by T.W. Budig
ECM Capitol reporter

Democratic legislative leaders are expected to discuss the state’s budget outlook over breakfast with Gov. Tim Pawlenty at the Governor’s Residence.

Pawlenty invited the leaders today  (Monday, Oct. 19) to breakfast, the day a legislative commission subcommittee on a balanced budget met for the first time.

Sen. James Metzen, DFL-South St. Paul, shares a comment with Sen. Don Betzold, DFL-Fridley, during a balanced budget committee hearing today (Oct. 19) at the Capitol. (Photo by T.W. Budig, ECM Capitol Reporter)

The subcommittee was an outgrowth  of leadership summit held earlier this fall, one Pawlenty did not attend to the expressed regrets of some former state leaders.

Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis, indicated that the breakfast meeting could be the start of meaningful discussions.

First, the governor needed to be a willing participant, Pogemiller explained.

Reaching out a hand

“We’re going to reach out a hand and ask to work with him,” said Pogemiller, speaking after the committee hearing.

During the hearing, Pogemiller, looking over incomplete data from the National Conference of State Legislatures, pointed out that in closing the 2010 budget gaps Minnesota and Alaska — Pawlenty and former Alaskan Republican Gov. Sarah Palin at helm — the highest percentages of one-time budget solutions were used.

State Demographer Tom Gillaspy and State Economist Tom Stinson testified before the committee. (Photo by T.W. Budig, ECM Capitol Reporter)

Nobody else was even in the ballpark, he said.

Pogemiller said to Management and Budget Office Commissioner Tom Hanson the administration needed to supply detailed ideas of dealing with the budget crunch or they’d pull Hanson before committees and drag the details out of him.

Sen. Don Betzold, DFL-Fridley, serves on the subcommittee and after the hearing spoke of the budget challenge.

Biggest problem is looking forward

“The biggest problem is looking forward, past the next election into the next biennium,” said Betzold, depicting the upcoming budget years the toughest he has faced since his election in 1992.

“Whether you call it a cliff or an ice berg, something huge is out there and we better be prepared, for the last session is nothing compared to what lies ahead,” said Betzold.

And the easy solutions have been used up, he explained.

State experts predict a state budget deficit topping $4 billion in the 2012-13 state budget biennium.

State Economist Tom Stinson in his presentation to the subcommittee described the state as confronting a fiscal trap.

The budget dilemma is a long-term, structural one, he said.

Short-term solutions will not fix it.

Trend growth not enough

Trend growth alone will not be enough to remedy it, he explained.

Indeed, state revenue growth long term is expected to slow as the state’s population increasingly greys.

Minnesota saw a “watershed” year in 2008 with a 30 percent jump in the number of workers turning 62, said State Demographer Tom Gillaspy.

State experts point out the challenges facing Minnesota are challenges faced by states across the country.