A chance for a real compromise on the bonding bill?

I don’t want to get my hopes up too high, because for the last seven years we’ve had nothing but Pawlenty-style compromises — i.e. give the Governor everything he wants, and get nothing in return. But according to the Star Tribune, for some reason it appears the administration is negotiating in good faith on the bonding bill:

[Budget Commissioner Tom] Hanson said that Pawlenty, who earlier proposed spending $685 million, ultimately wants a bill “in the $725 million range.”

“What that means is the governor wants his bill,” said Sen. Keith Langseth, DFL-Glyndon.

Hanson replied that a $725 million bonding package is the governor’s “current position,” adding, “To come to an agreement we have to agree on size and scope. I’m not foolish enough to think that in the end it’s going to be $725 million.”

Like I’ve written a number of times, the time to spend on our infrastructure projects is right now, when people desperately need to work, interest rates are low, and we can get a good deal on construction costs. I’m hopeful that the Pawlenty administration will be willing to play ball and get us as large a savings as possible.