Lawmakers expected to miss budget deadline

Lacking agreement on items as large as classroom spending and as small as court document filing fees, Minnesota lawmakers resigned themselves Thursday to missing a self-imposed deadline for finalizing budget bills.

Most elements of a two-year, $33 billion state budget remained in flux amid negotiations between the Democratic-controlled Legislature and Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Recognizing that, legislators prepared to lift a midnight deadline for getting the budget ready for floor votes - a delay that foreshadows another sprint to the finish.

The session must close by May 18, although a special session is a possibility. The hardest deadline is June 30, when the government's spending authority expires.

The task is complicated by a budget deficit estimated at $4.6 billion, a hole that would be deeper if not for federal stimulus dollars.

Three smaller budget bills are on Pawlenty's desk. His signature is expected on two, covering transportation, the State Patrol and natural resource programs.

The third, a package including business grants and tourism promotion, faces a potential veto because it forgives $33 million on the loan for St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center.

House Majority Leader Tony Sertich, DFL-Chisholm, downplayed the blown deadline. He said top legislators were more interested in getting bills acceptable to all sides than risking vetoes on rushed legislation.

"It's more important to take your time to get it done right the first time," he said.

Rep. Torrey Westrom, R-Elbow Lake, countered that one of the stickiest points of dispute - whether to raise taxes - was unlikely to change no matter what the calendar reads.

"That's a show-stopper whether it's April 1 or May 18," he said.

Republicans are greatly outnumbered in the Legislature, but they have enough strength to uphold Pawlenty vetoes if they stick together. The governor has promised to block any tax increase.

The budget proposals from Pawlenty, the Senate and the House all impose significant spending cuts to most areas of government.

Pawlenty takes a harder whack at health and welfare services while the legislative plans target spending to run state agencies, from the state Corrections Department to the Agriculture Department.

And all three plans rely on new revenue. Pawlenty seeks to raise $1 billion by borrowing against proceeds of tobacco payments.

The House endorsed a plan to bring in $1.5 billion more by increasing taxes on alcohol, cigarettes, high-end income earners and other areas. The Senate's $2.2 billion in tax increases would hit most Minnesotans.

"These decisions don't get any easier the closer we get to end of session," Sertich said. "If we all just maybe pretended that this was the last weekend maybe we could get our work done. I'm of that opinion, and I think we have plenty of time to get our work done."

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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