Governor Reports Progress in Special Session Talks

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Legislative leaders are starting to hash out what a special session to aid steelworkers and address other issues might look like.

It's still unclear whether that special session will happen. Gov. Mark Dayton reported progress but no certainty after meeting with Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk and House Speaker Kurt Daudt on Thursday.

Extending unemployment benefits for laid-off steelworkers on the Iron Range top the agenda. Lawmakers are also considering how to improve economic disparities among black residents and resolving a dispute with the federal government over driver's licenses that could mean trouble boarding flights.

Bakk says that heavy docket would require a multiple-day session rather than the single day Dayton had envisioned. And it would likely have to wait until mid-January when senators can move into a new building.