Capitol View: June 23, 2011 Archive

A false start on daylong budget talks?

Posted at 6:07 AM on June 23, 2011 by Tom Scheck (9 Comments)
Filed under: 2011 Shutdown

Republicans in the House and Senate planned on holding daylong meetings with Gov. Dayton on Friday and Saturday with the hopes of reaching a budget deal and averting a state government shutdown. But those talks are even in jeopardy after there was a disagreement over who should be involved in the talks.

Senate Republican Caucus spokesman Michael Brodkorb issued a statement late last night saying Gov. Dayton agreed to talks that would only include Dayton, GOP House Speaker Kurt Zellers and GOP Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch. But Brodkorb said in an e-mail that the talks are now in jeopardy because Dayton wants DFL House Minority Leader Paul Thissen and DFL Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk involved as well.

Governor Dayton communicated that he was now requesting that Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk and House Minority Leader Paul Thissen would also be in the room for negotiations. The Governor admitted that this was not part of the original agreement. Rep. Thissen and Sen. Bakk have offered little, if anything, to recent budget negotiations. They have also previously stated that they have no intention of offering a global budget solution.

While Senate Majority Leader Koch is committed to reaching a budget solution and preventing a state government shutdown, Governor Dayton's decision to break the agreement calls into question whether there will be any meetings on Friday or Saturday. Senate Majority Leader Koch is available for direct comment on this disappointing development.

Dayton and the Legislature have until July 1 to reach a budget deal. State government will shut down if no agreement is reached.

UPDATE:

Gov. Dayton's Senior Communications Advisor Bob Hume issued a statement Thursday morning:

"The governor's priority is finding a fair and balanced budget solution. We urge the Republican leadership to reconsider the gravity of the situation Minnesotans are facing and meet tomorrow morning at 9:00 am so we can work in a bipartisan way on a meaningful compromise."

GOP Senator: Road projects needlessly mothballed

Posted at 3:57 PM on June 23, 2011 by Tim Nelson
Filed under: 2011 Shutdown, MN Legislature

Sen. Joe Gimse, R-Willmar, chair of the Senate transporation committee, says road contractors are already feeling the pinch of a looming state government shutdown.

Gimse said today that projects like the replacement of a the Bren Road bridge over US 169 in Minnetonka could have started as soon as tomorrow, according to a letter to MnDOT and copied to Republican legislators by Minnetonka City Manager John Gunyou.

Here's the letter.

Gunyou Letter

Gimse says the letter is proof that MnDOT is telling contrators that they won't have legal access to state right of way -- the room they need to work -- if the state shuts down.

"They have thousands and thousands of miles of road right of way across the state of Minensota," Gimse said at a Capitol press briefing this afternoon.

"They don't supervise every mile of that road right of way. These contractors know what they're doing, they understand what they're doing. It's simply a way, I believe, for them to inflict additional pain. It makes no sense. It's simply grass area on the sides of the road where equipment will stand, where materials will stand. And maybe a staging area."

MnDOT didn't have an immediate response to Gimse's accusations.

He called on Dayton to call the legislature back into session and allow lawmakers to pass a bill that would let billions of dollars in dedicated road funding keep flowing.

"We could get it done in four hours," Gimse said.

Update: Here's a response from MnDOT spokesman Kevin Gutknecht:

MnDOT is the legal owner of trunk highway right-of-way and is responsible for its condition.

By state law, it is illegal to do work in state right-of-way unless it is authorized by the state road authority. MS 160.2715.

MnDOT inspectors insure that contractors are meeting contract specifications when constructing any type of infrastructure. Not conducting the inspections could put taxpayers at risk financially if the work needs to be done over. And, if work does not meet appropriate safety specifications, it could put the driving public at risk.

Judge mulls looming shutdown

Posted at 6:16 PM on June 23, 2011 by Tom Scheck
Filed under: 2011 Shutdown, MN Legislature, Mark Dayton

Ramsey County Judge Kathleen Gearin is considering whether she should rule that some areas of spending should continue if state government shuts down on July 1st. Attorney General Lori Swanson is asking Gearin to continue funding after a shutdown for critical services like prison guards, the state patrol and subsidized health insurance. Gearin said repeatedly during a court hearing today that she was uncomfortable wading into a dispute between Gov. Dayton and the Legislature and urged the two sides to get a deal done.

"I wouldn't want to be in the Legislature. I wouldn't want to be governor," Gearin said at the end of the hearing. "They've got a tough task. We have hard economic times. We have all kinds of social issues that are extemely complex and becoming more complex. I want to say this respectfully but it feels sometimes like almost a game of chicken."

Swanson is seeking court-ordered funding in case Dayton and Republican legislative leaders can't reach agreement on a new budget by July 1st. During her presentation, Swanson cited constitutional requirements for government to protect health and safety. She specifically highlighted state government services for the mentally ill, veterans and the state patrol. Swanson said a court order is a fiscal necessity.

"We're eight days away from the end of this biennium," Swanson said. "Absent resolution of the budget impasse in the next eight days state government will shut down. A government shutdown without a court order will violate the constitutional protections guaranteed to Minnesota citizens."

Attorney David Lillehaug, who is representing Dayton in the case, told Gearin that the governor is prepared to take action on his own if necessary to keep essential services running.

"He will act not based on his priorities," Lillehaug said. "But on what he understands to be critical services that are necessary to protect the life and safety of the people of Minnesota. So he will execute his constitutional responsibilities, and as of now, he's not asking a court for approval of that."

Earlier in the day, Judge Kathleen Gearin rejected Dayton's request for court-ordered mediation in the state budget dispute. She also rejected a petition from four Republican state Senators to intervene in the case.

The hearing last the entire day. Judge Gearin allowed the afternoon session to be recorded for broadcast. Here are the two afternoon portions of the hearing.

Hearing 1: Listen

Hearing 2: Listen