Why a divided Minnesota legislature needs an overtime session Minnesota's politically divided state legislature will blow through a deadline for passing a balanced budget, with too many unresolved fiscal and policy disputes Author: John Croman Updated: 10:05 PM CDT May 14, 2021 ST PAUL, Minn — There's a growing consensus that Minnesota lawmakers won't be able to get a budget passed before the session ends Monday. They'll need to meet in a special session, most likely during June, to wrap up their work and thereby avoid a state government shutdown in July. The State Capitol's "Big 3" - Gov. Tim Walz, Republican Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka and Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman - continued to hold private negotiations behind closed doors in hopes of crafting overall budget targets.