Lawmakers set to grill finance commish

DFL lawmakers are expected to be asking some tough questions of Minnesota Management and Budget Office Commissioner Tom Hanson at a legislative hearing this morning.

The Legislative Advisory Commission is expected to convene at 10 a.m. at the state Capitol to discuss Gov. Tim Pawlenty's $2.7 billion in proposed cuts to balance the state budget using his executive authority of unallotment. To watch the hearing live, go to The Uptake.

Pawlenty recently tweaked his unallotment plan, limiting cuts for chemical dependence programs and increasing the level of cuts to mental health grants and community block grants. But overall the plan is pretty much the same. It involves cuts to health and human services, local government aid and higher education.