A top Minnesota analyst says the state Supreme Court in Thursday’s high-profile decision did not address whether Governor Mark Dayton violated the state Constitution when he vetoed funding for the legislature, as he tried to get Republicans to rescind certain tax breaks. Hamline University Professor David Schultz says, “What the court really did here was, in many ways, walk away from the duty it’s supposed to perform.” The court said it didn’t need to settle the issue because the legislature has access to reserve funds to keep it operating until lawmakers go back in session February 20th.
The Supreme Court ruling forced Republicans to tap reserve funds to keep the legislature operating and could foreshadow a rocky legislative session next year. Schultz says, “You’re gonna probably see a 2018 legislative session that will be ugly, to say the least, in terms of the fights between the governor and the legislature.” Some Republicans are pledging to stand their ground and defend the legislature against power grabs by the governor. Dayton counters he’s trying to get Republicans to rescind several tax breaks that will hurt the state’s fiscal stability.
More in this interview with Schultz: