Saint Paul, Minnesota
By Marty Owings
Minnesota's Legislative Leaders and the Governor met today at the Capitol to discuss the current budget crisis and upcoming legislative session. They met behind closed doors for a little over an hour and emerged saying the meeting was "positive" and "productive".
DFL Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller said he expected the Governor to come forward with an "honest budget proposal", by mid-January and added that there was general consensus that there was no need for a special session. The regular Legislative Session begins February 4th.
Pogemiller said that is was "incumbent on him [Governor] to show how he would balance the budget", and added that if the Governor thinks the budget problem can be solved with cuts only that he should, "show us the way". Pogemiller mentioned the word "honest" a half-dozen times in reference to the Governors possible budget proposal. When asked if he expected something less than an honest proposal he responded by saying, "we expect an honest, straight forward budget".
DFL House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, who is one of a number of Legislators running for Governor this year, joked that the negotiations, "are a little bit like being married". Kelliher said that the Governor "realizes the seriousness of the unemployment issue". She then outlined how she sees the coming session shaping up, "in the first couple of weeks of session, we plan to pass a jobs packages...and plan to find a mutually agreeable solution to GAMC [General Assistance Medical Care]". Kelliher said that Legislative leaders and the Governor were scheduled to meet again privately in two weeks.
GOP House Minority Leader Kurt Zellers said, "Minnesota families, Minnesota business owners, Minnesota tax payers don't have any more money to give in tax increases, so I think that'll be one of the sticking points from my perspective", but quickly added that he felt the meetings with leaders and the Governor taking place this early in the Legislative process was a positive step that. When asked about what solutions the GOP would put forward, Zellers stated, "If you didn't like the amendments then, don't call us back and say this time that you want our solutions", then added that, "we will continue to offer solutions and amendments". In a response to whether he could guarantee GOP votes on a budget solution, Zellers responded that, "based on the number of candidates running for governor this year, I can only guarantee one vote, mine".
GOP Senate Minority Leader Dave Senjem said that from his perspective the meeting was product even though they didn't solve anything. Earlier in the day Senjem had commented on a local radio program that he thought the budget negotiations were more productive when done behind closed doors. When asked about his comments, Senjem responded that he was disappointed in last year’s attempts to make the negotiations more transparent through the Legislative Commission on Planning and Fiscal Policy or LCPFP meetings, saying that, "we sat there many, many days...in a very unproductive fashion". When pressed on the issue of secret meetings Senjem added that, "I can't explain to you fully how I believe frankly the session last year came to the conclusion it did based on the inability for the Legislative Fiscal Policy Commission to work".
The Governors Spokesman, Brian McClung said that the purpose of the meeting was to remind Legislative Leaders, “that he is not interested in raising taxes”. McClung stated that, “Governor Pawlenty will present to the Legislature a complete budget proposal that resolve the $1.2 billion deficit through budget reductions”. McClung says the timing for that would be sometime around the beginning of the session. McClung added that the Governor would be making a bonding bill proposal next week and that it was his understanding that the Democrats want to spend a lot more and that might be a sticking point.
McClung says that the Governor was pleased with the announcement by Judge Kathleen Gearin earlier that the appeals process on her recent ruling against his unallotments could be fast-tracked to the appeals court. McClung said the Governor felt that the Judge had ruled incorrectly when she ruled that the administration had misused the unallotment law. He was also asked about the transparency of the negotiation meetings and stated that, “these weren’t budget negotiations, this was just an opportunity for the Governor to meet with Legislative Leaders to get on the same page. The tradition at the State Capitol has not been to have Governors testifying in front of legislative committees, if a Governor did, than presumably every committee would enjoy the opportunity to have the Governor sitting there for hours answering questions”.
The likelihood that the negotiation process at the Capitol will become more transparent anytime soon seems unlikely. It also seems unlikely that the cordial tone of today will continue when the DFL controlled Legislature and the GOP Governor really get down to the business of trying to solve the biggest budget crisis in the history of the state.
Here are the video highlights -
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