HF 1970

as introduced - 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018) Posted on 03/02/2017 01:20pm

A bill for an act
relating to education; creating an Early Care and Learning Commission;
coordinating early care and learning activities across Minnesota; authorizing early
care and learning funds to be reallocated; appropriating money; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2016, sections 4.045; 119A.03, subdivision 2; 119B.02,
subdivision 1; 127A.05, by adding a subdivision; 144.05, subdivisions 1, 2;
145A.17, subdivision 1.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 4.045, is amended to read:

4.045 CHILDREN'S CABINET new text begin AND EARLY CARE AND LEARNING
COMMISSION new text end .

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Children's cabinet. new text end

The Children's Cabinet shall consist of the
commissioners of education, human services, employment and economic development,
public safety, corrections, management and budget, health, administration, Housing Finance
Agency, and transportation, and the director of the Office of Strategic and Long-Range
Planning. The governor shall designate one member to serve as cabinet chair. The chair is
responsible for ensuring that the duties of the Children's Cabinet are performed.

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Early Care and Learning Commission established. new text end

new text begin (a) The Early Care and
Learning Commission is established. The commission's nine members include the
commissioners of education, human services, health, and employment and economic
development, and five other members appointed by the governor. The governor's appointees
must include at least one public school educator and at least one child care provider. The
governor shall designate one member to convene the first meeting. Thereafter, the
commission shall elect its chair. The chair is responsible for ensuring that the duties of the
Early Care and Learning Commission are performed. The commission may hire a director
who shall serve in the unclassified service. The commissioner may hire other staff as
necessary. The Department of Education must serve as the fiscal host for the commission.
new text end

new text begin (b) Decisions of the Early Care and Learning Commission become effective the day
following their adoption by two-thirds vote of the membership of the commission.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Early Care and Learning Commission duties. new text end

new text begin The Early Care and Learning
Commission must:
new text end

new text begin (1) coordinate policy for early learning scholarships, establish the maximum scholarship
amounts for each year, and determine the shares of the early learning scholarships to be
allocated between Pathway I and Pathway II;
new text end

new text begin (2) coordinate the parent aware quality rating and improvement system under section
124D.142;
new text end

new text begin (3) recommend changes to the voluntary prekindergarten program regarding the funding
level, curricular requirements, and teacher qualifications;
new text end

new text begin (4) coordinate home visiting programs overseen by the Departments of Health and
Education;
new text end

new text begin (5) evaluate Head Start funding and make annual recommendations regarding the
state-funded Head Start programs;
new text end

new text begin (6) annually recommend efforts to integrate early childhood family education, school
readiness, early learning scholarships, and voluntary prekindergarten programs;
new text end

new text begin (6) review promise neighborhood programs and recommend future funding levels for
promise neighborhood activities; and
new text end

new text begin (7) monitor child care assistance programs, making annual recommendations regarding
state funding levels, reimbursement rates, and family eligibility.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Early care and learning programs. new text end

new text begin The programs that must be reviewed and
coordinated by the Early Care and Learning Commission, include, but are not limited to,
child care assistance programs, early learning scholarships, school readiness, Head Start,
voluntary prekindergarten, and early childhood family education home visiting programs.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Early care and learning budget review. new text end

new text begin The Early Care and Learning
Commission must review the biennial budgets of the Departments of Education, Health,
Human Services, and Employment and Economic Development and make recommendations
to the governor regarding funding levels for each early care and learning program operated
by each agency.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Early Care and Learning Commission; federal funds. new text end

new text begin The Early Care and
Learning Commission must review any agency plan required for receipt of federal funds
affecting early care and learning programs and recommend changes prior to the agency
submitting that plan. The Early Care and Learning Commission must annually review the
spending of federal funds for early care and learning programs.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 7. new text end

new text begin Early Care and Learning Commission; program outreach. new text end

new text begin The Early Care
and Learning Commission must coordinate outreach to families with young children. The
commission must develop a family eligibility form and single application process that may
be used across all early care and learning programs.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 8. new text end

new text begin Revenue redistribution. new text end

new text begin Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the Early
Care and Learning Commission may adopt a resolution to reallocate money among the
programs listed in subdivision 4. Any funds proposed for reallocation are reallocated
beginning July 1 of the following fiscal year.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 119A.03, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Duties of commissioner.

The commissioner shall:

(1) identify measurable outcomes by which programs administered by the department
will be evaluated at the state and local level;

(2) develop linkages with other state departments to ensure coordination and consistent
state policies promoting healthy development of children and families;

(3) prepare, in consultation with the Children's Cabinet new text begin , Early Care and Learning
Commission, new text end and affected parties, prior to July 1 of each year, guidelines governing planning,
reporting, and other procedural requirements necessary to administer this chapter;

(4) facilitate inclusive processes when designing or implementing guidelines and strategies
to achieve agency goals for children and families;

(5) facilitate intergovernmental and public-private partnership strategies necessary to
implement this chapter;

(6) submit to the federal government, or provide assistance to local governments and
organizations in submitting, where appropriate and feasible, requests for federal waivers or
recommendations for changes in federal law necessary to carry out the purposes of this
chapter;

(7) coordinate review of all plans and other documents required under the guidelines
provided for in clause (3);

(8) coordinate development of the management support system components required
for implementation of this chapter;

(9) new text begin administer early care and learning programs in the manner specified by the Early
Care and Learning Commission;
new text end

new text begin (10) new text end review other programs serving children and families to determine the feasibility
for transfer to the Department of Education or the feasibility of inclusion in the funding
consolidation process; and

deleted text begin (10) deleted text end new text begin (11) new text end monitor local compliance with this chapter.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 119B.02, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Child care services.

new text begin (a) new text end The commissioner shall develop standards for
county and human services boards to provide child care services to enable eligible families
to participate in employment, training, or education programs. Within the limits of available
appropriations, the commissioner shall distribute money to counties to reduce the costs of
child care for eligible families. The commissioner shall adopt rules to govern the program
in accordance with this section. The rules must establish a sliding schedule of fees for parents
receiving child care services. The rules shall provide that funds received as a lump-sum
payment of child support arrearages shall not be counted as income to a family in the month
received but shall be prorated over the 12 months following receipt and added to the family
income during those months. The commissioner shall maximize the use of federal money
under title I and title IV of Public Law 104-193, the Personal Responsibility and Work
Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, and other programs that provide federal or state
reimbursement for child care services for low-income families who are in education, training,
job search, or other activities allowed under those programs. Money appropriated under
this section must be coordinated with the programs that provide federal reimbursement for
child care services to accomplish this purpose. Federal reimbursement obtained must be
allocated to the county that spent money for child care that is federally reimbursable under
programs that provide federal reimbursement for child care services. The counties shall use
the federal money to expand child care services. The commissioner may adopt rules under
chapter 14 to implement and coordinate federal program requirements.

new text begin (b) The commissioner must incorporate any recommendations from the Early Care and
Learning Commission in the administration and delivery of child care assistance programs
under this chapter.
new text end

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 127A.05, is amended by adding a subdivision to
read:

new text begin Subd. 1a. new text end

new text begin Early care and learning coordination. new text end

new text begin The commissioner must develop and
implement early care and learning policies in accordance with the principles and policies
established by the Early Care and Learning Commission.
new text end

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 144.05, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

General duties.

The state commissioner of health shall have general
authority as the state's official health agency and shall be responsible for the development
and maintenance of an organized system of programs and services for protecting, maintaining,
and improving the health of the citizens. This authority shall include but not be limited to
the following:

(a) Conduct studies and investigations, collect and analyze health and vital data, and
identify and describe health problems;

(b) Plan, facilitate, coordinate, provide, and support the organization of services for the
prevention and control of illness and disease and the limitation of disabilities resulting
therefrom;

(c) Establish and enforce health standards for the protection and the promotion of the
public's health such as quality of health services, reporting of disease, regulation of health
facilities, environmental health hazards and personnel;

(d) Affect the quality of public health and general health care services by providing
consultation and technical training for health professionals and paraprofessionals;

(e) Promote personal health by conducting general health education programs and
disseminating health information;

(f) Coordinate and integrate local, state and federal programs and services affecting the
public's health;

(g) Continually assess and evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of health service
systems and public health programming efforts in the state; deleted text begin and
deleted text end

(h) Advise the governor and legislature on matters relating to the public's health new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (i) Advise the Early Care and Learning Commission on home visiting programs and
other public health initiatives designed to aid school readiness new text end .

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 144.05, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Mission; efficiency.

It is part of the department's mission that within the
department's resources the commissioner shall endeavor to:

(1) prevent the waste or unnecessary spending of public money;

(2) use innovative fiscal and human resource practices to manage the state's resources
and operate the department as efficiently as possible;

(3) coordinate the department's activities wherever appropriate with the activities of
other governmental agencies new text begin , including activities conducted by or under the direction of
the Early Care and Learning Commission new text end ;

(4) use technology where appropriate to increase agency productivity, improve customer
service, increase public access to information about government, and increase public
participation in the business of government;

(5) utilize constructive and cooperative labor-management practices to the extent
otherwise required by chapters 43A and 179A;

(6) report to the legislature on the performance of agency operations and the
accomplishment of agency goals in the agency's biennial budget according to section 16A.10,
subdivision 1; and

(7) recommend to the legislature appropriate changes in law necessary to carry out the
mission and improve the performance of the department.

Sec. 7.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 145A.17, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Establishment; goals.

The commissioner shall establish a program to
fund family home visiting programs designed to foster healthy beginnings, improve
pregnancy outcomes, promote school readiness, prevent child abuse and neglect, reduce
juvenile delinquency, promote positive parenting and resiliency in children, and promote
family health and economic self-sufficiency for children and families. new text begin The commissioner
must incorporate recommendations from the Early Care and Learning Commission in its
home visiting programs. new text end The commissioner shall promote partnerships, collaboration, and
multidisciplinary visiting done by teams of professionals and paraprofessionals from the
fields of public health nursing, social work, and early childhood education. A program
funded under this section must serve families at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty
guidelines, and other families determined to be at risk, including but not limited to being
at risk for child abuse, child neglect, or juvenile delinquency. Programs must begin prenatally
whenever possible and must be targeted to families with:

(1) adolescent parents;

(2) a history of alcohol or other drug abuse;

(3) a history of child abuse, domestic abuse, or other types of violence;

(4) a history of domestic abuse, rape, or other forms of victimization;

(5) reduced cognitive functioning;

(6) a lack of knowledge of child growth and development stages;

(7) low resiliency to adversities and environmental stresses;

(8) insufficient financial resources to meet family needs;

(9) a history of homelessness;

(10) a risk of long-term welfare dependence or family instability due to employment
barriers;

(11) a serious mental health disorder, including maternal depression as defined in section
145.907; or

(12) other risk factors as determined by the commissioner.

Sec. 8. new text begin APPROPRIATIONS.
new text end

new text begin $....... in fiscal year 2018 and $....... in fiscal year 2019 are appropriated from the general
fund to the commissioner of education for the purposes and duties of the Early Care and
Learning Commission.
new text end