After a September Leadership Summit that drew current and former state leaders together (but not the governor) to discuss the ongoing state budget crisis, the DFL legislative officials promised to set up a bipartisan committee of legislators to work on the issue.

Today, the group was named:

Co-chairs will be Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis, and Rep. Lyndon Carlson, DFL-Crystal, chair of the House Finance Committee.

Other members are:

• Senate Minority Leader David Senjem, R-Rochester.
• Senate President James Metzen, DFL-South St. Paul.
• Sen. Don Betzold, DFL-Fridley, chair of the Senate’s State Government Budget Division.
• Sen. Dick Cohen, DFL-St. Paul, chair of the Senate Finance Committee.
• House Minority Leader Kurt Zellers, R-Maple Grove.
• Rep. Thomas Huntley, DFL-Duluth, chair of the House Health Care and Human Services Finance Division.
• Rep. Ann Lenczewski, DFL-Bloomington, chair of the House Tax Committee.
• Rep. Loren Solberg, DFL-Grand Rapids, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Called the Subcommittee on a Balanced Budget, the group will hold its first hearing at 1 p.m. Oct. 19 in Room G-15 of the state Capitol.

The September summit, which included 12 former governors and legislative leaders, recommended several courses of action:

      • Combining spending cuts with revenue increases to preserve state priorities.

      • Creating and maintaining an appropriate budget reserve.

      • And strictly matching spending to revenue in each biennial budget, without the use of spending shifts or accounting gimmicks.

The group said immediate action is needed “to restore and sustain Minnesota’s competitiveness.”