2010 legislative session will focus on jobs and bonding

Yesterday at the Capitol


Yesterday morning legislative leaders held a press conference to discuss the 2010 legislative session. Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, said it’s important to do everything possible to get people back to work. Sen. Keith Langseth, DFL-Glyndon, said now is the time to bond and build, during an economic downturn.

DFL legislative leaders would like an early bonding bill so projects can be bid. Sen. Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis said the House and Senate bonding bills are 90 percent in agreement already, so he anticipates a quick conference committee once the full House and Senate pass the bill. Majority Leader Rep. Tony Sertich, DFL-Chisholm, said the Legislature will be working as quickly and efficiently as possible with the major agenda being jobs and the economy.

Also meeting yesterday was the Senate Capital Investment committee. Committee members moved the proposed bonding bill forward to Senate Finance, which includes $297 million for the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

The spreadsheet for the Senate bonding bill can be found here.

The bill, SF 2360, can be found here.

The next stop for the bonding bill in the Senate is the Senate Finance committee this morning. In the House, the Capital Investment committee is scheduled to take up the bill Feb. 9, and then the House Finance committee will hear the bill the evening of Feb. 10. As a reminder, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has recommended a smaller bonding bill of $685 million.

The spreadsheet for the House bonding bill can be found here. As a reminder, the bill, HF 2700, can be found here.

Today at the Capitol

8:30 AM
Senate Finance
Room: 123 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Richard J. Cohen
Agenda:
November State Budget Forecast Discussion
State Cash Flow Discussion
2010 Capital Investment bill

10:00 AM
Legislative Commission on Pensions and Retirement
Room: 107 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Don Betzold
Agenda:
SF889 (Betzold) MSRS Unclassified; Changes in membership transfer authority.
HF1793 / SF1601 (Nelson/Olson, M.) TRA; adding a second retired member to the Board of Trustees.
HFxxx/SFxxx MSRS; Retirement related administrative provisions.
HFxxx/SFxxx VFRAs; State auditor's volunteer fire working group recommendations.
HFxxx/SFxxx Statewide lump sum volunteer fire plan; Advisory board and PERA recommended administrative changes.
HFxxx/SFxxx Statewide lump sum volunteer fire plan; Advisory board and PERA recommended expansion of service pension levels.

Looking Ahead

Monday, February 8

9:00 AM
House Joint Committee: Ways & Means and Finance
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Loren Solberg
Agenda: State cash flow projections

12:30 PM
Senate State Government Budget Division
Room: 112 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Don Betzold
Agenda:
Department of Management and Budget report on Childrens Resources, update on the SWIFT (the new accounting and procurment system) and the biennual budget system project and searchable data base legislation from 2009.

12:30 PM
Senate Business, Industry and Jobs
Room: 123 Capitol
Chair: Sen. James P. Metzen
Agenda: Jobs Bill-Metzen

1:00 PM
House in Session

Tuesday, February 9

8:30 AM
House K-12 Education Policy and Oversight
Room: Basement State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Carlos Mariani
Agenda: Committee member 2010 K-12 policy priorities
Testimony from education groups on 2010 K-12 policy recommendations. Those interested in testifying should contact Christina Gosack, Committee Administrator, at 651-296-5524.

10:00 AM
Legislative Audit Commission
Room: 107 State Capitol
Chairs: Rep. Michael Beard, Sen. Ann Rest
Agenda: OLA Report: MnSCU Central Office-Joel Alter
OHE: College-going Rates of Minnesota High School Students and Fall 2009 Enrollment-Mark Misukanis and Alexandra Djurovich

10:30 AM
House Joint Committee: Bioscience and Workforce Development Policy and Oversight Division
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chairs: Rep. Ann Lenczewski, Rep. Tim Mahoney
Agenda: HFXXX (Davnie) Angel Investor Credit
HF1136 (Lenczewski) Governor's Angel Investor credit portion only.
HF1194 (Downey) Angel Investor credit portion only
HF2580 (Lenczewski) Angel investment grant provided, phase-in of single sales apportionment delayed, and money appropriated

12:30 PM
Senate Higher Education Budget and Policy Division
Room: 123 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Sandy Pappas
Agenda: OLA evaluation report, MnSCU System Office.

1:00 PM
House Higher Education and Work Force Development Policy and Finance Division
Room: 5 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Tom Rukavina
Agenda: Unemployment Insurance - recipient problems
DEED response; UI figures and procedures - Commissioner Dan McElroy

2:45 PM
House Capital Investment
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Alice Hausman
Agenda:
HFXXXX - Omnibus Bonding Bill (Hausman) (The bill will be introduced, assigned a file number and available on Thursday, Feb. 4. Amendments are needed by 2:45 pm on Monday, Feb. 8).
HF2590 (Hausman) Appropriation and bond authorization for capital investment projects procedures clarified

2:45 PM
House K-12 Finance Division
Room: 10 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Mindy Greiling
Agenda: Office of Legislative Auditor evaluation report on Alternative Learning Programs

3:00 PM
Senate Agriculture and Veterans
Room: 107 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Jim Vickerman
Agenda:
Minnesota Department of Military Affairs Brief; Major General Larry Shellito, Colonel Eric Ahlness. Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs Reports; Higher Education Veterans Program, 2010 Construction Project Priority Listing, Minnesota Veterans Home Siting, Veterans Cemetery Siting and Medicare Funding at Minnesota Veterans Homes.

Wednesday, February 10

6:30 PM
House Finance
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Lyndon Carlson
Agenda: HF2700 (Hausman) Omnibus capital investment bill.
HF2680 (E. Murphy) Mental health urgent care and consultation services established, general assistance medical care program modified, and money appropriated.

Thursday, February 11

8:30 AM
House State and Local Government Operations Reform, Technology and Elections
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Gene Pelowski
Agenda: Overview on the financial status of the retirement systems of Minnesota: Public Employees Retirement Association, Minnesota State Retirement System, Teachers Retirement Association.

10:30 AM
House in Session

11:00 AM
Governor’s State of the State

1:00 PM
House Higher Education and Work Force Development Policy and Finance Division
Room: 5 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Tom Rukavina
Agenda: Fiscal condition of state financial aid programs
David Metzen, Director of the Office of Higher Education

Friday, February 12

10:30 AM
House in Session

Monday, February 15

10:30 AM
House Ways & Means and Finance
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Loren Solberg and Rep Lyndon Carlson
Agenda: Governor’s supplemental budget

1:00 PM
House in Session

Tuesday, February 16

7:00 PM
Legislative Commission on Pensions and Retirement
Room 107 Capitol
Chair: Sen. Betzold
Agenda: One-person / Small group legislation:
- S.F. 1374 (Metzen); H.F. 1569 (Hansen): PERA-P&F; Joint and survivor annuity for the divorced spouse of a deceased retiree who elected a single life annuity.
- S.F. xxx; H.F. 2550 (Poppe): MSRS/MnSCU/TRA; Permitting the repayment of certain member contribution refunds; authorizing a second chance option to elect TRA retirement plan benefit coverage; mandating certain contributions.
- S.F. xxx (Pariseau); H.F. xxx (10-4510): PERA; Authorizing a late disability benefit application in certain cases.
- S.F. xxx; H.F. xxx (Peterson, S.) (07-2763): SPTRFA; Service credit purchase for uncredited prior teaching service
- S.F. xxx; H.F. xxx (McFarlane) (LCPR09-047): PERA-P&F; Revise Social Security leveling option to single-life annuity
- S.F. xxx; H.F. xxx (Atkins) (LCPR09-070): PERA; Purchase of prior service credit for a period of omitted member deductions for certain Inver Grove Heights public school employees.
- S.F. xxx (Olson, M.); H.F. xxx: (LCPR10-018) TRA; Alternative retirement annuity computation for former Red Lake Senior High School principal.

Wednesday, February 17

10:30 AM
House Bioscience and Workforce Development
Room: 200 State Office Building
Chair: Rep. Tim Mahoney
Agenda: Office of the Legislative Auditor report: Workforce Programs

Thursday, February 18

10:30 AM
House in Session