| This week the Governor line item vetoed parts of the bonding bill and the House-Senate Conference Committee started work on the supplemental budget bill.
On Monday of this week, Governor Pawlenty used his line item veto power to remove $208 million from the capital investment bill that passed both the House and Senate. The line item veto allows the Governor to remove specific projects from the bill without vetoing the entire legislation. Of the $208 million in line item vetoes, approximately $46 million were MnSCU related projects. The following are the MnSCU related projects that were removed from the bill:
1. Lake Superior College: $11 million 2. Mesabi Range Shop Space addition: $5 million 3. Metro State: Classroom addition: $5 million 4. North Hennepin: Business and Technology addition: $11 million 5. System-wide classroom renovation: $3.6 million 6. System-wide property acquisition: $8.8 million
While we are certainly disappointed in the removal of these worthy projects, the overall investment in MnSCU projects was still significant. The final bill approved $55 million in HEAPR to help campuses across the state repair and maintain current infrastructure. These dollars are crucial to all campuses and will help improve the conditions for students.
Also this week, the House and Senate Conference Committee on the supplemental budget bill (HF1812) started. Conferees meet and ran through side-by-side comparisons of several portions of the bill including transportation and agriculture. The conference committee is scheduled to meet again on Monday to discuss the higher education portion of the bill. This committee will be responsible for crafting a compromise that balances the state budget and that is acceptable to both the House and Senate, as well as the Governor.
If you have questions or would like to discuss legislative issues, please contact MSCSA Vice President Jordan Brandt or MSCSA Director of Government Relations Jason Fossum at 651-297-5877. | 
