Association of Metropolitan School Districts Update
June 3, 2011
Legislative Update
Here is a brief update on the legislative negotiations – thanks to AMSD Lobbyists Kris Amundson and Lori Grivna for their help.
There have been no major breakthroughs in the budget discussions at the Capitol. The Legislative Commission on Planning and Fiscal Policy (LCPFP) held a hearing yesterday. Department of Revenue Commissioner Frans and Management and Budget Commissioner Schowalter has been invited, and agreed, to attend the June 2 meeting to provide information on the Governor’s budget. However, at a morning press conference, Governor Dayton let it be known that the commissioners would not appear before the Commission. He described the hearings as a GOP political stunt. In addition, the Governor proposed a federal mediator to help with budget negotiations.
After the Governor’s press conference, Sen. Koch was on MPR. She stated that the LCPFP intended to get an understanding of budget proposals, details on the Governor’s $1.8B in cuts, and the Governor’s proposal to shield small businesses from proposed tax hikes. Speaker Zellers, Majority Leader Matt Dean, Senate Majority Leader Koch and Deputy Majority Leader Geoff Michel then addressed the media in response to the Governor’s comments. The legislative leaders indicated no interest in mediation. They hoped there would be participation in the Commission meeting to have information presented in a public forum. They also stated MN Statute 3.885 required the executive and judicial branches and the agencies to comply with requests from the Commission. They noted that former MMB Commissioner Tom Hanson appeared before the Commission in past budget discussions.
At the Commission hearing, Sen. Koch was elected chair and Rep. Zellers was elected vice-chair. Members of both parties discussed their view of the role of the Commission, frustrations with past history, philosophical budget differences, and offered their thoughts on next steps. It was clarified by House Research staff that the Commission has subpoena powers, which could be an option to compel future participation. After 45 minutes, Speaker Zellers pointed to the empty chairs where the Commissioners were to be seated, and the meeting adjourned. The Commission is tentatively scheduled to meet again Tuesday at 2:00.
This morning the Governor met with legislative leadership over breakfast at the Residence for 90 minutes. Legislative leaders proposed a detailed meeting schedule for the next several weeks culminating with a special session beginning Monday June 27h. Along with a budget deal, leadership would also like to get agreement and pass an Education Policy bill. The Governor requested a new offer from the leaders with an increased spending midpoint raising revenue by $1.5B-$1.8B. This is the crux of the impasse in negotiations. Legislative leaders continue to insist on a $34 billion budget which they claim would be the largest budget in state history. The Governor remains committed to solving the budget deficit with a combination of spending cuts and new revenue. Both sides agreed that the meeting was productive. The Governor indicated, however, that meetings next week will not be productive if a counter offer is not produced on Monday. It is anticipated that the education chairs and Commissioner Cassellius will meet privately on Monday to continue negotiations on the education finance and policy bills.
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