This first issue of the MN NOW Legislative Newsletter for the year 2000 is dedicated to Susal Stebbins, whose commitment and passion for women’s rights as MN NOW lobbyist for the past ten years has touched all of our lives. The Legislative Committee expresses our gratitude to Susal for paving the way for a new group of women activists to explore and expand women’s involvement in the political process. We wish Susal all the luck in the world in her endeavors and thank her for her continued support in the Legislative Committee’s work this year.

This may be your first ever issue of the Legislative Newsletter. The MN NOW State Board approved distributing the newsletter to the entire membership this legislative session. In the past, only those who requested and paid an additional fee received it. This year we must reach more people with the newsletter for two primary reasons: 1) to encourage greater grassroots activism; and 2) to assure members that the Legislative Committee is monitoring developments at the capitol and promoting MN NOW’s legislative agenda whenever possible.

The 2000 legislative agenda was developed this past fall with input from NOW members at the State Board meeting in November, through conversations with other lobbyists and organizations that work on the myriad issues MN NOW has supported in the past, and with the input and expertise of Legislative Committee members.

The legislative agenda will require grassroots organizing and activism by MN NOW members more than ever, this year. This means you! Action alerts will be sent out by mail, but due to the quick pace of the session there is often no time to do a mailing. When urgent action is required several methods will be used to contact members:

• Action Alerts will be posted regularly on the MN NOW Web Site.

• Action Alerts will be sent out to members on our MN NOW Activists e-mail list.   To sign on to this list contact MN NOW.

• Phone calls from Legislative Committee members may be made to members in key legislative districts to request that they contact their representatives on important votes.

The Committee will also work with MN NOW’s Program Committee and LDEF to promote education about key issues. For example, a Pro-Choice Forum is being planned to provide more balanced and accurate information about abortion, an issue sure to surface during this election-year session. (More on reproductive rights below).

As Legislative Coordinator I am cautiously optimistic about MN NOW’s ability to support our legislative agenda. The issues will be even more highly politicized this year given that both houses are up for re-election next November. To face the challenges ahead, we must choose our battles wisely and raise our voices loudly from all points in the state. 

Rachel Callanan
Legislative Coordinator

• The constitutionality of the restriction. Under Roe v. Wade, states cannot restrict second-trimester abortions and may only restrict third-trimester abortion if there are exceptions for the life and the health of the mother. Legislation proposed in the past would have been unconstitutional because it was too restrictive under Roe v. Wade.

• Late term abortion is rare; the procedure is performed in only 5% of abortions in the state.

• The term "partial-birth" abortion is not a medical term but a sensational political term. The actual procedure is called a dilation and extraction (D and X), a far safer procedure than cesarean for many women. Other types of abortion are only effective in earlier stages of pregnancy. The bottom line: it is a medical decision best left to a woman and her doctor.

This brief covers only a few of the salient points about late-term abortion. MN NOW will be co-sponsoring a Pro-Choice Forum along with other pro-choice organizations in the state to provide more information about this and other reproductive rights issues. The forum will take place during the legislative session and feature a panel of experts.

Other reproductive rights issues MN NOW will be monitoring include:   

• Find out your state legislators’ positions on abortion. Even if you think you know, consider contacting them again; many legislators have wavered in the last couple of years and may have changed their positions.

A major setback for Minnesota women occurred this fall in the arena of victims’ services. Until November, the Minnesota Center for Crime Victims’ Services (MCCVS), often held up as a national model for crime victims services, had been administered under the Minnesota Department of Corrections. On November 10th, 1999 Governor Ventura announced that the MCCVS would be moved to the Department of Public Safety through Executive Reorganization Order #182.

Charlie Weaver, Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, then immediately eliminated the sexual assault and battered women’s programs, as well as the legislatively mandated sexual assault and battered women’s advisory councils. This major reorganization has circumvented the legislative process and put many of the services in jeopardy under the guise of "streamlining." "Streamlining" translates into cuts, and the cuts being made do great harm to battered women and sexual assault survivors. A coalition initiated by the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault (MCASA) and the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women (MCBW) has been formed to organize around this issue. MN NOW has joined with this coalition to assist in their efforts. A rally is planned for January 10th at the State Capitol Rotunda from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Through membership in the Affirmative Options Coalition and other partnerships, MN NOW will monitor issues such as welfare, workforce development, childcare, and Minnesota’s Working Family Tax Credit.

Welfare: The 60-month time limits for Minnesota’s welfare program, the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP), will be re-examined this session. MN NOW’s Legislative Coordinator has already taken action on this issue by writing a letter to Commissioner O’Keefe at the Dept. of Human Services regarding recommended changes to the time limits.

TANF Reserve: The federal welfare program that distributes block grants to be administered by each state is called Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). States that do not use all their allotted funding end up with a TANF reserve. Minnesota’s TANF reserve is now estimated at close to $100 million. It is uncertain how this money will be used, and this is a decision that must be made by the State Legislature.

Affirmative Options has identified four priorities that should guide the use of the TANF reserve:

1) It should be used to strengthen the anti-poverty, self-sufficiency, and safety net capacity of the MN Family Investment Program;

2) It should not be used to replace existing state spending;

3) A portion of the TANF reserve should be set aside as a "rainy-day" fund, given the risk of recession and the fixed nature of the TANF block grant; and,

4) It should fund non-MFIP programs or initiatives that help people make the transition from welfare to work, or that provide supports for people on welfare or at risk of going on welfare.

A bias crime bill (HF1502) has been proposed by Rep. Jim Rhodes to create stiffer penalties for bias-motivated crimes. Instead of creating additional crimes, the bill heightens penalties, drawing attention to the seriousness of bias crimes.

Other racial justice issues that the Legislative Committee will be tracking this session, include:

• patients’ rights legislation;
• healthcare access issues, particularly for those who are transitioning off welfare;
• proposals to simplify the state's medical assistance and insurance programs; and
• access to family planning services.

The Governor and several key legislators will be attempting to pass a ballot measure to change the Minnesota state constitution to allow for a unicameral (single-house) legislature instead of our current two-house system. (The legislature cannot amend our constitution directly, but rather they must pass a measure that would put the issue on Minnesota’s November 2000 ballot.)

MN NOW does not currently have a position on this issue, but it is an important one because such a drastic shift in state government will undoubtedly have an enormous impact on women in the state. The Legislative Committee is currently researching the issue. Your input would be extremely valuable to us in developing a position for MN NOW.