Minnesota’s 2017 legislative session began on January 3 with a number of new legislators and a Republican majority in both houses. This year begins a new two-year biennium session, in which the legislature sets the budget for the state for the next two years. And it marks a return to the Capitol, after the majority of the extensive repairs and renovations that closed the building for the past year have been completed.
The second year of the biennium is generally focused on passing a bonding bill, allocating funds for special projects like road construction, maintaining and constructing buildings, and last year, legislators failed to reach an agreement on their bonding bill. Governor Dayton has introduced a $1.5 billion bonding bill this session, which he’s dubbing his Jobs Bill, for the legislature’s consideration.
The November 2016 budget forecast, which is used to determine a preliminary budget target for the two-year budget cycle, projects a $1.4 billion positive balance. A portion of those funds must be placed in reserves, according to state statute, but the remaining funds can be used to increase spending or decrease taxes, or a combination of both. Additional information is available through Minnesota Budget Project The updated February budget forecast will be used to determine the final figures to set the budget for the biennium.
Committee meetings to date have primarily focused on reports from state agencies to get new committee members acquainted with the agencies’ roles and responsibilities, and their current needs. We will be tracking bills this session on our website and blogging with updates when bills of significance to the child welfare field are introduced and make their way through the legislative process.
Also keep an eye on the CASCW Facebook and Twitter.
At the annual Minnesota Council of Nonprofits’ Session Lineup event in St. Paul, we heard from Lieutenant Governor Tina Smith, Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk (D), Deputy Majority Leader Senator Michelle Benson (R), House Deputy Minority Leader Rena Moran (D) and House Speaker Tony Albright (R). The need to continue to fund high-quality early childhood education was highlighted by most of these leaders. There is also talk of tax relief for low income and working families.
Representative Albright was asked about his interests in child protection reform efforts. He said he’d like to coordinate activities between counties and the Department of Human Services (DHS). There will be a lot of competition for funds in the budget this year, but he said that when “people are trying to take care of their kids and don’t fall through the cracks, that’s a very very high priority that the state should undertake and make sure it’s taken care of, not just minimally, but… adequately.”
The Legislative Task Force on Child Protection is expected to continue as the legislature and DHS continue to process and implement key provisions set forth by the Governor’s Task Force on the Protection of Children in 2014. The composition of the task force, with Senator Sheran and Representative Mullery no longer in office, will change, but we have not yet heard who will fill those openings. There have been no meeting dates set for 2017, but we will continue to monitor the work of this task force and share information as it becomes available.
Progress on the task force’s oversight of the review and implementation of the 93 recommendations is documented in a spreadsheet, including some notes on timeline for completion, responsible parties for action, and references to relevant statute.
According to this document, slated for 2017 legislation is a clarification of the definitions of “medical neglect,” “threatened injury” and “investigation.” There are also plans to expand the training system for child protection workers and supervisors, renew the commitment for DHS to conduct Child and Family Service Reviews (CSFR) for counties and tribes, and update the SSIS system used by workers to maintain electronic case files for families and children being served by the child protection system. Further plans for this year’s session according to the spreadsheet include increased funding for greater DHS oversight of county and tribal child protection agencies, and for improved data gathering during the intake and screening process.
Coming up is the annual Minnesota Council of Nonprofits Children and Youth Issues Briefing, held at the Intercontinental St. Paul Riverfront, on January 27 at 8:30 AM. Registration is open for this free event.
We will be attending, and will share what we learn following that event.