SF 2816

1st Engrossment - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 04/01/2016 09:12am

A bill for an act
relating to state government; providing for equity impact analysis of proposed
legislation; requiring state agencies to biannually report actions taken to address
disparities; requiring each change item in the governor's budget proposal to
include a disparity analysis; amending Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 16A.10,
subdivision 1c; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapters
3; 15.

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

Section 1.

new text begin [3.99] EQUITY IMPACT NOTES.
new text end

new text begin (a) The commissioner of management and budget shall coordinate the development
of an equity impact note for any proposed legislation upon request of the chair or ranking
minority member of any standing committee of the house of representatives or the senate
if it appears enactment could significantly increase or decrease disparities. Upon receipt
of a request to prepare an equity impact note, the commissioner of management and
budget must notify the authors of the proposed legislation that the request has been made.
The commissioner of management and budget may require the commissioner or chief
administrative officer of an agency to supply in a timely manner any information necessary
to complete the equity impact note. The commissioner of management and budget shall
consult with the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage, the Minnesota Council on
Latino Affairs, the Council on Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, and the Indian Affairs Council
as appropriate in developing the equity note. The equity impact note must be completed no
later than ten days after the initial request and must be made available to the public upon
request. In the equity impact note, the commissioner of management and budget shall
make a reasonable estimate based on available data of whether the proposed legislation will
increase or decrease disparities and identify any data gaps that impair the commissioner's
ability to assess the proposed legislation's impact. Upon completion of the equity impact
note, the commissioner of management and budget must provide a copy to the authors of
the proposed legislation and to the chair and ranking minority member of each committee
in the house of representatives and the senate to which the proposed legislation is referred.
new text end

new text begin (b) For purposes of this section, "disparities" means differences in economic,
employment, health, education, or public safety outcomes between the state population
as a whole and subgroups of the population defined by race, gender, disability status,
and geography.
new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [15.996] DISPARITY IMPACT; NEW AND EXISTING STATE
PROGRAMS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin For purposes of this section, the following terms have
the meanings given:
new text end

new text begin (1) "agency" means a department or executive branch agency of the state; and
new text end

new text begin (2) "disparities" has the meaning given in section 3.99.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin New programs; definition. new text end

new text begin Before an agency may implement a new
program, the agency must certify to the commissioner of human rights the actions the
agency has taken to ensure, to the extent practicable, that the new program will decrease
disparities.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Existing programs. new text end

new text begin No later than June 30 and December 15 each year, the
head or chief administrative officer of each agency must certify to the commissioner of
human rights the actions the agency has taken in administering existing laws and programs
in the previous six months or since the agency's previous certification, whichever is longer,
to decrease existing disparities to the extent practicable.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Evaluation and recommendation. new text end

new text begin For each agency, the commissioner of
human rights, in consultation with the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage, the
Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs, the Council on Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, and the
Indian Affairs Council, as appropriate, must evaluate the agency's actions certified under
subdivisions 1 and 2, and recommend to the agency any additional actions the agency
should take to address or decrease disparities.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Annual report required. new text end

new text begin No later than February 15 each year, the
commissioner of human rights must report to the chairs and ranking minority members
of the committees in the house of representatives and the senate with jurisdiction over
government operations, each agency action certified under this section during the previous
calendar year, the commissioner of human rights' agency-specific recommendations, and
any recommendations to the legislature for changes to the law to decrease disparities.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 16A.10, subdivision 1c, is amended to read:

Subd. 1c.

Performance measures new text begin and disparity analysis new text end for change items.

For
each change item in the budget proposal requesting new or increased funding, the budget
document must new text begin :
new text end

new text begin (1) new text end present proposed performance measures that can be used to determine if the
new or increased funding is accomplishing its goals. To the extent possible, each budget
change item must identify relevant statewide goals and indicators related to the proposed
initiative new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (2) include a succinct analysis of whether the new or changed funding is likely to
increase or decrease disparities, as defined in section 3.99 new text end .