Governor Tim Pawlenty handled the 2007 session’s final bills much as he had promised - he came, he saw, he vetoed:

Capping a regular legislative session defined by his vetoes, Gov. Tim Pawlenty fulfilled a threat and vetoed a tax bill on Wednesday, taking down with it more than $70 million in local government aids and $33 million in direct homeowner property tax relief.

Also falling to Pawlenty’s veto pen were public subsidies for expansion of the Mall of America and Thomson-West publishing, as well as a state guarantee of costs associated with next year’s Republican National Convention.

Given that Pawlenty struck down funds for next year’s GOP convention, many may accuse the governor of being stingy in his cuts but almost none can suggest he’s applying a double standard and allowing his favored projects to go unscathed.  The monies themselves weren’t even the heart of the tax bill debate.  Rather, Pawlenty’s veto eliminated mandating inflation-adjusted increases into future state budgets, an act that Pawlenty rightly claimed would put “government growth on autopilot.” 

If Pawlenty vetoed a provision for budgetary cruise control, he also scrapped the bill’s equivalent of budgeting nitro for local government in the form of increased LGA funding that would be used, theoretically, to reduce local property taxes.  The measure makes about as much sense as feeding the crocodile your foot in hopes he won’t take your leg and historically hasn’t worked to reduce local government demand for funding and lower property taxes.  Instead, cities which have received higher amounts of LGA per capita also spent significantly more per capita than those cities that have been budgeted less.  This has remained steady even with a 2003 revision that made LGA need-based and not simply ”grandfathered in” spending.  Even with this change, LGA still has unfortunately provided some cities (half the citizens of Minnesota don’t recieve LGA) the ability to spend past the median and average on all services, essential or not.  Meaning for the heavy DFL core cities, Pawlenty’s veto was an immediate call for tax increases:

“The impact of the governor’s stubbornness is clear: this veto will only mean higher local property taxes and fewer cops on the streets of cities throughout the state,” said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak.

And St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman said Pawlenty’s “decision to shift the fiscal burden onto local governments has … jeopardized our ability to continue investing in public safety programs and provide quality core services such as parks and libraries.”

Despite such a victorious session for Pawlenty and vexing one for Democrats, one thing could easily change the entire outcome – a special session.  Pawlenty hasn’t completely nixed the concept and in the wake of his final vetoes, he has to expect Democrats are increasingly eager to return to St. Paul to dish out a little legislative payback whenever possible.  Considering next session is little more than a bonding one, if Democrats are going to significant injury Pawlenty and the GOP (and recover some goodwill among their base) a special session is about the only route to go.  Too many suburban Democrats who won narrow victories in 2006 aren’t going to risk a divisive 2008 session to go the mat over a bonding bill that will likely only total somewhere around the $1 billion mark. 

Pawlenty would serve himself – and the state – well by closing the door on talk of going into extra legislative innings and remaining his party’s line item hero.

TvM flashback:  T-Paw’s penis a sword