Minnesota's rainy day fund is drained, and now we're in a budget storm - MinnPost

Sharon Schmickle, MinnPost, February 12, 2010

Seventeen states tapped rainy day funds to help balance their budgets for this recession-racked fiscal year. And 15 other states still held enough in their funds to cover at least 5 percent of their annual spending needs.

Minnesota was not among them. Its rainy day fund was drained in 2008. And reserve funds that could cushion the state's public institutions from fiscal disaster are unlikely to be replenished any time soon.

Just the opposite. Gov. Tim Pawlenty has pressured cities, school districts, the University of Minnesota and the 32 institutions in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system to draw down their own reserves in order to cover for shortfalls at the State Capital.

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Minnesota's deficit is forcing school cuts - Star Tribune

Gregory A. Patterson, Star Tribune, February 11, 2010

Schools seek fixes now, fearing even less funding will be available next year.

East metro school districts from the Mississippi to the St. Croix are scrambling to plug holes in their budgets that many fear could be drained next year.

Already school districts in Forest Lake, North St. Paul and South St. Paul are considering layoffs and program cancellations. In addition to staffing changes, the proposed solutions include tapping into the reserve funds they've stored up over the years, called fund balances.

The St. Paul Public Schools have been working on ways to bridge a $28 million deficit for months. A similar gap last year led to layoffs of more than 200 people in the state's second-largest school district.

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State is asking health providers to absorb the costs of giving care - Star Tribune

Benjamin Whitten, Star Tribune, February 11, 2010

That's the effect of cuts planned to medical assistance. Fixing this problem, frankly, will require higher taxes.

There has been a lot of talk over the last eight months about the General Assistance Medical Care program, and rightfully so. Based on actions by Gov. Tim Pawlenty last year, coverage for GAMC recipients is scheduled to end on April 1.

The more than 11,000 physicians in the Minnesota Medical Association (MMA) agree that we must find a way to save the GAMC program. However, the proposals on the table now are not viable solutions.

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A snowball of a problem: Minnesota 2nd among states in relying on one-time budget fixes - MinnPost

Sharon Schmickle, Minnpost, February 2, 2010

Standing alone, Minnesota's budget problems clearly are serious. Stack the state next to others nationwide, though, and it becomes even clearer that Minnesota's fiscal house needs major repair as the state Legislature begins its session this week.

To examine just one measure: Minnesota is second only to Alaska among states that relied on one-time fixes to close their budget gaps for this fiscal year, according to an update from the National Conference of State Legislatures.

It was a high-stakes bet on recovery from the recession, a strategy for buying time until revenues rebounded.

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