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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Mark Dayton and House Republicans chipped away Thursday at a deal to wrap up the state's budget and avoid a partial government shutdown.
The Democratic governor and House Speaker Kurt Daudt met for a third straight day of private talks at Dayton's residence to discuss the three incomplete pieces of the state's spending plan. They need to strike an agreement and call lawmakers back for a special session to approve the budget before July 1 to avoid a shutdown that would trigger a wave of more than 9,400 state employee layoffs, according to the state.
After two hours of discussions, Dayton and Daudt said they're making progress but are not ready to declare a deal. The governor said layoff notices, which go out Monday but wouldn't take effect until July 1, put pressure on the negotiators to wrap things up.
"It's going to make it much more, starkly real to them," Dayton said of impending layoff notices to employees scattered across 17 state agencies, boards and departments. "On the other hand, we don't want to rush through this and not get it right."
Agriculture, environment, jobs and economic development are all on the table due to the governor's veto of those budget bills last week. But with the main dispute over public school funding, the two sides called in early education experts to support their arguments.
Dr. Art Reynolds, a professor at the University of Minnesota's Institute of Child Development, came to the side of the governor, who wants a statewide preschool program. In Daudt's corner was Dr. Art Rolnick, a former Federal Reserve economist who advocates for need-based early learning scholarships for at-risk children.
Dayton insists his approach can be married with Republicans' plan to increase funding for those scholarships and pour more money into the state's per-pupil funding formula. The two negotiators agreed early education is crucial step to tackle an achievement gap.
"At what point are we going to commit the resources necessary?" Dayton asked.
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