Skip to main content Skip to office menu Skip to footer
Capital IconMinnesota Legislature

New Law: Deficiency spending and claims

Published (7/15/2011)
By Nick Busse
Share on: 



Though lawmakers ended the session without an agreement on how to fund state government in the next biennium, a new law puts the finishing touches on the 2010-2011 biennial budget.

Sponsored by Rep. Steve Smith (R-Mound) and Sen. Michael Jungbauer (R-East Bethel), the law makes deficiency appropriations to multiple state agencies and pays out claims against the state. Unless otherwise noted, it is effective June 1, 2011.

Article 1 of the law appropriates $1,123 in fiscal year 2011 and $59,683.29 in fiscal year 2012 to settle claims against the state. Recipients include prison inmates who were injured while performing sentence-to-service work (effective July 1, 2011) and an individual whose property tax refund check expired because medical problems prevented her from cashing it.

The claims article represents the work of the Joint House-Senate Subcommittee on Claims.

Article 2 of the law makes changes in state spending for the fiscal biennium, which ended June 30, 2011. These provisions were all originally included in budget bills that were ultimately vetoed by Gov. Mark Dayton.

Selected provisions include:

• slightly more than $2 million for the Department of Public Safety to provide disaster relief matching funds for communities affected by storms and flooding in western Minnesota in 2009;

• $471,000 for the Office of the Secretary of State to cover recount costs and legal fees;

• $38,000 for deficiency funding for the Tax Court;

• reducing by $3 million the fiscal year 2011 General Fund appropriation to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program; and

• reducing $11.8 million from the COBRA premium state subsidy program in fiscal year 2011.

Article 3 makes adjustments to the education spending forecast for fiscal year 2011. Article 4 makes similar adjustments to human services spending.

HF104/ SF54*/CH113

Session Weekly More...


Session Weekly Home



Related Stories


The disappearing budget surplus
Unpaid debts to schools mean the state’s $323 million surplus is fleeting
(view full story) Published 3/2/2012

Ending the shutdown
Special session ends with compromise that no one really likes
(view full story) Published 8/11/2011

State Budget 101
A citizen’s guide to understanding the numbers
(view full story) Published 4/1/2011

Lost in transition
Forecast shows state’s economy is still fragile
(view full story) Published 3/4/2011

Let the negotiations begin
Dayton budget plan kicks off debate on taxation, spending
(view full story) Published 2/18/2011

A head start on budget cuts
First bill passed in 2011 would reduce spending by $1 billion
(view full story) Published 1/28/2011

Two views to ‘unfinished business’
New leaders confront an old foe: the deficit
(view full story) Published 1/7/2011