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The good news about the Legislature this year and its important agenda: It has a $7.7 billion surplus to work with. The bad news: It appears each party is sticking pretty tightly to its talking points.

When you ask legislators what they’re for, they have a long list. When you ask them what they’ll compromise on, they go silent.

It doesn’t have to be this way. It shouldn’t be this way.

They Legislature should prioritize pandemic relief for front-line COVID workers, mental health support for students recovering from distance learning and filling the large gaps left by neglected infrastructure.

Equally important are “concept” problems, such as police reform and the achievement gap in education. Rising crime in metro areas and elsewhere should also be a top priority, as public safety stands as one of the critical duties of government.

Republicans and Democrats at a joint forum one day after a fatal school shooting in Richfield said combatting growing crime is a top priority, but they advocate different routes. Republicans want prosecutors to get tougher on repeat offenders and harsher sentences while Democrats prioritize programs that would prevent crime.

And both parties agree to boost funding for cities to hire more police officers, for law enforcement and community groups. Gov. Tim Walz called for “no tolerance” for these crimes and the “causes of these crimes.” Seems like there’s room for compromise here.

Legislators suggested the bonding bill can be done early, rather than at the end of the session where it often falls dead in secret negotiations. The bonding bill shouldn’t be a hammer for either party to force concessions on its more partisan issues.

With interest rates rising, passing a bonding bill at the end of the session will likely cost Minnesotans millions more.

In the area of “no-nos,” how about never using the term “nonstarter?” Anyone who uses that term is priming the pump for gridlock. And it suggests that the legislators believe they can tell their colleagues what they will not do (often falsely claiming that’s what the people want) instead of letting people tell legislators what they should do.

Nonstarter is an ugly term and not conducive to good faith negotiations.

And if the media ask what’s a nonstarter, legislators should feel free to say they don’t know or even better yet, there are none.

Minnesotans want compromise and problem solving more than they want unachievable tax cuts or unachievable spending increases.

Minnesota lawmakers have an unprecedented opportunity with the budget surplus to make Minnesota better by smart investments, by solving tough problems with compromise and getting the public’s work done on time.

— Mankato Free Press, Feb. 4