House waiting to vote on supplemental spending bill

So we're starting the House floor session with no supplemental budget bill posted electronically by the Revisor's Office -- a 600-page document that spells out the details of how lawmakers will spend the state's surplus on education, broadband, equity and many other areas.

Michele Timmons, the revisor of statutes, said the document would not be ready until as late as 7, and that it would take a half-hour just to print out a few copies for the House and Senate.

The House has to vote for the spending package before sending it to the Senate floor. The legislative session has until midnight to approve the legislation, along with resolving disputes over bonding and transportation.

How will lawmakers have time to read the full document before voting? Rep. Phyllis Kahn, DFL-Minneapolis said that's a question that's come up many tmes.

On his way into the State Office Building mid-afternoon, House DFL Leader Paul Thissen said that his caucus was frustrated.

"It's again come down to the last minute and people don’t really know what's in these bills," he said. "Nobody knows what's in the supplemental bill."

In preparation for a tedious day, he was holding a book about the Red Lake Ojibwe called Warrior Nation.

"I haven’t read very much of it," he explained, "but it’s like a crutch."