Tom Huntley

Nov 13, 2013

The Capitol Note: Bill authors defend Ritchie’s online voter registration

The issue of voting registration apparently did not arise during the debate over the legislation's passage more than a dozen years ago.

Nov 12, 2013

Disability groups rally for 5 percent funding increase in 2014

The increase would cost about $86 million in the current budgeting period, and advocates are hoping there will be extra cash in the state’s coffers after the November and February budget forecasts.

Nov 12, 2013

The Capitol Note: MMB plans to go forward with stadium bond sale

Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter rejected calls from American Indian activists who were pushing for the delay of bond sales on the new Minnesota Vikings stadium, the Star Tribune reports. The activists are trying to get assurances that the word "Redskins," the' nickname for the Washington, D.C. NFL team, will not be displayed inside the stadium.

Oct 16, 2013

Group homes to push for 5 percent hike next year

A new coalition of advocates for the elderly and disabled in Minnesota is planning an aggressive campaign to persuade legislators to pass a 5 percent increase in their budget next session, which would cost the state an additional $86 million in the current budgeting period.

May 16, 2013

HHS finance plan drops additional surcharges on hospitals and health plans

The health and human services budget currently being hash out in conference committee relies on a change in the way it books revenue from existing surcharges on hospitals and health plans. That allows for a one-time infusion of $76 million for the next biennium.

Apr 24, 2013

House passes $11 billion HHS budget bill

Democrats in the House have approved an $11.2 billion health and human services budget bill that would trim $150 million from spending over the next two years while also making first-ever investments in mental health programs in schools.

Apr 22, 2013

House passes $11 billion health and human services budget bill

The bill passed off the House floor Monday night on a 70-64 vote after more than nine hours of debate. The bill would provide a 3 percent increase to cost-of-living for nursing homes and a 2 percent increase for long-term care providers while cutting about $150 million from projected HHS spending.

Apr 12, 2013

House HHS bill seeks to mitigate targeted cuts

When the House budget target for health and human services was released last month, it was greeted with cries of disbelief. Given that the DFL-controlled Legislature planned to increase taxes by roughly $2 billion, the common refrain went, how was it possible that they planned to cut $150 million in cuts to health and human services?

Apr 10, 2013

Fees loom large in some spending bills

Faced with a set of budget targets that concentrate most new spending on the education sector, some House committee chairs are seeking to augment their own budgets with added marginal revenues from fee hikes.

Feb 20, 2013

Bills aim to shore up kids’ mental health programs

Beneath the noisy debate about guns that has erupted at the Capitol this session, there is a quieter legislative push to improve mental health services in schools and public health programs.

Feb 19, 2013

Dayton signs bill to further expand Medical Assistance in Minnesota

Gov. Mark Dayton's signature means an additional 35,000 low-income adults will be covered by federal money in a state-crafted Medicaid program, including adults without children making less than $15,000 a year. "I haven't done one of these for awhile," Dayton joked as he signed the bill in a ceremony on Tuesday alongside its two Democratic authors in the Legislature, Sen. Kathy Sheran and Rep. To[...]

Dec 26, 2012