Paul Thissen: Innovation in Action

New Legislation for Retiring Baby Boomers

PREPARING FOR THE BOOM

By Charley Shaw, St. Paul Legal Ledger, May 18, 2009

Gov. Tim Pawlenty last week signed bipartisan legislation that addresses how communities can help their older residents stay active and engaged.

House Health Care and Human Services Policy and Oversight Committee Chair Rep. Paul Thissen, DFL-Minneapolis, said the so-called “Communities for a Lifetime” legislation is an attempt to make up for lost time in addressing the impending wave of retiring baby boomers.

“We have not as a Legislature or as a state taken the kind of action we really need to take to solve the problem that’s going to overwhelm us. This is a small step we can take in a tough budget year to start people rethinking and reframing (the issue),” Thissen said.

Communities for a Lifetime will be partnerships of cities, counties and townships that provide a list of supportive services and opportunities to their residents age 65 and older.

The bill lists several things that the partnerships should “extend” to seniors:

* Ways to contribute through volunteer service.

* Ways to participate in paid work force.

* Ways to socialize, recreate and participate in wellness activities.

* Ways to grow older where they live with access to affordable housing.

* Access to quality long-term care.

* Transportation options such as public transit.

The communities should also have health care services such as remote medical technology, nutrition programs and high-quality assisted living facilities.

The bill requires the state Board of Aging to report recommendations to the Legislature on ways communities can obtain the designation.

“It sets up a framework for defining what a community that would be livable for older people looks like in terms of housing, in terms of transportation, in terms of access to health care, in terms of volunteer activities,” said Thissen, who is planning to run for governor next year.

The Senate version of the bill was sponsored by Sen. Kathy Sheran, DFL-Mankato. Co-sponsor Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, noted that coordinating services for the aging population in her rural district is an important way to help the overall community. The largest city in Rosen’s southern Minnesota district has 11,000 people. As much as 26 percent of the population in her area is 65 or older.

“Something like this will actually insure all the resources are working together. Instead of having a resource here and a resource there,” Rosen said.

Thissen emphasized that communities need to have some coordination in their approach to serving the aging population.

“We really aren’t doing what we need to do to start planning. Part of it is just awareness-raising for people about the implications of a rapidly aging population. And part of it is to spread best practices from community to community. There is some planning go on, but there is no coordination of it,” Thissen said.

In the future, Thissen plans to continue to press for legislation that addresses issues with the aging population.

Thissen introduced legislation this session that would create a long-term care trust fund. Thissen’s bill, which didn’t advance this session, would offer long-term care benefits similar to the federal Social Security system.

“Basically right now our system (makes you) spend yourself into poverty and we need to change that,” Thissen said.

Time to Transform State-County Partnership

Bemidji Pioneer, April 24, 2009

As legislators and the governor settle into the next several weeks of budget balancing debate, there will be a lot of talk about reforming state government. As it should be.

But lawmakers will miss great opportunities if we focus too closely on the internal operations of state agencies. The reality is that much of the work of state government, from maintaining roads to providing human services, is delivered in partnership with Minnesota’s counties.

Unfortunately, the state-county relationship has worn thin and grown stale in recent years. That’s why Gov. Pawlenty and the Legislature both have been seeking ways to revitalize and reorganize how the state and counties work together in order to bring transparency, flexibility and most importantly efficiency to the delivery of essential services.

To transform the relationship, two fundamental changes are necessary. First, Minnesota primarily measures the success of human services programs simply by tracking how much we spend, rather than measure how those programs actually improve the lives of Minnesotans. As a result counties are discouraged from creating innovative ways to provide better services to more Minnesotans.

Second, the state government too often has insisted on a one-size-fits-all, “we know best” approach that stifles new ideas. But Minnesota is a large and diverse state. As state policy makers we must respect the fact that local officials know best what is needed and what works best in their communities.

Gov. Pawlenty’s proposal begins and ends with forcing counties to consolidate their human services departments. Unfortunately, that does little to change the broken, state-county dynamic. Consolidating government without measuring or improving results simply turns one broken system into a different broken system. You can’t create better government by simply drawing circles on a map and telling county governments in Duluth and Brainerd to work together.

This top-down forced consolidation will lead to higher costs as counties are required to merge systems, data and staff in ways that might not be compatible. The governor hasn’t considered the ramifications of this mandate, nor does he know how much it will cost to implement it. And worse yet, the forced consolidation jeopardizes the dozens and dozens of innovative cooperative projects county governments are already engaged in together across county lines.

For example, in the northeastern part of the state, St. Louis County has a regional agreement with Koochiching, Itasca and Carlton counties for the delivery of the services to our poorest citizens. These consortiums cut down on redundancies, streamline the delivery of services to residents and save taxpayers money while not compromising quality for the bottom line.

I have been pleased to work with Minnesota counties — large and small — on an alternative proposal to achieve the same efficiency benchmarks and cost-savings goals outlined in the governor’s proposal without adding unnecessary mandates on the counties and without undoing significant multi-county partnerships already in existence.

The State-County Redesign Act fundamentally rethinks the relationship between the counties and the state. Under the legislation, county and state officials will come to the table together as equal partners to shape the way social services will be provided.

Both the counties and the state will make transparent commitments about the level of resources each will provide and agree upon measurable benchmarks on how to serve its residents. Indeed, the most important piece of this proposal is the focus on accountability, measurement and results. The legislation will be a revolution in how we do the business of providing services to Minnesota residents.

If effective, efficient delivery of human services is the goal, then “business as usual” mandates like Gov. Pawlenty’s proposal are not the answer. Counties have demonstrated their ability to create efficiencies that lead to service improvement and cost savings. My bill will give counties the flexibility they need to achieve those efficiencies on a statewide level.

Rep. Thissen Takes Part in Waseca Town Hall Meeting

Rep. Kory Kath, center, speaks with educator Mary Jenatschek, left and Waseca school board member Cathy Hoy at Saturday

KATH HOLDS TOWN HALL MEETING

By Ruth Ann Hager, Waseca County News, March 2, 2009

At a town hall meeting here Saturday, State Rep. Kory Kath said balancing the state budget will be difficult but that the cuts that are made must be fair and residents should have a voice in determining those cuts.

Kath, newly elected DFL representative from Owatonna, was joined at Waseca City Hall by Rep. Paul Thissen (DFL-Minneapolis), chair of the Health and Human Services Committee and also a declared candidate for governor in 2010.

Thissen came along to answer questions about the sizable cuts to Health Care and Human Services in Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s proposed budget.

Kath’s legislative committee assignments include k-12 education, public safety, crime victims and ag policy.

The group of approximately 35 people who attended Saturday’s forum included a Waseca County commissioner and members of both the Waseca City Council and the Waseca Board of Education.

Kath gave the governor credit for his efforts to balance the budget but he said 87 DFL House members have 87 different ideas about how to do it.

“This is going to be very, very contentious,” he said.

Using a deficit of $5 billion would mean cuts of $2 billion, $1 billion from the federal stimulus program, a $1 billion tax shift in k-12 education funding, and $1 billion in general obligation bonds, according to Kath.

“I’m adamantly opposed to bonding for our future,” he said.

Tuesday’s budget forecast makes obsolete everything proposed to date by the governor, Kath said, and he anticipates a realignment of government and an end to some local mandates.

He asked the audience for “push back” to tell their representatives if they are going too far in cuts.

“What are the sacred cows?” Kath asked.

Waseca Mayor Roy Srp said local government aid is not a sacred cow for him but he would like state mandates lifted from cities. “There are plenty of them that would sure help us out,” he said.

If LGA is cut, however, city hands shouldn’t be tied by a 3.9 percent cap on property tax increases, said council member Les Tlougan.

One suggestion, Kath said, is a “blink tax” that “blinks on” and “blinks off” when the economic crisis is over.

Revenue options include increases to sales tax, income tax or fees, which, he said, are also a tax.

“It’s the wrong time for a sales tax,” said Pete Fog, a retired agriculture instructor, because with so many unemployed, people can’t afford a sales tax.

Kath said the sales tax is the most regressive but it is also the least volatile.

Ron Purcell, a local Soil and Water Conservation supervisor, said he fears that conservation will take the biggest hit. He asked Kath to keep his eyes on conservation and to “keep it fair.”

The biggest struggle will be to keep conservation funding coming from the newly passed sales tax amendment, Kath said. “The amendment will be raided,” he said. “There are too many people eyeing that.”

State art funds were cut 50 percent in the governor’s budget, Kath said, which is an indication that cuts to the arts will be severe.

Thissen said health care will take serious cuts. The governor is proposing $1.5 to $1.8 billion in cuts out of a $9 billion budget, eliminating people from health care and reducing rates to hospitals and nursing homes. The stimulus package would put $2 billion in health care and “help to cushion the blow,” Thissen said, but legislators must determine who needs health care services the most. Because of the economy, he hopes for a four to five month bridge to help people who have lost their jobs and health care.

The good news of the federal stimulus money coming now, Kath said, is that the governor and legislature will have to work together.

What he is trying to determine through meetings with his constituents is what a fair budget would look like.

“There are two levels of sacrifice,” Kath said.

“The first is what you’re willing to give up and the second is what you’re willing to give.”

Campaign Covered on MN Progressive Project

Joe Bodell at the MN Progressive Project covered the campaign on the new and improved merged blog.  Check it out.

Governor Should Build Institutions and Policies that Last

Thissen Announces “What’s In Your Child’s Backpack?” Program

Rep. Paul Thissen, along with the Children’s Defense Fund of Minnesota and Take Action Minnesota, announced an effort today to encourage parents to get health coverage for their children as part of the back-to-school routine.  Read Full Entry…