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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Tim Walz said early Monday that he’s open to calling a special session after the divided Minnesota Legislature blew a midnight deadline for passing a package of tax cuts and new spending using the state’s massive budget surplus.
“You don’t get the ball to the 1-yard line and then go home,” Walz told reporters after the deadline of 11:59 p.m. Sunday passed. He said a lot of compromises were reached Sunday, and he hoped some more could be finished to get the job done.
The Democratic governor planned to meet later Monday with Republican Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller and Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman to discuss whether lawmakers can find ways to bridge their differences .
Leaders of both parties blamed the other side for the failures to reach compromises on issues ranging from tax relief to public safety to education.
Hortman said House Democrats are ready to come back and get the work done. She said she’d like the governor to call the special session for this week, before the Memorial Day weekend.
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But Miller was noncommittal, saying that he was happy to listen but that the deadline had passed.
Monday is the official final day of the 2022 legislative session, but under the rules all legislation had to clear both the House and Senate before midnight.
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