Lawmakers Plan For Likely Friday Special Session On Budget

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota lawmakers zeroed in Wednesday on a conclusion to their prolonged budget dispute, preparing for a special session by week's end to pass remaining bills.

Legislative leaders and Gov. Mark Dayton declared an end to their stalemate and set a hearing for Thursday on the final outstanding pieces of the state's budget. Dayton and top lawmakers alerted all legislators to be back in St. Paul for a one-day session that the governor will likely order for Friday.

In announcing the deal, 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 in a written statement. "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 roughly $42 billion two-year budget that he says puts programs such as education and nursing homes first. He said swift consideration was needed to end speculation — and planning — for a government shutdown.

"We all understand at this point there are Minnesotans waiting for certainty about their jobs and other relief aspects in these bills," Daudt said.

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.

It's the rank-and-file lawmakers that will determine the agreements' fate. Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk conceded Wednesday that many fellow Democrats still have concerns about an agriculture and environment budget that abolishes an oversight board at the state's pollution control agency and alters some regulations. Three-quarters of Senate DFLers voted against the bill when it first passed in May.

"I cannot guarantee those bills are going to pass. And if they don't, we're going to go back to work," Bakk said.

House Minority Leader Paul Thissen went to Europe on Sunday as part of a bid team for the 2023 World's Fair. His spokesman said the Minneapolis Democrat was hurrying back Wednesday.

The special session will occur in a building next to the Capitol, which is under extensive renovation. It will be the first time lawmakers have met outside the Capitol since 1905. The chambers will crowd into two separate hearing rooms and there will be a low-tech feel — voice roll calls will be used instead of electronic voting boards.

Senate Minority Leader David Hann began asking his Republican caucus to return after Daudt alerted him to the deal Tuesday night.

"We'll not have everybody here, but we'll have most of them," Hann said.

(© Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)