Cooking up a bill? Find bipartisan backers, keep dollars tight to succeed this Minnesota session
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A Democrat and a Republican, flanked by a crowd of Minnesota students, touted their bill last week to create a new accolade for those who excel in civics education.
It’s not the intro to a joke. But after months of partisan standoffs at the Capitol, it was a novel scene — and some argue a vital makeup.
The Minnesota House returned to a 67-67 split on Monday. It reset the power dynamic at the Capitol, where Republicans and Democrats share control in the House and Democrats hold a one-vote lead in the Senate.
The close divide changed the formula for what it takes for a bill to succeed this year. GOP Rep. Patricia Mueller, of Austin, cosponsored the civic seal bill. She said more frequent news conferences featuring Republican and Democratic lawmakers will likely become the norm.
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“I mean, the House is at a tie now, and anything that passes has to have 68 votes, so anything that passes will have to be bipartisan,” Mueller said.
Sen. Steve Cwodzinski, DFL- Eden Prairie, is the sponsor in the Senate. He agreed that bipartisan backing will be key to bills’ prospects this year. He said that on the campaign trail, voters told him they just want lawmakers to work together.
“Invariably, what they say is, ‘Can’t you people just get along?’” Cwodzinski conveyed about his interactions with constituents.
At some level, lawmakers will have to get along to do the one thing they need to accomplish this session: passing a balanced budget. With a return to a House tie this week, the trajectory for bills has shifted, too.
“Any bill that’s going to get scheduled for the floor now is going to have to be bipartisan, coming out of the Rules Committee, so we’re not going to see any more partisan fighting on the floor,” House DFL Leader Jamie Long said.
Under a power-sharing agreement, committees are evenly split and headed by chairs from both parties. For a bill to get to the House floor, it needs bipartisan support. And once it gets there, it will need buy-in from both parties to advance.
“What you normally would see at the end is going to take place, that collaborative work, earlier on in committee,” House Speaker Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, said. “If we’re going to move anything forward, we have to deliver a balanced budget, and we recognize that.”
Another facet that makes a bill an easy sell at the Capitol? Low to no price tag. Lawmakers face a budget shortfall in the next four years and they’re looking for places to cut.
“Obviously, we’re listening to all of the requests, but it is going to be a very tight year,” Demuth said.
That means groups asking for money this year will have a tough time making their pitch. Tom Gillespie, CEO of Living Well Disability Services, said disability service advocates are trying to make the case that lawmakers should look elsewhere for budget trims.
“We’re hearing concern there and talk of cuts very overtly from the governor and others on the Republican side. We’re hearing some support, but also challenges about waste and fraud,” Gillespie said. “And again, as we’re just blindly cutting waste and fraud or trying to root that out, unfortunately, we’re cutting the good out of our system at the same time.”
So what gives Gillespie a reason for hope? While both parties have looked to disability services for potential cuts, there’s bipartisan support for keeping it steady in the next budget.