Dear Neighbors,
It was a busy week at the capitol with committees holding hearings every day as bills began moving through the legislative process. Below are some highlights.
University of Minnesota Hearing
On Tuesday, the Higher Education Policy and Finance Committee held a hearing to discuss a number of issues relating to the University of Minnesota. President Kaler and other officials testified at the hearing on five topics:
- The Office of the Legislative Auditor’s report criticizing the University for its handling of the controversial Dan Markingson clinical trial
- Tuition costs
- The University’s athletic department
- Administrative costs
- Aborted fetal tissue research at the medical school.
If you are interested, you can view the hearing in its entirety here.
I was disheartened by testimony on the Dan Markingson case, as well as the responses we received on several questions my colleagues and I asked related to that case and several other topics.
Beginning with the Markingson case, I asked if the University would be open to implementing a recommendation from the Legislative Auditor’s report that would authorize the state’s Office of the Ombudsman for Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities to monitor the participation of people in the University’s Department of Psychiatry drug studies. In turn, the Legislature would provide the office with adequate resources to effectively monitor psychiatric drug studies at the University.
The University pushed back on this, stating they have reached out to the Ombudsman and that both parties believe a relationship in an unofficial capacity is best. Despite this, legislative auditor Jim Nobles believes that an official capacity is important. Several of my colleagues, myself included, agree with the legislative auditor’s belief.
The last topic discussed was aborted fetal tissue research. As many of you know, this became an issue last October when Alpha News uncovered that the University provided inaccurate information regarding their use of aborted fetal tissue in research.
While most of the testimony from university officials focused on the research itself, with assurances they never intended to deceive lawmakers, I was incredibly disappointed by their lack of answers on how that misunderstanding occurred. I was also appalled at the misleading information presented on the advances provided by aborted fetal tissue research, which has in fact NOT led to any cures, but is incredibly controversial in the scientific community. This led to my first question - if the research is so wonderful, why were lawmakers and staff originally told the University did not participate in this research?
If you are interested in this portion of the hearing, it is available at this link. Please know I and my colleagues will continue to look into this issue.
Legislative Auditor’s Report on MNDOT Project Selection Process
On Monday, the Legislative Auditor (OLA) released a report detailing MNDOT’s project selection process. The report is available here.
The report’s summary states that “the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s processes for selecting trunk highway projects are not transparent. In particular, MnDOT has chosen projects under the Corridors of Commerce program subjectively and in a manner not fully consistent with the law."
Especially concerning to me was a finding noted on page 61, "The Armstrong Boulevard interchange project has the highest return on investment of all evaluated projects, yet it was not chosen." Thankfully, as many of you know, the project was still completed, in part due to our amazing city and county officials.
Given these findings, one of the OLA recommendations to increase transparency in the process is to ensure that the Corridors of Commerce scoring criteria is aligned to the statutorily defined criteria and that it applies these criteria consistently. I agree, and will be working with my colleagues on the transportation committee as well as MnDOT to address these issues.
Health & Human Services: Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center & Continued Problems with MNsure
Yesterday, the Health and Human Services Committee heard testimony on the working conditions at the Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center. Doctors and workers shared concerns about the 48 hour rule and staff safety, among other things.
It is clear we have a problem, and while Commissioner Piper is making progress, as evidenced by a report her office published, more work remains. I will continue to engage with all stakeholders on this topic to increase safety and reduce mandated overtime for state hospital workers.
Earlier this week, MNsure Legislative Oversight Co-Chair, Greg Davids and Congressman Erik Paulsen sent a letter to the IRS urging them to provide penalty-free extensions for Minnesotans who have not yet received their 1095-A forms from MNsure. As of this past weekend, just 62% of forms have been sent out, and MNsure CEO Allison O'Toole expressed uncertainty that they would be able to even get all the forms out the door by Tax Day on April 18.
This is extremely disappointing as MNsure’s incompetence may now cost Minnesota taxpayers even more through federal penalties. Please be sure to contact my office if you are a MNsure customer and have not yet received your 1095-A form.
Furthermore, Rep. Matt Dean, chairman of the HHS Finance Committee, brought to light that MNSure may be improperly using tax dollars from the Health Care Access Fund to cover budget shortfalls. As I have said many times over, I will continue to work hard to bring needed reforms to MNsure and make sure that your tax dollars are being used responsibly.
Staying in Touch
As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions, comments, or concerns on anything related to state government. It would be an honor to discuss your ideas on how we can make Minnesota better for everyone. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-1729 or via email at rep.abigail.whelan@house.mn.
You can also stay up-to-date on everything that is happening in St. Paul by visiting my Facebook page and Twitter account.
Warm Regards,
Abigail