Posted 6/6/01 Lawmakers plod on although light-years apart By T.W. Budig ECM capitol reporter House Tax Committee Chair Ron Abrams, R, Minnetonka, emerged from an hour long meeting between legislative leaders and Gov. Ventura June 4 saying the House and Senate remain ělight-years apartî on the tax bill. ěItís a really sad state,î he said. While lawmakers are vague on when a special session might take place, House Speaker Steve Sviggum, R, Kenyon, dismissed the idea of a special session on Wednesday. Ventura last week proposed a one-day special session for Wednesday, June 6. But only the environment and agriculture conference committee and the higher education conference committee have finished their bills. Some seven conference committee currently have open bills. And the tax committee did not meet on Monday at all. There was no point as long as the Senate remains inflexible, said Abrams. So itís possible no special session at all will take place this week. The governor has insisted that the administration have two days to review the completed bills before having a special session. But Assistant Majority Leader John Hottinger, DFL, Mankato, left the afternoon meeting in the Governorís Office saying that some clarification of the issues had been achieved. There had been misunderstanding about the budget compromise that the governor helped broker, he explained. For one thing, House Republicans took the compromise as being broader than it actually was, he said. ěI think both sides expressed a willingness to get to the end game and get a solution,î he said. The Senate has for some time, he said. Hottinger said House Republican didnít really bring anything new to the table. But Sviggum said House Republicans did bring a ělegitimate offerî to the meeting. ěThe Senate sat there and didnít respond in kind. They had no offer,î said Sviggum. Legislative are scheduled to again meet with the governor on Tuesday, June 5. The regular legislative session closed on May 21. Senate Republicans had earlier in the day called for Senate DFLers to come to terms with the House Republican tax plan. ěThey should quit stalling and yield,î said Sen. Bill Belanger, R, Bloomington. ěAnd admit they got beat and got beat good this time,î he said. Hottinger said the Senate remains concerned about educational funding and the shift of the property tax burden onto homeowners. ©Post Review