Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller said he and fellow Democrats had left Madison because they were "trying to allow opportunity for democracy to work."

"We will return and do our job, but the governor has to do his job," Miller said. He noted their return is contingent on changes to the controversial legislation.

Walker called on the absent lawmakers to return to Madison "out of respect for the institution of the Legislature and the democratic process."

"Their actions by leaving the state and hiding from voting are disrespectful to the hundreds of thousands of public employees who showed up to work today and the millions of taxpayers they represent," Walker said.

CNN affiliates WREX and WTVO reported that several of the AWOL lawmakers fled to Rockford, Illinois.

And while the legislators skipped town, thousands of people came to Madison to protest the bill for a third day, including many teachers, who stand to be strongly affected by the bill. Demonstrators spilled into the state's Capitol building, chanting, "This is our house" and "Forward not backward," voicing their opposition to the bill.

The Madison Metropolitan School District canceled classes for the third day Friday, because of anticipated staff absences.

Showdowns over local and state budgets -- hurt by lower tax revenues and other trends of the economic downturn, including federal budget cuts -- are occurring from California to New York.

"There are some tough decisions that are going to have to made on the revenue side and the spending side," said Elizabeth McNichol, senior fellow at the Washington-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

-- A month after Illinois lawmakers approved a massive tax hike, Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday unveiled a $35.4 billion budget that depends on state lawmakers approving $8.7 billion in new borrowing largely to clear a towering stack of unpaid bills.

-- In New York, Mayor Michael Bloomberg presented budget plans Thursday that could eliminate more than 6,000 teaching jobs in the next fiscal year.