With Hours Left In 2017 Session, Lawmakers Push For Budget Deal

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The final day of the 2017 session is here and positive signs of agreement are coming from the State Capitol.

After weeks of partisan fighting, lawmakers spent the weekend working on a budget compromise and they'll continue that work Monday.

But time is not on their side. The legislature has until midnight Monday to adjourn.

The race against the clock all comes down to passing a new, $45-billion, two-year budget because without one, a state shutdown would happen in July.

Lawmakers met Sunday in a rare session to help avoid a shutdown.

There has been lots of pressure to wrap up their work, and avoid having to come back to St. Paul for a special session. Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton and Republicans who control the House and Senate met non-stop behind closed doors.

And they said Sunday night, they are close.

"Very busy. Lots of moving pieces but everyone really is in a collaborative mood. Give and take, a little bit of having to work out details, but it seems everybody's moving towards getting this done," Sen. Michelle Benson said.

As if finding common ground wasn't hard enough, that's just one piece of the puzzle. Lawmakers then need time to work out the details and logistics in committees.

One proposal that began to move through the House Sunday night was the Higher Education Bill.

That includes a small increase in funding for colleges and universities, but Democrats said it's not enough to stop a tuition hike at the U.

"The Republican party, the Minnesota GOP is raising the tuition at the University of Minnesota by starving them for funds," Sen. Jason Isaacson said.

"The Minnesota GOP, the State Senate, the House of Representatives, cannot raise tuition at the University of Minnesota. The only ones who can raise tuition at the University of Minnesota is the Board of Regents," Sen. Michelle Fischbach said.

Despite some arguments, members told WCCO's Pat Kessler Sunday there is a lot of progress being made with the end in sight.

It's quite different from past years, when the session ended in chaos.

The House adjourned close to 1:30 a.m. Monday. Both Republicans and Democrats plan to meet in caucus at 7 a.m., then calling the full House into session an hour later at 8 a.m. Big issues like transportation are expected to come up.

Already Monday, the House has re-passed a job growth and energy affordability bill.