Dear neighbors,

The fourth week of the legislative session is in the books and the first committee deadline — the first deadline by which most policy bills must have been heard by at least one committee — is in a few days. As things at the Capitol run at full steam, I want to update you on where things stand.

Elder Care

This week, my colleagues and I unveiled the Elder Care and Vulnerable Adult Protection Act – our proposal to enhance existing law and do a better job of providing state oversight to assisted living facilities and nursing homes across Minnesota. It includes many of the recommendations of an elder abuse task force established last year, as well as many of the priorities of victim advocates, senior care facilities, and most importantly, the care providers – the hardworking men and women who work day in and day out to provide compassionate care to residents. It also includes significant enhancements to the state’s oversight role of senior living facilities.

Strict abuse prevention measures

Electronic monitoring, also known as ‘granny cams,’ will be allowed in rooms to provide vulnerable adults and their family members peace of mind. Additionally, the Home Care Bill of Rights will be expanded to include individuals in assisted living facilities. Immediate fines may be imposed on facilities when violations occur.

Streamlined and transparent complaint processes

The Office of Health Facilities Complaints (OHFC) – the state agency tasked with compiling complaints and investigating them – will be required to implement a new electronic case management system, triage incoming complaints according to severity, and transparently publish all substantiated claims on their website.

Fair and timely communication of investigation findings

The OHFC will be required to provide important information to abuse victims and their families, including the nature of the maltreatment allegation, the name of the facility, the name of the perpetrator, recommended protective measures, and regular updates on the progress of the investigation.

Protections for consumers against misleading marketing practices

The bill prohibits deceptive marketing practices for nursing homes and assisted living facilities and adds a civil penalty for providers that provided or arranged for health care or services that are substantially different or more expensive than marketed, promised, or advertised.

Increased oversight and accountability of the Office of Health Facility Complaints

The OHFC, which was intended to be a watchdog agency but amassed a backlog of nearly 25,000 uninvestigated complaints, will be required to provide the legislature with quarterly progress reports.

Continued state action on elder care issues

We will continue working to address certain areas of elder care through the creation of the Assisted Living Licensure and Dementia Care Certification Task Force, the Crimes Against Vulnerable Adults Task Force, and the Assisted Living Report Card Working Group.

MNLARS update

Despite a decade of planning and over $93 million, the Minnesota Vehicle and Licensing Registration System (MNLARS) was rolled out last July to widespread problems. The MNLARS failure has been especially hard on deputy registrars, who have no choice but to use the failed software every day. In the eight months since its release, those difficulties largely remain.

Legislation authorizing $7.3 million from existing driver and vehicle services funds passed out of committee this week to address the immediate costs of I.T. support. However, while there is no question that MNLARS must be fixed, it cannot come without strict legislative oversight – a large portion of our proposal. The bill requires the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and Minnesota IT Services (MN.IT) officials to submit a proposed timeline, including quarterly benchmarks, for a fully-functional MNLARS to the Legislative Advisory Committee by May 15. As the software is developed, the Legislative Advisory Committee must approve any additional quarterly appropriation, provided the quarterly benchmarks are being met.

The bill is expected to be taken up by the full Senate early next week.

Local government aid increase

I’m the chief author of bipartisan legislation to increase funding for Local Government Aid (LGA) – a vital source of funding for 90% of communities, especially in Greater Minnesota. The bill would increase the funding by $30.5 million.

The legislature has passed small increases to LGA over the last decade, but the program still receives less funding than it did in 2002 – despite inflation and rising costs to cities. Local government aid is vitally important for cities to be able to continue offering amenities and essential services – such as the plowing of streets or trash services – to its residents at a reasonable cost.

I’m hopeful an LGA funding increase will be addressed as we debate changes to tax laws in Minnesota. I will continue to keep you updated over the course of the session.

School safety proposals

Several proposals to increase safety in Minnesota schools were heard in committee this week. The proposals provide new flexible funding for school safety.

• SF3243 – Allows school districts to use long-term facilities maintenance revenue for remodeling and equipping existing school facilities to increase the safety and security of students and staff.
• SF2754 – Provides one-time revenue for safe schools that can be used for a variety of things including mental health, school counselors, structural building improvements, and more.
• SF3068 – Creates a new grant program for public school districts to conduct professional safety audits of their local schools and identify any potential areas for improvement. Districts may receive up to 100% of their costs reimbursed through state grants.

Funding for safe schools can be used to increase building safety, hire school resource officers, mental health professionals, counselors, social workers, and others to ensure our schools are as safe as possible. Recognizing that school districts across Minnesota are rich in diversity, these proposals afford most of these decisions to the local school districts to choose what best fits their communities.

Ditch mowing

The unreasonable ditch mowing mandate required by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) last year is one of the main issues I hear about around the district. Last year, I was a co-author on legislation to place a moratorium on MnDOT’s ability to enforce restrictions on farmers’ and landowners’ abilities to mow or bale along state highway rights-of-way.

Since then, MnDOT solicited public feedback on the issue and issued a report to the legislature earlier this month. That report, however, was seriously flawed and lacked the insight necessary to move forward on the issue in a meaningful way. While the report did a good job summarizing the meetings, it provided no clarification and did not include substantive policy recommendations.

One of the main problems with MnDOT’s ditch mowing regulations is the discrepancy in permitting; landowners along state highways within city limits are not required to obtain a permit, while landowners along state highways in rural areas are subject to the permitting process. Despite saving the state millions of dollars in mowing costs, farmers and landowners would be subject to adverse effects should the current rules and enforcement procedures be allowed to proceed.

Over the next several weeks, we will be weighing our options on the best route to proceed. If you have any input, please let me know. I value your feedback in this area.