the morning press conference, echoing his concerns about the seemingly abrupt finalized reports. House Minority Leader Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park) and Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk (DFL-Cook) indicated they knew something was coming late Monday after Republican conference committee chairs asked their DFL counterparts to sign their respective reports. “I actually believe it’s just a sideshow,” Bakk said. “The real negotiations are going to happen with the governor involved and if they don’t happen with the governor involved, then the session is going to collapse.”
Late Monday afternoon, Republican leaders offered to move closer to Governor Mark Dayton’s numbers — $205 million more in spending and $150 million less in tax cuts. The proposed offer for higher education moved the budget target to $149.9 million - closer to the original House position. Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka says they’re moving towards the governor’s positions. He says the GOP offer is five times what the governor presented in his last offer and “we think is a significant offer and want to get the ball rolling.”
Omnibus bill flurry off the Floors
Tuesday night a number of appropriations bills were adopted by the House and the Senate that Governor Dayton says he’ll veto which includes Health and Human Services, Agriculture, State Government, E-12, and Environment. Members are expected to take up the remaining omnibus bills today during floor sessions, including higher education.
House Democratic Minority Leader Melissa Hortman says if Republicans choose conflict rather than collaboration, “we almost certainly send this legislative session into overtime, a special session, and then — who knows? — on the brink of another state government shutdown.”
It is important to note that
Minnesota State has statutory authority to continue operations if state government shuts down. Colleges and universities and the system office are able to use fund balances for expenses as we await adoption of a omnibus higher education bill.
Republican Majority Leader Joyce Peppin says they’ll continue discussions with the governor, but “our job as a legislature is to pass the bills, and then the governor’s job is to decide whether or not he agrees with those bills.” The biggest sticking points are tax cuts, public school funding, human services spending, and money for roads and bridges.
Republicans asked the governor to commit to overall numbers for every major budget category, but Dayton wants to work on the less controversial bills first. “With the signal that he’s not ready for global targets, we move forward,” Senate Republican Majority Leader Paul Gazelka told his colleagues on the Senate floor. Governor Dayton responds on the E-12 education budget for example, “They want me engaged, they got me engaged. I’m not gonna just sign off on some kind of cut on E-12 and say somebody else will figure that out.”
Senate Democratic Minority Leader Tom Bakk says Republicans sending to the governor bills that he’ll veto sets things back three or four days. Bakk says, “I don’t think that’s actually constructive. I think they’d be better to spend the three days in the room with the governor trading offers back and forth.” Bakk says even with the delay, there’s still ample time to agree on the state budget before the May 22nd deadline.
