Showdown begins over state bonding bill

Sponsored by Rep. Alice Hausman, DFL-St. Paul, and Sen. Keith Langseth, DFL-Glyndon, HF380 is expected to be acted on by the House and Senate Wednesday.

The bill\’s total spending could make it veto bait. It comes in over the 3 percent of the General Fund threshold that has been a traditional marker to determine the size of a bonding bill. The governor has said that a bill beyond that threshold would not make it past his veto pen. However, he could choose to line-item veto items to bring the bill to his accepted level.

Nearly half the conference committee agreement, $412 million, would be allocated to projects at the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

While the governor had asked for $40 million to acquire land and develop a new Vermilion State Park, he comes up empty-handed, largely because negotiations with U.S. Steel continue for the northern Minnesota land with no agreed upon price, said Hausman. The governor’s request for nearly $34 million to fund renovations to the Minneapolis Veterans Home, is also absent. Hausman explained that there will most likely be a proposal this year to reevaluate how veterans needing long-term care are housed in the state.

Reprinted from Session Daily, a publication of the Minnesota Legislature, www.leg.state.mn.us