Conference Committee

After weeks of negotiations and wrangling, today the House and Senate came together to iron out differences between their versions of the state’s budget. Unfortunately, it quickly became clear that Republicans in the committee have no desire to pass a responsible budget that will meet Governor Schweitzer’s muster.

Republicans on the committee, which is made up of four Republicans and two Democrats, made it abundantly clear that they have no interest in creating a budget that will meet the Governor’s criteria. Upon their first meeting today, Republicans quickly dismissed amendment after amendment from Rep. Sesso and Sen. Williams, the two Democratic members of the committee.

Sesso and Williams made is abundantly clear that they were only interested in taking part in a conference committee that actually worked to create a responsible budget that would meet the needs of the state.

Republicans on the committee intend to jam through the conference committee, much like they did when the initial bill was in the House and Senate. They hope to complete budget committee hearings by Friday of this week.

Sen. Williams and Rep. Sesso intend to continue fighting for Montana values until the very last day. They, unlike their Republican counterparts, understand that the decisions they make in these committees will have a substantial impact on the lives of all Montanans.