On Tuesday (May 9), the Minnesota House of Representatives and Senate passed the conference committee report for SF 605, the State Government Finance omnibus bill. The votes were 75-56 in the House and 34-33 in the Senate. Additionally the legislature passed four other budget bills and sent them to Governor Dayton.

Governor Dayton vetoed all five of the budget bills on Friday, May 12. His veto letter to the legislature can be found here.

In his letter Governor Dayton specifically mentions the lack of funding for MDVA initiatives:

"While there is some support for military and veteran’s initiatives, the failure to fully fund my request for the Department of Military Affairs’ enlistment incentive program will result in reductions in State Tuition Reimbursement and re-enlistment bonuses for soldiers and airmen around the state, including those who drill at Camp Ripley.

A further deficit, identified by Commissioner Shellito, is that the $10 million included in the bill to establish new veteran’s homes is insufficient to cover the state’s share of construction and operating costs needed to secure federal funding support. This bill fails to sufficiently fund the current needs of Minnesota’s veterans and future commitments. Therefore, I urge you to fund the current needs of our existing veterans homes and services:

• No operational funding for the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery – Duluth.
• No repairs and maintenance funding for veterans cemeteries and more than 50 state-owned building, including the veterans’ homes which provide 24/7 skilled nursing care for our veterans."

Moving forward, the Governor and legislature need to come to a budget agreement before the legislative session comes to a constitutionally mandated end on May 22. If agreements are not in place, a special session will need to be called to finish setting the budget for the state.