There are just a few hours left in the 2025 legislative session as the two-year budget deal continues to face pushback. That means lawmakers are likely headed for a special session.
Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy (DFL- St. Paul) has encountered a fair amount of backlash from her own caucus about the deal, making it unclear when the legislature will finish its business - especially with similar difficulties in the House.
Murphy says House Republicans in particular are to blame after Governor Tim Walz and legislative leaders announced a roughly $67 billion budget agreement late last week.
"New conditions are being added that slow down the budget," Murphy said Monday. "That's frustrating and that is getting in the way and I'm concerned that Republicans are driving us to a special session. And I'm concerned about their commitment to finishing this work for the people of Minnesota."
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson (R- East Grand Forks) defended House Republicans.
"House Republicans are working within the confines of the agreement itself," explained Johnson. "They're not adding terms that are blowing up the overall global agreement."
Initially, the House of Representatives and the Senate have each passed different versions of the transportation budget, meaning they will still need to agree on one budget as part of a larger bill.
Speaker of the House Lisa Demuth (R- Cold Spring) says she’s optimistic and that they are close to reaching agreements on several issues.
"We are very, very close on a number of things," she said. "There are some small areas we have to work through. We are in the process of doing that, and that hasn't stopped at all."
House Republicans also aim to slash immigrant healthcare funding, a move fiercely opposed by DFL legislators, potentially complicating budget passage in the House, which is battling through a tie between Democrats and Republicans.
Separate from the budget, the state is still grappling with potential revisions to paid leave and sick time, and cuts to private school funding.
DFL House Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman (Brooklyn Park) says Republicans are changing and adding too much, too late.
"To change paid family medical leave, the nursing home Workforce Standards Board, we fully dealt with their issues on reinsurance," says Hortman. "I think a couple of other matters. We got as far as we could get. And then you going any further is really off the table because we just don't have agreement and we don't have time."