At 9:00 yesterday morning, Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton signed into law a dozen budget bills passed in a 13 hour special legislative session which began Tuesday at 3:00 pm. These bills provide funding for state government operations for the next two years in the amount of $35.4 billion. The Legislature passed the bills as agreed to by Governor Dayton, without amendment.

State employees are expected to begin returning to work today, although some agencies may phase-in their start-ups. Road construction projects, for example, may require a longer start-up period than other agency operations. State parks are expected to begin opening on Thursday.