Deeply divided lawmakers in the US state of Minnesota struck a deal late Thursday to end a two-week government shutdown after a months-long budget battle that mirrored the gridlock in Washington. The deal by Governor Mark Dayton and Republican leaders will raise $1.4 billion, allowing thousands of state workers to return to work, parks to reopen and businesses to get permits after the longest state shutdown in US history.
The new funds will come from borrowing from schools and from the sale of tobacco bonds, after Republicans rejected the governor's plan to raise taxes on high earners in order to reduce a projected $5 billion deficit. Dayton said his last offer would have raised income taxes only on people earning more than $1 million dollars a year - about 7,700 people or 0.3 percent of taxpayers.
In return for dropping the tax hike, Dayton was able to avoid agreeing to deep cuts in social services and preserve thousands of state jobs. State legislators are expected to vote on the package early next week after a weekend of fine-tuning, and the government will be able to resume its functions once the bills are passed and signed.
Dayton said the deal "certainly doesn't put us in a better situation, but the real solution for Minnesota and the nation is for the state and national economy to improve and put more people to work and therefore paying taxes. "No one is going to be happy with this, which is the essence of a real compromise," he said.
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