T.W. Budig
ECM Online Editor

House Republicans unwrapped committee assignments Dec. 29, saying they reflect balance and an attempt to reach across the aisle. Forest Lakeís Rep. Ray Vandeveer was part of the group.

House Speaker Steve Sviggum, R-Kenyon, said though there still may be some ìmassagingî to be done, committees are basically set.

Making good an earlier commitment, Sviggum appointed two House DFLers as committee vice chairs ó an unusual step.

Rep. Joe Opatz, DFL-St. Cloud, will be vice-chair of the Higher Education Finance Committee.

Opatz and Rep. David Dill, DFL-Crane Lake, named vice chair of the Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources Finance Committee, will actively be engaged on the committee level, Sviggum said.

In an action affecting a local lawmaker, Sviggum announced that Rep. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, will chair a Health Policy and Finance Committee subcommittee on healthcare reform and cost containment.

Earlier plans for a joint House/Senate healthcare committee ó a committee Abeler was tapped as co-chair by Sviggum ó have fallen apart, Sviggum explained.

Another local lawmaker prematurely tapped to co-chair a failed joint House/Senate stadium committee, Rep. Andy Westerberg, R-Blaine, was appointed chairman of the Gaming Division.

In another late appointment, District 52A Rep. Ray Vandeveer, R-Forest Lake, was appointed chairman of the Property and Local Tax Division.

For most House committees, Republicans will have a two vote majority over House DFLers under the House Republican setup.

With the opening of the session, one task before the 134 House members is the election of a Speaker. The election for Speaker is decided by the majority of members voting.

Old-time politics?

House Minority Leader Matt Entenza, DFL-St. Paul, didnít like the way House Republicans set up the committees, saying it reflected ìold time politics.î

ìThe Speaker didnít seem to get the lesson (of the election),î Entenza said, adding voters want bipartisanship.

He called the committee appointments a ìbad omenî for a nonpartisan session.

The appointment of two DFLers as vice chairs of committees didnít mean much, Entenza said.

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