State lawmakers are facing a $1.75 billion budget shortfall and a government shutdown if a budget solution is not reached in time for Oct. 1 — the start of the new fiscal year.

“There’s a tremendous amount of pressure on the Legislature, but they are so split up amongst themselves that the pressure doesn’t work,” said Mark Grebner, a political consultant for Practical Political Consulting Inc.

For weeks, the state House and Senate have been negotiating whether to cut funding or provide revenue for the state’s services. The issue has resulted in a deadlock that forced the state Senate to pass a continuation budget in order to extend negotiations another 30 days.

In a letter to Granholm, Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, requested Granholm sign the continuation budget. At press time, the continuation budget bills were sitting in the House.

The state, however, cannot continue to spend what it doesn’t have if a continuation budget is passed, Granholm said.

“It is not an answer to our fiscal crises,” she said. “It will only make them far worse.”

Granholm and her administration estimate a continuation budget could cost the state an additional $125 million a month.

“The money is there, no one can say the money isn’t there,” said Bill Ballenger, editor of Inside Michigan Politics. “The real question is, should a continuation budget be enacted, thereby giving the Legislature and governor more time to debate this whole issue? The governor is saying time has run out.”

Granholm questioned whether legislators would be able to solve the budget issues with an additional 30 days, if they had failed to do so within the last eight months.

In the meantime, Michigan’s citizens will continue waiting for an answer to come from Lansing.