GOP Gets in Lockstep in Looming Budget Fight with Dayton

ST. PAUL (AP) - House and Senate Republicans are nearly ready to take on Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton in budget negotiations.

GOP legislative leaders announced Friday they agreed to a rough framework for a nearly $45 billion, two-year budget. That doesn't include more than $1 billion in tax aids and cuts.

Lawmakers still need to work out the specifics behind those numbers, including which tax provisions will make the cut. But those decisions are easy compared to what's ahead.

The Republican-controlled Legislature and Dayton have to find agreement between vastly different visions for the state's next budget. And Dayton's administration has criticized Republican budget proposals as relying on fuzzy math.

The Legislature has until May 22 to finalize its budget.