Wintry mix spreads across Minnesota

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Minnesotans are looking everywhere from
liquor sales on Sunday to racetrack gambling to bring more money
into the state budget. Others want to save on items as big as
entire government programs and as small as printing fewer
legislative directories.

      So far, more than 1,600 people e-mailed ideas to Gov. Tim
Pawlenty as he prepares to cut and delay $2.7 billion in spending
to balance the budget. The Republican governor will make the cuts
without legislative approval because the session ended last week
with a deficit left over.

      Pawlenty plans to announce the reductions before the new state
budget begins on July 1.

      Suggestions have been coming into an e-mail address,
budgetideasstate.mn.us, that started receiving messages on May 19.
Pawlenty's office wouldn't release all the e-mails, citing state
data practices law and an office policy to protect constituents'
privacy, but selected five samples after removing names and
identifying information.

      One saw tax money sitting in cars that cross the border to buy
booze: "Allow MN liquor stores to open on Sundays. Create tax
revenue. Create jobs. Save gas, as you wouldn't believe the MN cars
that line up at WI border towns waiting for the off sale to open on
Sunday."

      Another pitched a money-maker that Pawlenty has dismissed and
got little attention during the session: State-backed gambling,
such as a casino at Canterbury Park racetrack in Shakopee. The
writer said similar racinos are working elsewhere.

      "They are providing state and local governments with
BILLIONS," the e-mail said.

      The lack of a budget deal between Pawlenty and Democrats who
control the Legislature left a shortfall heading into the upcoming
two-year budget, even with all major spending bills signed into
law. Pawlenty plans to use a gubernatorial power called unallotment
to cancel or delay payments during a deficit.


      Unallotment authority is limited to already approved spending,
which means the governor can't singlehandedly create a state-run
casino or change liquor laws.

      Pawlenty said Thursday he aims to make the bulk of the
reductions in the second year of the cycle, starting in July 2010.

      "That will give the Legislature some time to come in and review
some of those decisions and alter them or change then if they
choose," he said at the Capitol.

      Other e-mails released by Pawlenty's office urged cuts - evenly
across state government or for specific programs and services.

      DFLers also collected thousands of public comments on the budget
earlier this year in a series of statewide public hearings and
through the House and Senate Web sites. About 6,000 people
submitted ideas to the House Web site alone.

      A review of those messages showed a mix of ideas, from the
general ("Do not cut education budgets," one said) to the very
specific: "School gyms could be wedding spaces etc. Think of the
income that could be generated!!"

      Others looked to save by turning down the heat in state offices,
reducing the number of school sports games, eliminating farm
subsidies and mowing roadside ditches less often.


      One mayor went against his counterparts who have been pleading
with Pawlenty not to cut too much into their state aid, using the
governor's new e-mail to say his city is prepared to take another
reduction.

      "I'm ok with them doing more severe cuts to local government
aid in St. Bonny, because we've already been planning for this,"
said Rick Weible, mayor of St. Bonifacius in the western Twin
Cities. "But my preference would be that they make the cuts sooner
than later."

Gallery

Gov. Pawlenty on unallotment and his future plans

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Mayors urge Pawlenty to go easy on local aid cuts

Politics and Government News

Martiga Lohn

Author

Minnesotans are looking everywhere from
liquor sales on Sunday to racetrack gambling to bring more money
into the state budget. Others want to save on items as big as
entire government programs and as small as printing fewer
legislative directories.


Minn. public takes crack at fixing deficit

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