Minnesota's legislative session approached its end marked by uncertainty over the fate of proposals for education, public safety and other spending priorities as state leaders appeared to be running out of time to strike agreements.
The lack of progress revived the specter of yet another special session to wrap up any bills subject to deals between the GOP-led Senate and DFL-controlled House if the two bodies were unable to pass such legislation before Sunday's midnight deadline.
"We're not interested in a special session," said Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller, R-Winona.
Only the governor can call a special session, a regular occurrence over the past decade as the Legislature frequently missed deadlines to complete its work. DFL Gov. Tim Walz has repeatedly said over the past couple months that he would not call another one, and had not weighed in Sunday afternoon on whether he would change his mind.
Miller rejected the idea after a House DFL spokesman said earlier that House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, planned to ask Walz for a short special session to wrap up bills if they reach deals Sunday.
Miller said Sunday afternoon he was headed to meet with Hortman and try to wrap up the education spending packag, which he said is a top priority for both parties. "I think we're very, very close," he said of an education agreement.
Miller said he still thinks there is a path to finishing various spending bills without a special session. But Senate Minority Leader Melisa López Franzen, DFL-Edina, said that is no longer possible.
López Franzen said lawmakers were nearing agreement on health and human services spending.
"We are trying to unclog the logjam here," she said, accusing Miller of not bringing Senate Democrats to the table to get work done. "We're willing to work. We're willing to get that logjam freed up. But no, there is fault on both sides."
Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, blamed Democrats. He said they "are not letting go of the unnecessary spending that they want to do right now."
Over the weekend, legislative negotiators reached a $4 billion tax deal that would eliminate state taxes on Social Security income, lower the bottom income tax tier from 5.35% to 5.1% and expand tax credits for homeowners and renters. But the fate of the tax agreement is tied to a broader deal that includes an additional $4 billion in proposed spending.
Miller told colleagues on the Senate floor Sunday that they should take up the agreement on the tax bill as quickly as possible. He noted they were continuing to work toward deals on the education, public safety, transportation and health and human services bills.
Sen. Jason Isaacson, DFL-Shoreview, pressed Miller around noon Sunday on the logistics of completing the various bills. Isaacson said that if deals were reached Sunday afternoon, he believed that could be too late for Capitol staff to do the work needed to prepare bills for votes before the midnight deadline.
Miller said he had not heard from staff in the office that works on the bills. But he said legislators leading negotiations on the measures told him, "If we can get agreement within the next hour or two, there is still possibility to get most, if not all, of these bills done."
Even after that deadline passed, Miller said he thought there was a chance to finish all the bills Sunday. By 6 p.m., the Senate had approved a package that included agriculture, broadband and drought relief provisions in addition to an environment and natural resources bill.
Lawmakers, faced with similar stalemates in years past, have often leaned on extra sessions to complete their work. There has been at least one special session in eight of the past 10 years.
With the full House and Senate and the governor's office on the ballot in November, legislators will be busy on the campaign trail this summer and there's little appetite for a protracted special session.
During even-numbered years at the State Capitol, lawmakers traditionally pass a borrowing and spending package to maintain and improve infrastructure such as roads and trails, wastewater systems, college campuses and more. The so-called bonding bill is typically one of the last things to get done in a session and would require broad bipartisan support in both chambers to pass this year.
López Franzen said late Sunday afternoon that she had heard that "we're very close on bonding."
Daudt said his caucus is open to passing a bonding bill, but he added that he is not optimistic about other items coming together in a special session.
"I see the long faces and hear in their voices that they understand now that things are probably not getting done on time," Daudt said. "So we're open to having conversations about, is there kind of a last-minute bill that can catch all the must-haves to get done before we go home."
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Staff writer Katie Galioto contributed to this report.
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