“Special interests have absolutely no place at the committee table, no matter who they represent,” Buesgens said.  “This one in particular has consistently stood in the way of education reform and spent millions upon millions of dollars over the years to elect reform-averse legislators.  Putting him at the head of the table for all to see sent a clear message, like having Vito Corleone watching over his foot soldiers.”

According to Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board records, Dooher is registered lobbyist number 2005, having first registered on June 18, 2007.  Board documents also show that the EdMinn PAC gave $155,700 to the Minnesota DFL House Caucus in 2008, the most recent election year.

“Special interests do not run the Legislature, or at least that’s what we are told.  But apparently if you are willing to fork over enough cash, Democrats can find room for you at the head of the table. It’s a disgrace,” Buesgens said.

EdMinn PAC and Education Minnesota are technically separate entities, but the PAC’s 2008 year-end report shows $691,320 in income from Education Minnesota coming in monthly installments of $57,610.  The report also shows the union giving the PAC “miscellaneous income” totaling $93,946 that was “used to record staff time.”

“They are one and the same in every way that matters, and today they got to lord over the Legislature,” Buesgens said.

“Forget everything Democrats have railed on for the last nine months, because it’s all in their own budget.  They blasted the governor for using federal money, but it’s in their budget.  They blasted the governor over the possibility of short-term borrowing, but they failed to accept his solution for preventing it.  It’s a pile of contradictions and hypocrisies.” 

When Governor Pawlenty proposed using as yet unapproved federal money to balance the budget, Democrats quickly pounced on the idea, calling it “funny money” and claiming the governor’s budget was unbalanced as a result.  They also held hearings to grill state finance officials over plans developed in case the state needed to use short-term borrowing to meet cash flow needs.  The budget resolution introduced today adopts the federal money, but rejects the governor’s proposal to build up the cash flow account.

"Their targets also fail to account for the unallotment lawsuit.  Normally when someone joins a lawsuit they do so in the hopes of winning, but Democrats apparently spent taxpayers' money to go to court over a case they want to lose.  It’s pretty obvious now why they went to court, and it wasn’t out of great concern for the constitution." 

House Democrats ordered nonpartisan House Research staff to file an amicus curiae brief in support of a lawsuit challenging Pawlenty’s use of unallotments to balance the budget.  They later spent $25,000 of taxpayer money to hire a DFL-leaning lawyer to file a second brief with the Minnesota Supreme Court.

The budget resolution is expected to be up for a vote in the House Ways & Means Committee Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

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The announcement follows last month’s introduction of GOP government reform initiatives and the news of Minnesota’s continuing budget deficits.  The bill, a companion to the Sunset and Innovation commissions, authorizes furloughs, layoffs, wage freezes, pension benefit restructuring and an early retirement option to achieve the 15% goal.

“This bill brings short-term savings, long-term cost reduction and lasting structural change to Minnesota government.  It offers several tools to achieve the difficult but necessary task of reducing the state government workforce,” said Downey. 

Prior to implementing the early retirement program, the bill requires an actuarial analysis to determine the number of retirees and the amount of savings to be returned to the pension to cover the cost of the program.  The legislation also requires a hard hiring freeze to solidify the workforce reduction and maximize the savings impact.

“The early retirement option offers a fair alternative to cuts and layoffs, doing so in a way that seeks to balance the cost to the pension fund while continuing the discussion of pension reform,” said Downey.

With continued deficit projections, Downey emphasized the need to reform the structure of Minnesota government for reduced costs and improved efficiency. 

“The state government nickel-and-dimed itself into these budget problems, and now we have to nickel-and-dime our way out,” said Downey.  “There is no single cut.  Instead, we need to undertake a wide range of reforms to make Minnesota government leaner, more efficient and more cost-effective."

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“There are many voices on the left calling for higher taxes.  They say they are willing to pay more, so I want to give them that opportunity,” said Scott.

“This proposal is about the hypocrisy of a vocal minority and the reality that Minnesotans cannot afford higher taxes. We need to reduce government spending, scale-down the bureaucracy and put government in its proper scope,” said Scott.

“I can say that I am taxed enough already, and this proposal will show that most Minnesotans think they are too.”

"Governor Pawlenty wants to push for more reforms to the state's health care programs, and our caucus will support that effort. We will uphold the Governor's veto.

"Representatives Matt Dean and Steve Gottwalt offered real reform ideas during today's floor debate and we will bring those ideas back to the table as we try to achieve a solution. This is difficult work. We'll roll up our sleeves and get back at it."