Lawmakers have a closed-door meeting with officials this morning about the Dayton administration’s request for an additional 43 million dollars to fix and add features to the state’s troubled vehicle registration system, MN-LARS. Unhappy G-O-P legislators say nearly a hundred million dollars has been spent on a system that doesn’t work properly. State I-T Department Projects Director Dana Bailey says without a commitment from lawmakers by early March to work together on additional funding, “We will have to tell the contractors that are currently working on the system that we no longer have any funding to pay for their contract.”
Hanska Representative Paul Torkelson responds, “I take that basically as a threat. I don’t accept it.” Torkelson, who chairs a key funding committee, says he’s “shocked” by how much money the administration is asking for. Dayton officials acknowledge bad decisions were made in the past and say they’re offering a solution.
Excerpts from Bailey’s comments at a Wednesday news conference:
Interview with Rep. Torkelson: