HARRISBURG — Six top state legislators facing a monthlong budget stalemate shut down an unusual public negotiating effort after two days of dealings marked by partisan sparring that drew sharp criticism from Gov. Ed Rendell.

House Appropriations Chairman Dwight Evans, D-Philadelphia, unexpectedly gaveled an end to Thursday's meeting after several hours, saying he wanted to move discussions into private with Rendell.

Shortly before that, Rendell urged the panel, which had been appointed by the Legislature's presiding officers to break the logjam, to move beyond ideology and get down to business.

"This shouldn't be theater," Rendell told reporters. "This shouldn't be a circus."

Evans had planned five days of televised conference committee meetings, in theory to negotiate a budget in full view of the public and the press.

Normally, Pennsylvania's budget is negotiated behind closed doors. However, hard bargaining never took place over the two days of meetings, and the sides remained deeply divided over how to resolve a multibillion-dollar, recession-driven falloff in tax receipts.

Democrats on the panel had insisted on reviewing the impact of Republican-proposed budget cuts that would affect their constituents. But Republicans said Democrats had not showed how they would pay for the level of spending they want and were simply dragging out the process to avoid voting for a massive and unpopular tax increase.

State government started the new fiscal year that began July 1 without a spending plan in place, severely curtailing its legal authority to distribute subsidies to schools and counties and pay vendors and employees.

Pennsylvania is now one of three states without a settled budget in place for the current fiscal year, and pressure for a deal is mounting from tens of thousands of state government employees who are dealing with tight household finances.

If experience is any guide from Florida, a state known for its strong public records and open meeting "sunshine" laws, Pennsylvania's legislators might be working backward.

Florida legislators typically bargain over a state budget in public, although some major decisions — such as a bottom-line spending total and an agreement this year to increase tobacco taxes — are made in advance by legislative leaders behind closed doors.

Even Rendell expressed doubts about the ability of legislators to negotiate a budget in public.

Sam Smith, the House Republican leader, said it is easier to be candid behind closed doors since legislators are more likely to posture and give speeches for television cameras.

In the meantime, Pennsylvania's government has continued to operate on the good will of employees who continue to show up to work, despite not receiving full pay, and vendors who have no choice but to wait for a signed budget to get paid.

Most of the state's operations have been seamless, and Rendell said he is willing to sign a skeleton budget that would pay employees, some vendors and generally keep government offices and state parks open.

But that plan would leave in limbo billions of subsidy dollars, forcing public schools, hospitals, universities and counties to make alternative plans, such as dipping into reserves or putting off purchases, to get by until a budget is signed.