Minnesota Legislature
HF 771
1st Engrossment - 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020) Posted on 03/04/2020 04:31pm
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A bill for an act
relating to human services; modifying provisions governing Cultural and Ethnic
Communities Leadership Council; amending Minnesota Statutes 2018, section
256.041.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Section 1.
Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 256.041, is amended to read:
256.041 CULTURAL AND ETHNIC COMMUNITIES LEADERSHIP COUNCIL.
Subdivision 1.
Establishment; purpose.
new text begin (a) new text end There is hereby established the Cultural
and Ethnic Communities Leadership Council for the Department of Human Services. The
purpose of the council is to advise the commissioner of human services on reducing new text begin inequities
and new text end disparities that new text begin particularly new text end affect racial and ethnic groupsnew text begin in Minnesotanew text end .
new text begin
(b) This council is comprised of racially and ethnically diverse community leaders and
American Indians who are residents of Minnesota and may present with compounded
challenges of systemic inequities. Members include people who are refugees, immigrants,
and LGBTQ+; people who may have a disability; and people who live in rural Minnesota.
new text end
Subd. 2.
Members.
(a) The council must consist of:
(1) the chairs and ranking minority members of the committees in the house of
representatives and the senate with jurisdiction over human servicesnew text begin , or their designeesnew text end ; and
(2) no fewer than 15 and no more than 25 members appointed by and serving at the
pleasure of the commissioner of human services, in consultation with county, tribal, cultural,
and ethnic communities; diverse program participants; and parent representatives from these
communitiesnew text begin , and Cultural and Ethnic Communities Leadership Council membersnew text end .
(b) In making appointments under this section, the commissioner shall give priority
consideration to public members of the legislative councils of color established under deleted text begin chapter
3deleted text end new text begin section 15.0145new text end .
(c) Members must be appointed to allow for representation of the following groups:
(1) racial and ethnic minority groups;
(2) the American Indian community, which must be represented by two members;
(3) culturally and linguistically specific advocacy groups and service providers;
(4) human services program participants;
(5) public and private institutions;
(6) parents of human services program participants;
(7) members of the faith community;
(8) Department of Human Services employees; and
(9) any other group the commissioner deems appropriate to facilitate the goals and duties
of the council.
Subd. 3.
Guidelines.
The commissioner shall direct the development of guidelines
defining the membership of the council; setting out definitions; and developing duties of
the commissioner, the council, and council members regarding racial and ethnic disparities
reduction. The guidelines must be developed in consultation with:
(1) the chairs of relevant committees; and
(2) county, tribal, and cultural communities and program participants from these
communities.
Subd. 4.
Chair.
The commissioner shall new text begin accept recommendations from the council to
new text end appoint a chairnew text begin or chairsnew text end .
deleted text begin Subd. 5. deleted text end
deleted text begin Terms for first appointees. deleted text end
deleted text begin
The initial members appointed shall serve until
January 15, 2016.
deleted text end
Subd. 6.
Terms.
A term shall be for two years and appointees may be reappointed to
serve two additional terms. The commissioner shall make appointments to replace members
vacating their positions deleted text begin by January 15 of each yeardeleted text end new text begin in a timely manner, no more than three
months after the council reviews panel recommendationsnew text end .
Subd. 7.
Duties of commissioner.
(a) The commissioner of human services or the
commissioner's designee shall:
(1) maintain new text begin and actively engage with new text end the council established in this section;
(2) supervise and coordinate policies for persons from racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic,
and tribal communities who experience disparities in access and outcomes;
(3) identify human services rules or statutes affecting persons from racial, ethnic, cultural,
linguistic, and tribal communities that may need to be revised;
(4) investigate and implement deleted text begin cost-effectivedeleted text end new text begin equitable and culturally responsivenew text end models
of deleted text begin service delivery such asdeleted text end new text begin program implementation, includingnew text end careful deleted text begin adaptationdeleted text end new text begin adoptionnew text end
of deleted text begin clinicallydeleted text end proven services deleted text begin that constitute one strategy for increasing the number ofdeleted text end new text begin andnew text end
culturally relevant services available to currently underserved populations; deleted text begin and
deleted text end
(5) based on recommendations of the council, review identified department policies that
maintain racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and tribal disparities, deleted text begin anddeleted text end make adjustments to
ensure those disparities are not perpetuateddeleted text begin .deleted text end new text begin , and advise on progress and accountability
measures for addressing inequities;
new text end
new text begin
(6) in partnership with the council, renew and implement equity policy with action plans
and resources necessary to implement the action plans;
new text end
new text begin
(7) support interagency collaboration to advance equity;
new text end
new text begin
(8) address the council at least twice annually on the state of equity within the department;
and
new text end
new text begin
(9) support member participation in the council, including participation in educational
and community engagement events across Minnesota that address equity in human services.
new text end
(b) The commissioner of human services or the commissioner's designee shall consult
with the council and receive recommendations from the council when meeting the
requirements in this subdivision.
Subd. 8.
Duties of council.
The council shall:
(1) recommend to the commissioner for review deleted text begin identified policies in thedeleted text end Department of
Human Servicesnew text begin policy, budgetary, and operational decisions and practicesnew text end that deleted text begin maintaindeleted text end new text begin
impactnew text end racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and tribal disparities;
(2)new text begin with community input, advance legislative proposals to improve racial and health
equity outcomes;
new text end
new text begin (3)new text end identify issues regarding new text begin inequities and new text end disparities by engaging diverse populations
in human services programs;
deleted text begin (3)deleted text end new text begin (4)new text end engage in mutual learning essential for achieving human services parity and
optimal wellness for service recipients;
deleted text begin (4)deleted text end new text begin (5)new text end raise awareness about human services disparities to the legislature and media;
deleted text begin (5)deleted text end new text begin (6)new text end provide technical assistance and consultation support to counties, private nonprofit
agencies, and other service providers to build their capacity to provide equitable human
services for persons from racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and tribal communities who
experience disparities in access and outcomes;
deleted text begin (6)deleted text end new text begin (7)new text end provide technical assistance to promote statewide development of culturally and
linguistically appropriate, accessible, and cost-effective human services and related policies;
deleted text begin (7) providedeleted text end new text begin (8) recommend and monitornew text end training and outreach to facilitate access to
culturally and linguistically appropriate, accessible, and cost-effective human services to
prevent disparities;
deleted text begin
(8) facilitate culturally appropriate and culturally sensitive admissions, continued services,
discharges, and utilization review for human services agencies and institutions;
deleted text end
(9) form work groups to help carry out the duties of the council that include, but are not
limited to, persons who provide and receive services and representatives of advocacy groups,
and provide the work groups with clear guidelines, standardized parameters, and tasks for
the work groups to accomplish;
(10) promote information sharing in the human services community and statewide; deleted text begin and
deleted text end
(11) by February 15 deleted text begin each yeardeleted text end new text begin in the second year of the bienniumnew text end , prepare and submit
to the chairs and ranking minority members of the committees in the house of representatives
and the senate with jurisdiction over human services a report that summarizes the activities
of the council, identifies the major problems and issues confronting racial and ethnic groups
in accessing human services, makes recommendations to address issues, deleted text begin anddeleted text end lists the specific
objectives that the council seeks to attain during the next bienniumnew text begin , and provides
recommendations to strengthen equity, diversity, and inclusion within the departmentnew text end . The
report deleted text begin must also include a list of programs, groups, and grants used to reduce disparities,
and statistically valid reports of outcomes on the reduction of the disparities.deleted text end new text begin shall identify
racial and ethnic groups' difficulty in accessing human services and make recommendations
to address the issues. The report must include any updated Department of Human Services
equity policy, implementation plans, equity initiatives, and the council's progress.
new text end
Subd. 9.
Duties of council members.
The members of the council shall:
(1) new text begin with no more than three absences per year, new text end attend and participate in scheduled
meetings and be prepared by reviewing meeting notes;
(2) maintain open communication channels with respective constituencies;
(3) identify and communicate issues and risks that could impact the timely completion
of tasks;
(4) collaborate on new text begin inequity and new text end disparity reduction efforts;
(5) communicate updates of the council's work progress and status on the Department
of Human Services website; deleted text begin and
deleted text end
(6) participate in any activities the council or chair deems appropriate and necessary to
facilitate the goals and duties of the councildeleted text begin .deleted text end new text begin ; and
new text end
new text begin
(7) participate in work groups to carry out council duties.
new text end
Subd. 10.
Expiration.
The council deleted text begin expires on June 30, 2020deleted text end new text begin shall expire when racial
and ethnic-based disparities no longer exist in the state of Minnesotanew text end .
new text begin Subd. 11. new text end
new text begin Compensation. new text end
new text begin
Compensation for members of the council is governed by
section 15.059, subdivision 3.
new text end