MichiganRadio

The Clock Is Ticking Down In Lansing LANSING, MI (MPRN) -

The state House of Representatives has locked its doors to keep its members in the chamber while they vote on taxes and budgets. The deadline for wrapping up the budget is midnight tonight.

The House has been deadlocked with not enough votes for big cuts to schools, Medicaid and college scholarships, and not enough votes for fees and taxes that would make those spending rollbacks less onerous.

The House also approved a temporary budget that would buy lawmakers another 30 days if they can't reach a budget deal by the deadline.

"The continuation is part of the safety net - to make sure we don't have a shutdown," says State Representative George Cushingberry, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.

The temporary budget is waiting on a procedural vote in the Senate that would send it to Governor Granholm's desk. That's not likely to occur for several hours, if it happens at all. The governor has said in the past that signing a temporary budget would be preferable to a government shutdown at midnight. © Copyright 2012, MPRN