By Baird Helgeson
St. Paul could throw its support behind a lawsuit challenging Gov. Tim Pawlenty's unilateral budget cuts imposed last summer. The St. Paul City Council is scheduled to decide Wednesday whether to draft a friend-of-the-court brief in a lawsuit challenging cuts to a state-funded nutrition program through a process called unallotment. While the lawsuit dealt only with the small dietary program, it now threatens to unravel $2.7 billion in cuts, including reductions in aid to cities. St. Paul stands to lose $17.3 million over the next 18 months. "The big issue is the governor's abuse of unallotment and its effect on cities like St. Paul," said St. Paul City Council Member Lee Helgen, who drafted the resolution. "I don't think anyone ever thought he'd use that process to cut billions of dollars and ignore the legislative process." Mayor Chris Coleman supports filing the brief, a spokesman said. "We think the governor did go against the constitution," said James Lockwood, a spokesman for the mayor. "He didn't negotiate in good faith with the Legislature." Late last month, a Ramsey County District Court judge ruled in favor of six low-income Minnesotans who argued the governor overstepped his authority when he waited until after the Legislature adjourned to cut money for their medically-prescribed diets. In her ruling, Chief Judge Kathleen Gearin said the governor "trod upon the constitutional power of the Legislature" when he made the cuts. Pawlenty appealed the ruling, saying the judge misinterpreted the law. Before the ruling, the Minnesota House filed a similar brief in support of the suit.
