Minnesota lawmakers seeking the opinions of the people on the state’s enormous budget problem heard a loud and unmistakable message before anyone spoke a word Thursday night in Mankato.
Minnesotans are concerned about how the state is going to fix a $4.8 billion budget shortfall that’s expected to grow to as much as $7 billion when a new economic forecast is released in less than two weeks.
Every chair in the Intergovernmental Center meeting room was occupied, standing room was filled, area residents sat on every available spot on the ledge at the lawmakers’ feet. And then they packed into the last available spot — the narrow space between the legislators’ chairs and the wall.
“We estimated about 100 (would come),” Mankato City Manager Pat Hentges said. “This is wonderful. My guess is 300-400 have shown up.”
The 6 p.m. hearing was scheduled to end at 8 p.m. But as person after person testified and the hearing stretched on toward three hours, lawmakers were trying to figure out if they could override city hall’s automated power and heating system that was slated to begin shutting down at 9 p.m.
“We are so pleased with this turnout,” said state Sen. Kathy Sheran, a Mankato Democrat who led the meeting. “This is absolutely fantastic.”
The status of the state’s budget is something else entirely. A short summary at the beginning of the hearing by a nonpartisan House fiscal analyst didn’t mention worries that the shortfall could grow to as much as $7 billion due to the deterioration in the economy since the last forecast in November.
But even at the current projected shortfall of $4.9 billion, the hole represents more than 13 percent of the anticipated general fund budget.
Attempting to fix the problem will be a monumental challenge, something proven by Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s proposed budget. Eschewing tax increases and cuts to K-12 education, Pawlenty instead proposes $1.5 billion in cuts to health and human services programs, $468 million lopped from aid to local governments and $313 million sliced from higher education.
Opposition to the size of those cuts dominated much of the public testimony, with strong representation from Minnesota State University faculty and students, other state employees, representatives of the criminal-justice system, health care providers and supporters of government programs for people with disabilities.
Although they were in the minority, others supported Pawlenty’s stand against state tax increases and encouraged legislators to crack down on state spending.
Ryan Anderson, MSU’s student body president, asked lawmakers to ease the cuts to higher education that will inevitably drive up tuition and the debt load of students — which already averages more than $20,000 for the school’s graduates.
“Minnesota’s quality of life depends on the quality of its workforce,” Anderson said.
MSU President Richard Davenport suggested that state universities have little room to cut already overextended staff and facilities. He glanced over his shoulder at the jam-packed meeting room.
“That’s the way our colleges and universities look,” Davenport said. “That’s the way MSU looks right now.”
Those who work with the poor, homeless, disabled and unemployed said that steep human services cuts proposed by the governor come at a time of economic recession when services are needed most. And they said that cuts now would result in greater expense as people’s health deteriorates or their economic situation turns into a crisis.
Attorneys for low-income people, along with a local judge, said the criminal-justice system is at a breaking point after previous rounds of cuts. The region’s chief public defender, Krista Jass, said the state is reaching a point where police will need to switch to a “catch and release” system because of the shortage of attorneys. And she suggested that children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance won’t be speaking a truth when they reach the part about “liberty and justice for all.”
“We really owe it to ourselves and our children that the constitutional promise of equal justice is upheld,” Jass said.
Several testifiers called for tax increases to address part of the shortfall, noting that the wealthiest Minnesotans pay a lower percentage of the income in state and local taxes than do those making less than $350,000.
“Raising taxes won’t solve the problem, but it will help,” said Clark Johnson of Mankato.
MSU student Marcus Piepho had an opposite view, saying that tax increases will further depress economic growth — resulting in reduced tax revenue.
“Higher taxes is not going to get us out of the problem,” Piepho said. “It never will.”
Willa Dailey, the owner of a local auction company, said a trend of government spending growth beyond the rate of inflation is unsustainable. It’s impossible, Dailey said, to keep up with that through tax increases.
“How much more taxes do you want?” she asked. “... How much is enough?”
The DFL-controlled Legislature will be forming its budget in coming months, and Gov. Tim Pawlenty will submit a revised budget proposal after the March 3 forecast. In the meantime, the governor has been meeting with Chambers of Commerce and other community groups around the state.
Pawlenty spokesman Alex Carey said the governor hopes to make a stop in Mankato soon. In the meantime, he’s awaiting the Democrats’ budget plan — which he anticipates will include tax increases.
“If that’s the plan, then the DFL should go ahead and present their tax increases so we can have legitimate debate about that,” Carey said.
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