Today, parts of the Minnesota state government shut down for the first time in history, leaving 9,000 state employees without jobs, pay, or benefits. The shut down occured at midnight last night because lawmakers failed to to pass a stpgap plan to keep the government up and running while budget negotiators continue to work on funding details. Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson, a Democrat, said ''We need to fix it today. As far as I'm concerned, a one-day partial government shutdown is enough.'' While many states often miss their budget deadlines, their governments continue to run because of laws that automatically extend spending past the end of its fiscal year if a new budget is not approved. The major services affected in Minnesota Services were the highway rest areas, which closed, and the issuing of new driver's licenses. Also significantly affected were the 9,000 employees who were locked out of their jobs. Hopefully this shut down will be temporary, and state legislators will consider passing budget process laws to avoid this in the future. New York Times article: Minnesota Government Shuts Down; 9,000 Jobless