Gov. Mark Dayton
Governor Mark Dayton and legislative leaders meet again today, trying to revive a bonding bill for state public works projects that died one month ago amid political wrangling in the closing seconds of the regular session. After a closed-door meeting last week, Dayton said, “We’re not anywhere near being able to call a special session, and we’ll see if we can move ahead next week.” House Speaker, Republican Kurt Daudt said, “I just think in the reality of where we are with the time left before July 1st, it’s unlikely that we’ll have a special session by July 1st — but I’m open to it, absolutely.” Analysts say it will be difficult to maintain momentum after the 4th of July, when vacations and campaigning kick into high gear. The two sides differ over funding for Southwest Light Rail in the Twin Cities, and over the dollar amount of the bonding bill and the mix of projects.