Dear Neighbor,
I just arrived in St. Paul, ready to attend meetings this afternoon and evening in anticipation of a one-day special session taking place Friday.
As of now, "in anticipation" are the key words in that sentence. Legislative leaders and Gov. Mark Dayton reached an agreement on the bills we will take up in the special session, but we have not received official word one has been called. The governor is the only one who can call a special session. He is scheduled to meet with the Senate later this evening, so maybe he will make an announcement after that.
We expect five bills to be up for votes once the special session takes place. Three of them are finance bills the governor vetoed after the regular session ended May 18 (K-12 education, ag/environment and jobs/energy). The other two are a capital investment bill to fund projects around the state and a bill which appropriates money generated by the Legacy Amendment.
My hope is the gavel drops and we start the special session Friday morning. There are 9,400 state employees who unnecessarily face layoffs if things are not resolved by July 1. Logistical inconveniences, such as a hold on state park reservations, would start as soon as Monday if the remaining budget is not passed.
Stay in touch and I will pass along news as it becomes available.
Sincerely,
Dale