Following more than two hours of debate on Monday, the Minnesota House of Representatives voted not to override Gov. Tim PawlentyâÄôs veto of a bill that would temporarily restore General Assistance Medical Care to more than 30,000 of the poorest Minnesotans. The House fell three votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to override the governorâÄôs veto. Majority Leader Tony Sertich requested that the House be permitted to attempt an override later in the session. House members granted his motion with a 94-39 vote. Before the vote, Sertich said if there was a better solution than the temporary GAMC bill or the autoenrollment of GAMC into MinnesotaCare, it wouldâÄôve come up in the nine months of debate on the topic. âÄúWeâÄôre not talking about saving a program,âÄù he said. âÄúWeâÄôre taking about saving peopleâÄôs lives.âÄù Rep. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, had previously voted for GAMC reinstatement, but said today he would vote to table the bill for further negotiation. âÄúI want people to understand what this bill does and doesnâÄôt do,âÄù he said. âÄúThis is not the salvation of the people. We can do better.âÄù On Thursday, the DFL-controlled Minnesota Senate voted 45-21 to override PawlentyâÄôs veto of the GAMC bill.
House votes not to override Pawlenty’s GAMC veto
The motion fell three votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to override the governor’s veto.
by Tara Bannow
Published March 1, 2010
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