"No Budget, No Pay" Bill Idea For The Minnesota State Legislature

This past week, The US House of Representatives passed a bill called “No Budget, No Pay” which is a measure to get members of Congress in both political parties to agree on a budget.  The US Congress has not passed a budget since 2009.  The No Budget, No Pay Bill states that members of congress must pass a budget by certain date, or no member receives pay.  The No Budget, No Pay Bill gave me an Idea for the Minnesota State Legislature to prevent future state shutdowns like the state shutdown we had here in Minnesota during July 2011. A “No Budget, No Pay” Bill should be introduced in the Minnesota State Legislature.  This “No Budget, No Pay” bill should have similar language to the bill that passed the US House of Representatives.  Here is an example of what the proposed law should state. “If neither the State Senate or House of Representatives has passed a budget by a certain date, then no member of either the State Senate or the State House of Representative will receive pay including per diem until a budget is passed by both the State Senate and State House of Representatives.” I believe a “No Budget, No Pay” bill should be a state law or a permanent State Constitutional Amendment. I have emailed State Senator Eric Pratt, State Representatives Mike Beard and Tony Albright to propose this idea in the State Legislature and I encourage more people to do the same. I believe this one way to prevent future state shutdowns here in Minnesota.