LANSING – The chances of a partial state government shutdown appeared to increase Friday as GOP legislative leaders announced plans to finalize the 2020 budget without a road funding agreement and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer did not retreat from her veto pledge.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, said conference committees with members from both the Senate and the House of Representatives will meet next week to finalize the Legislature's proposed budget by resolving differences between the Senate and House versions of the spending plan for the 2020 fiscal year that begins Oct. 1.

Reports from conference committees are subject to up or down votes in the House and Senate and can't be amended before being sent to the governor.

Though talks are expected to continue, Friday's developments increase the likelihood of the Republican-controlled Legislature sending Whitmer, a Democrat, a budget that she has said repeatedly she is not prepared to sign. A budget veto could lead to a partial government shutdown, starting Oct. 1, though officials have also raised the possibility of a "continuation budget" that would extend the budget now in place while negotiations continue.

In the event of a shutdown, according to Michigan Budget Office spokesman Kurt Weiss:

Many of the roughly 48,000 state employees would face layoffs

Essential services such as the Michigan State Police, the prisons, and most social services such as welfare would not be immediately affected

Closure of state parks could be one of the first effects the public would notice

Secretary of State branch offices, where motorists renew their driver's licenses and registrations, could also close as soon as Oct. 1

Michigan state government last had budget shutdowns in 2007 and 2009. Each lasted only a few hours.

"We have spent many months engaged in conversations with my governor in an effort to reach consensus on a roads plan," Shirkey said in a news release.

"With all due respect to my governor’s desire to see roads and a budget plan move in concert, we can no longer keep our schools and municipalities waiting while my governor rejects road proposals."

More:Battle heating up over who decides whether you have a gravel pit in your backyard

More:Whitmer calls on Republican lawmakers to reveal their plan for fixing Michigan roads

Whitmer, who has called for a 45-cent gas tax increase to raise $2.5 billion and increase annual road spending by $1.9 billion, says she is open to other proposals to "fix the damn roads," but that Republican leaders have not put a realistic plan on the table during closed-door meetings.

Republicans have reportedly been willing to remove the 6% sales tax from fuel sales and replace it with a higher fuel tax to increase road funding. But Shirkey has proposed replacing the resulting lost sales tax revenue for schools by either borrowing against or delaying payments for the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement System.

Whitmer says that's a nonstarter because it would be using money intended to help students and teachers to fill potholes.

Whitmer "has been working hard to get a budget done, while Republican leaders took a summer vacation," spokeswoman Tiffany Brown said Friday.

"The games being played by Republicans are leading us toward a shutdown — which Gov. Whitmer has been working hard to avoid — and does nothing to address our education crisis or fix the damn roads."

Shirkey said the budget sent to Whitmer will include unspecified additional money for road repairs, found within existing state resources.

Also, "we will increase funding for schools and students, pump more money into public safety, and put additional resources into clean water efforts," he said.

Brown said "these Republican games are leading the state toward a Trump-style shutdown by them taking actions that don't include input from the executive office."

Many federal government workers were furloughed in January during a brief federal government shutdown during a dispute between Congress and President Donald Trump over funding for his proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Gideon D'Assandro, a spokesman for House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, said the only one talking about a shutdown is Whitmer, "as she continues to hold the budget hostage over her extreme gas tax agenda."

"The Michigan Legislature is taking action to give Michigan students, families and workers the budget they deserve before it's too late," D'Assandro said.

In August, Budget Director Chris Kolb asked state department heads to identify which employees perform essential services and which could be sent home in the event of a shutdown.

"We are working our way through all of the recommendations we received from the departments as to which functions should remain operational during a shutdown," Weiss said.

"We will be making our final recommendations to the governor’s office next week."

Most state employees will likely receive layoff notices the week after next, if a budget agreement is not reached, he said.

Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @paulegan4. Read more on Michigan politics and sign up for our elections newsletter.