Upcoming committee hearings related to child protection, plus next CPS Task Force meeting

There are several legislative events in the upcoming week that are related to child protection. All of these events can be found on our Calendar and are also listed on our Public Policy pages. Be sure to keep checking our Public Policy pages for updates on these hearings and Task Force meetings, bill tracking and analyses, and blog posts on specific bills of interest.

Governor’s Task Force on the Protection of Children

The next meeting of the full Governor’s Task Force on the Protection of Children will be on Friday, January 30, 2015, from 11 AM to 1 PM, at the Initiative Foundation, located at 405 First St. SE, Little Falls, MN 56345. All three workgroups will also meet that day, though it is unclear if it will be before or after the full Task Force meeting.

Committee Hearings

The Senate Committee on Health, Human Services and Housing will meet on January 26, 2015, at 12 PM in Room 15 Capitol. The Committee’s agenda is S.F. 4, the companion bill to H.F. 191 which was heard in the House Health and Human Services (HHS) Reform Committee earlier this week. These bills implement several of the Task Force recommendations. Senator Kathy Sheran, who chairs this committee, is the lead author on S.F. 4.

The House Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee will meet on January 27, 2015, from 10:15 AM to 12 PM in Room 10 State Office Building. Part of their agenda includes a presentation on the Guardian ad Litem program.

That same day, from 12:45 PM to 2:30 PM, the House Education Finance Committee will meet in Room 5 State Office Building to talk about the achievement gap and ways to reduce it. This is particularly important for children and youth involved in child welfare. A recent study we conducted found that the achievement gap is already present for youth with child protection involvement, regardless of whether they were placed in out-of-home care. The implication from this study is that interventions for youth should ideally begin early in the child protection process.

On Wednesday, January 28, there are a few committees meeting about different components of the Governor’s budget. The HHS Budget Division of the Senate Finance Committee will meet at 8:30 AM in Room 107 Capitol to hear about the Governor’s budget proposals for the Department of Human Services. Specifically, the committee will hear proposals for the Children and Families area, among others including Children’s Mental Health and Direct Care and Treatment. The House HHS Finance Committee will also hear about these same budget proposals later, at 12:45 PM in Room 200 State Office Building. The E-12 Budget Division of the Senate Finance Committee will also meet at 8:30 AM on the Governor’s budget proposals related to E-12, but in Room 112 Capitol.

On Thursday, January 29, the Judiciary Budget Division of the Senate Finance Committee will meet at 12 PM in Room 15 Capitol to hear a budget presentation from (among others) the Guardian ad Litem Board.

Finally, on Friday, January 30 (the same day as the Task Force meeting), the HHS Budget Division of the Senate Finance Committee will hear public testimony on the Governor’s budget proposals for health and human services in Minnesota, beginning at 8:30 AM in Room 107 Capitol.