1999 Legislative
Outcomes
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Minnesota NOW Times, Summer 1999, V.20 N.3 by Susal Stebbins
There were major questions going into the 1999 legislative session. How far would the new Republican House push their anti-woman conservative social agenda? Would the Senate stay firm on choice? Would tax break fever force major spending cuts? Was Jesse going to be an ally or an obstacle? Fortunately, all of these questions had larger positive answers, although there were some hair-raising episodes along the way and many questions are left for the future.
Health & Reproductive Issues
Abortion Rights/Family Planning Goals:
Outcomes: A close call, but no erosion of women's rights. (No advances either.) Unfortunately and ironically, anti-choice activists have opposed family planning along with abortion, even though any reduction or interference in family planning will result in higher abortion rates.
In a sometimes edge-of-your-seat drama, three anti-abortion amendments and three anti-family planning amendments were initially included in the House Health and Human Services omnibus bill, but ultimately excluded from the final version that was signed into law.
The anti-abortion amendments were designed for propaganda purposes and would have threatened women's health and/or increased intimidation and harassment of women, doctors, and/or judges. They were:
The House anti-family planning provisions would have:
The Process: All three anti-abortion provisions were heard and defeated in Senate committee. None of the anti-family planning measures were even introduced in the Senate. The Senate Conference Committee members held firm in opposing the measures, and Governor Ventura threatened to veto the bill if any anti-abortion or anti-family planning amendments were included. The MCCL (MN Citizens Concerned for Life) pressured anti-choice legislators to defeat the bill if no abortion amendments were included, but House Republican leaders ultimately rejected the MCCL strategy (while remaining committed to the anti-choice cause) and the bill was approved by a narrow margin.
Pro-Choice Bills: A bill requiring health care providers (such as Catholic hospitals) to inform their patients of their policies against providing reproductive services was introduced but not heard.
Thanks are due to:
Note: Conference Committees are appointed to work out the differences between the House and Senate versions of each bill. They include the bill author and two to four other interested members of each body.
Confidentiality to Minors/Sex Education Goals:
Outcomes: Many attempts but no real setbacks. An amendment that would have allowed parents access to their teenagers' health records came up in the Senate, but was amended so that teens could request that their records be kept confidential. The measure was then withdrawn. The House passed several amendments that would have forced two education/prevention programs to use an "abstinence before marriage" message exclusively. These programs were the K-12 AIDS/HIV prevention program and the ENABL (Education Now and Babies Later) program, which assists young teens to resist peer pressure to have sex. Conference committee removed the language pertaining to the AIDS program and added language that the ENABL program could continue to use existing materials and develop different messages targeted to specific high-risk populations.
Maternity Benefits Goals:
Outcomes: The measure (authored by Representative Joe Opatz) was passed (with only two votes opposing it) on the House floor as an amendment to the Health and Human Services bill, but was not included in the final version of the bill. The MCCL lobbied heavily in favor of the amendment - one of those rare times that MN NOW and the MCCL worked on the same side of an issue.
Lay Midwives Goals:
Outcomes: The bill (authored by Sen. Sandy Pappas and Rep. Jim Abeler) was passed and allowed to become law (Governor Ventura neither signed nor vetoed it) over some objections based on concerns about the safety of birth outside of hospitals. Statistically, lay midwife-assisted home births have fewer complications and deaths than doctor-assisted hospital births.
MinnesotaCare Goals:
Outcomes: Although the Senate initially extended coverage under MinnesotaCare for both childless adults and families (Sen. Linda Berglin took the lead on getting these passed), the House rejected both expansions (offered by Rep. Lee Greenfield). There were many attempts to repeal the 2% health care provider tax that funds MinnesotaCare, but in the end it was only reduced to 1.5% which will allow the continuation and possible future expansion of the program.
Economic Issues
Welfare Reform Goals:
Outcomes: In spite of a major state surplus, lots of kinks in the system, and several progressive welfare bills, in the end the legislature made only modest changes in the welfare system. There were minor improvements on access to education, compromises on restoring and protecting benefits levels, and a much-needed increase in funding for employment and training, and no actions on time limits. Only one new punitive measure was even considered and one existing onerous rule was actually relaxed.
Education-related provisions include:
Benefits-related provisions include:
Time limits:
Other rejected provisions include:
Child Care Goals:
Outcomes: Basic Sliding Fee child care was expanded but put at risk for the future; the actions of the legislature will not help and may slightly erode child care access, wages, and quality.
The legislature approved an additional $18.5 million in new funding for Basic Sliding Fee, which will take 3,000 more families off the waiting list. They also increased parent' contributions on the sliding fee scale in order to free up funds for an estimated additional 1,300 families.
Many women's and children's advocates were alarmed because Jesse Ventura, as candidate for Governor, said he would eliminate state funding for child care. He has done so, but replaced state funding with federal funding from the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant (established to give states flexibility with welfare reform).
The problem with using TANF funding is that it is extremely vulnerable to future federal cuts. There have already been bills introduced in Congress to cut TANF funding, and the funds are almost certain to be reduced in 2002, when the current allocation ends.
The legislature also set aside $175 million of TANF funds for welfare-to-work child care. Some reports have incorrectly touted this as a major new investment in child care. This is not new funding; it is simply the allocation of existing funding that is needed for women to meet the work requirements imposed under welfare reform.
The legislature made cuts in funding for child care referral programs, child care worker training, and other quality development measures.
Thanks to Senator Pat Piper for fighting hard to increase funding for sliding fee.
Non-traditional Occupations Goals:
Outcomes: $50,000 in new funding for WomenVenture to do outreach, training, job placement assistance, and job retention support was approved as part of the Economic Development bill. The House initially rejected funding and the Senate reduced the funding and dedicated it to a single organization rather than making it available to a variety of nonprofit organizations through a grant application process. Bill authors were Rep. Joe Mullery and Sen. Jerry Janezich.
Housing Goals:
Outcomes: The legislature approved a total of $120 million for housing programs. Almost all of this was targeted for home ownership and had relatively high income limits; it will not help most low income women. The Family Assets for Investments in Minnesota program, which gives low income participants four times the savings they put away for a home, an education, or to start a business, received $500,000 in the Early Education omnibus bill. A bill that would have allowed landlords to discriminate against prospective tenants receiving federal housing subsidies passed the House but not the Senate.
Education Goals:
Outcomes: Legislation that increases part-time grants and expands work study availability passed as part of the Higher Education bill. Funding for Family Assets for Investments in Minnesota program is in the Early Education bill (see Housing). There were no increases in child care funding for higher education.
Progressive Tax Policy Goals:
Status: The legislature passed a 10% increase to the Working Family Tax Credit. The $1.3 billion sales tax rebate is fairly progressive, but the across-the-board permanent income tax cut benefits wealthy Minnesotans for more than poor people. The permanent tax cut may cause budget deficits in the future which could encourage more regressive taxes or budget cuts that could hurt women.
Corporate Welfare:
After several year's efforts, the MN Alliance for Progressive Actions' corporate welfare bill passed and was signed into law. Under the new law, proposals for business subsidies at the state and local government level now must define how their project is in the public interest, must establish goals for jobs and wages, must have public hearings on their proposals, and must report progress on the project goals or face financial penalties.
Civil Rights Issues
Lesbian/Gay Rights Goals:
Status: Some close calls, but no setbacks. Both the House and the Senate passed (slightly different) amendments to the Health and Human Services bill that would have given preference to married couples in adoption and foster care placement. No reference was made to gay or lesbian couples, but the intent was clear. The provision was removed in conference committee. The House approved amendments to both the HHS bill and K-12 education bill that would have forced AIDS/HIV education programs to focus on abstinence before marriage. These provisions were also removed in conference committee. There was no action on the civil rights statute.
Racial Equality Goals:
Status: The rule is voluntary except that schools may not be intentionally segregated. (Most segregation in MN is unintentional in the sense that no one deliberately plans it; many cultural and structural forces keep it in place. Intentional segregation is very difficult to prove. Studies show that segregation (regardless of intent) and unequal resources still go hand in hand, and that students of color perform lower on standard measures in segregated schools than in desegregated or integrated schools.
Violence Issues
Domestic Abuse Goals:
Status: A bill was introduced and heard in the House, but missed deadlines in the Senate.
Funding Goals:
Status: The Governor's budget cut funding for several domestic abuse shelters. This funding was restored in final appropriations bills. There were no increases in funding.
Prostitution:
Substantial funding was approved for a new residential program to help women recover from experiences in prostitution and make the transition to a new life.
© 1999 Minnesota NOW