State of Shutdown: Replay of the Final Hours

As expected, after leaders at the Capitol failed to bridge a $5 billion stalemate and craft a new budget for the state.

Even as the  midnight deadline neared Thursday evening and a budget deal between DFL Gov. Mark Dayton and the Republican legislative leaders looked less and less likely, thousands of Minnesotans—including many laid-off state workers—flocked to the steps of the capitol building for a "candlelight vigil" sponsored by two unions, AFSCME and MAPE. Attendees wore glowstick lanyards around their neck, waved signs and chanted "We want to work" and "Tax the richest."

Eagan residents Brenda Byrne and Gary Lundquist both fix traffic signals for the Transportation Department. Byrne was laid off, while Lundquist was one of the three traffic signal maintenance workers retained by the Minnesota Department of Transportation out of a department of 50.

"It's going to inconvenience a lot of people," Byrne said. "If you've ever been at a flashing light in a lot of traffic, you're going to be swearing."

It also takes a personal toll.

"It screws up my summer," Lundquist said. "I can't take any vacation. I can't even take a day off."

The shutdown comes after weeks of intense negotiations, capped by closed-door sessions through Thursday’s waning minutes, Gov. Mark Dayton and Republican lawmakers failed to agree on an operating budget for the coming biennium. 

“I deeply regret that after two days of intense negotiations we have failed to reach an agreement,” Dayton said during a 10:30 p.m. press conference in his office. “I offered a plan to raise the taxes of only those Minnesotans who make more than $1 million per year. That is less than 0.3 percent of the state population. Despite many hours of negotiations, the Republican caucus remains adamantly opposed to new taxes.”

Earlier in the week, Gov. Dayton said a deal would have to be done by Wednesday in order to draft and pass the necessary legislation. But Thursday, the governor continued meeting with GOP leaders on-and-off trying to put an agreement in place. 

Just before 10 p.m. Thursday Gov. Dayton rejected a 2-page temporary funding deal from the GOP leadership that would keep the Minnesota government operational for an additional 10 days.

"There are a lot of people on the steps of the Capitol right now asking us to not shut down the government. This document is their answer,” GOP Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch said referring to the lights-on bill.

When asked his response to the 10-day temporary funding bill, Dayton’s answer was frank and clear: “I think it’s a publicity stunt,” he replied.

Fiscal year 2012-13 began at 12:01 a.m. today and, without a budget in place, the State of Minnesota was unable to fund its myriad services or pay salaries to its almost 33,000 state employees—22,000 of which left their offices today without a job to return to.

There appeared a glimmer of hope early Thursday evening. But around 8:30 p.m., Rep. Tony Cornish (R-District 24B) reported to his seat in the Minnesota House saying he had received a message from the GOP leadership to do so. “There is always time for a deal,” Cornish told reporters as he walked into the House.

The gesture was called “grandstanding,” “theatrics” and “mock legislature” by Democratic minority leaders Sen. Tom Bakk and Rep. Paul Thissen.

Bakk took the podium at 9 p.m. and pleaded with his GOP counterparts to return to the negotiating table instead of sitting in the legislature. “We are running out of time,” he said plainly.

Bakk’s statement proved prophetic. Fiscal year 2012-13 began at 12:01 a.m. today and, without a budget in place, the State of Minnesota was unable to fund its myriad services or pay salaries to its almost 33,000 state employees—22,000 of which left their offices today without a job to return to.

The heart of the impasse has always been the $1.8 billion difference between Gov. Dayton’s operating budget and the budget proposed by the GOP. Central to the issue is the method for closing Minnesota’s $5 billion budget gap. The DFL led by Dayton want a tax hike on high-income earners, and the GOP wants spending reductions.