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3.873 Legislative commission on children, youth, and their families.

Subdivision 1. Establishment. A legislative commission on children, youth, and their families is established to study state policy and legislation affecting children and youth and their families. The commission shall make recommendations about how to ensure and promote the present and future well-being of Minnesota children and youth and their families, including methods for helping state and local agencies to work together.

Subd. 2. Membership and terms. The commission consists of 16 members that reflect a proportionate representation from each party. Eight members from the house shall be appointed by the speaker of the house and eight members from the senate shall be appointed by the subcommittee on committees of the committee on rules and administration. The membership must include members of the following committees in the house and the senate: health and human services, family services, health care, governmental operations and gaming, governmental operations and reform, education, judiciary, and ways and means or finance. The commission must have representatives from both rural and metropolitan areas. The terms of the members are for two years beginning on January 1 of each odd-numbered year.

Subd. 3. Officers. The commission shall elect a chair and vice-chair from among its members. The chair must alternate biennially between a member of the house and a member of the senate. When the chair is from one body, the vice-chair must be from the other body.

Subd. 4. Staff. The legislative coordinating commission shall supply the commission with the necessary staff, office space, and administrative services. The commission may use existing legislative staff to provide legal counsel, research, fiscal, secretarial, and clerical assistance.

Subd. 5. Information collection; intergovernmental coordination. (a) The commission may conduct public hearings and otherwise collect data and information necessary to its purposes.

(b) The commission may request information or assistance from any state agency or officer to assist the commission in performing its duties. The agency or officer shall promptly furnish any information or assistance requested.

(c) The secretary of the senate and the chief clerk of the house shall provide the commission with a copy of each bill introduced in the legislature concerning children, youth, and their families.

(d) To facilitate coordination between executive and legislative authorities, the commission shall meet with the children's cabinet.

Subd. 6. Legislative reports and recommendations. The commission shall make recommendations to the legislature to implement combining education, and health and human services and related support services provided to children and their families by the departments of education, human services, health and other state agencies into a single state department of children and families to provide more effective and efficient services. The commission also shall make recommendations to the legislature or committees, as it deems appropriate to assist the legislature in formulating legislation. To facilitate coordination between executive and legislative authorities, the commission shall review and evaluate the plans and proposals of the governor and state agencies on matters within the commission's jurisdiction and shall provide the legislature with its analysis and recommendations. The commission shall report its final recommendations under this subdivision and subdivision 7, paragraph (a), by January 1, 1994. The commission shall submit an annual progress report by January 1 of each year.

Subd. 7. Priorities. The commission shall give priority to studying on the matters described in this subdivision. To the extent possible, the commission shall consult with knowledgeable individuals in communities throughout the state when developing recommendations on these matters.

(a) The commission must study methods of improving legislative consideration of children and family issues and coordinating state agency programs relating to children and families, including the desirability, feasibility, and effects of creating a new state department of children's services, or children and family services, in which would be consolidated the responsibility for administering state programs relating to children and families.

(b) The commission must study methods of consolidating or coordinating local health, correctional, educational, job, and human services, to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of services to children and families and to eliminate duplicative and overlapping services. The commission shall evaluate and make recommendations on programs and projects in this and other states that encourage or require local jurisdictions to consolidate the delivery of services in schools or other community centers to reduce the cost and improve the coverage and accessibility of services. The commission must study and recommend specific effectiveness measures to accurately determine the efficacy of programs and services provided to children and their families. The commission must consider and recommend how to transform fragmented, crisis-oriented delivery systems focused on remediation services into flexible, comprehensive, well-coordinated, and family-oriented delivery systems focused on prevention services. The commission must review and evaluate what impact the classification of data has on service providers' ability to anticipate and meet the full range of families' needs.

(c) The commission must study methods of improving and coordinating educational, social, and health care services that assist children and families during the early childhood years. The commission's study must include an evaluation of the following: early childhood health and development screening services, headstart, child care, early childhood family education, and parents' involvement in programs meeting the social, cognitive, physical, and emotional needs of children.

(d) The commission must study methods of improving and coordinating the practices of judicial, correctional, and social service agencies in placing juvenile offenders and children who are in need of protective services or treatment.

(e) The commission must study and recommend constructive changes in preventive, community-based programs that encourage children and youth to responsibly serve their community.

Subd. 8. Expenses and reimbursements. The per diem and mileage costs of the members of the commission must be reimbursed as provided in section 3.101. The health and human services, governmental operations, education, judiciary, and appropriations or finance committees in the house and the senate shall share equally the responsibility to pay commission members' per diem and mileage costs from their committee budgets.

Subd. 9. Repealed, 1995 c 248 art 2 s 8

HIST: 1991 c 265 art 8 s 1; 1992 c 464 art 1 s 1; 1993 c 4 s 4; 1993 c 224 art 4 s 1-5; 1994 c 483 s 1; 1997 c 7 art 2 s 2,3

Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes