Public Policy Issues Archive (05.18.05)
This legislative update published May 18, 2005
"If we are to achieve a richer culture, rich in contrasting values, we must recognize the whole gamut of human potentialities."
--Margaret Mead
1. Women's Shelter and Crime Victim Funding - Act This Week!
2. Family Violence Prevention Measures: Final Decisions To Be Made
3. Save the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) - Sheila Wellstone
Institute
4. Budget Decisions - Taxes as a Part of the Solution
5. Minimum Wage to Increase
6. PEACE Across the Northside
7. Contact Us
1. Women's Shelter and Crime Victim Funding - Act This Week!
Within the week, the legislature could make a final decision on funding for women's shelters and crime victim services. The legislature's Public Safety Conference Committee-the most critical decision makers for family violence issues-must hammer out a decision on key public safety issues including women's shelter and crime victim funding.
Call or email the elected officials below this week - even through Saturday and Sunday. With the legislative session slated to end on Monday, May 23, your voice will be heard. Act now!
Click on links or call numbers below to contact members of this pivotal committee and the Governor. Tell them:
- Family violence prevention is a critical public safety issue for Minnesota. Funding for women's shelters and crime victims is essential.
- Family violence shelters are model stewards of state funding, utilizing every dollar to serve victims and their children effectively and efficiently.
- Without effective prevention and intervention services, the costs of family violence will only escalate. Annual health costs of family violence in Minnesota exceed $120 million.
- The state has large sums earmarked for incarceration of offenders, with only a slight fraction of those costs going towards victim services and prevention efforts.
- Family violence affects our communities in epidemic proportions - the MN Dept. of Health estimates that 30,000 women are victims of family violence each year.
Governor's Office:
Gov. Tim Pawlenty (651) 296-3391, (800) 657-3717, or tim.pawlenty@state.mn.us
Sen. Jane Ranum
Sen. Leo Foley
Sen. Wes Skoglund
Sen. Tom Neuville
Monday night, the Public Safety Conference Committee met to discuss policy, like sex offender penalties. Funding and finance issues are yet to be raised. This committee is charged with coming to a compromise between the House and Senate versions of the Public Safety Omnibus Bill, a large bill encompassing many policy and funding measures.
This committee and the Governor need to hear from YOU this week - tell them family violence prevention is a priority for Minnesota.
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2. Family Violence Prevention Measures: Final Decisions To Be Made
At this point in the legislative session, key measures-crime victims and women's shelter funding, the domestic abuse strangulation law, the renter's credit, the Minnesota Family Investment Plan (MFIP), Minnesota Care, clarification of domestic abuse no contact orders, transitional housing funding, and others-are moving forward as part of larger omnibus bills. These important issues rest in either the Senate or House versions of omnibus bills.
In an "omnibus bill," an entire set of issues are rolled together into one large bill. Omnibus bills passed by both the House and the Senate that are relevant to family violence prevention include:
- Public Safety Omnibus Bill
- Health and Human Services Omnibus Bill
- Jobs and Economic Development Omnibus Bill
- Education Omnibus Bill
With the legislative session deadline at Monday, May 23, there is considerable work left to be done. Much work traditionally takes place in caucus meetings, and in meetings between Governor Tim Pawlenty, the Speaker of the House Steve Sviggum, and Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson. These leaders meet to agree on the amount of spending, or "target," each conference committee will be allowed.
Last week, conference committees began meeting. A conference committee is assigned to each omnibus bill. Including members from both the House and the Senate, a conference committee works out the considerable differences between the House and Senate omnibus bills-in both policy and funding measures. At this time of the year, legislative floor sessions and committee meetings are often called on short notice, and are held anytime day or night.
Hopefully, the conference committee reaches a compromise, and the bill is passed through the House and Senate. With the Governor's signature, the bill well become law.
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3. Save the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) - Sheila Wellstone Institute
For more than 10 years, Paul and Sheila Wellstone were a team in the fight to end violence against women. Working in Washington and in local communities with advocates and survivors, they became national leaders on this issue. As a direct result of their efforts, in 1994 Congress passed and President Clinton signed into law the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
VAWA was landmark legislation that demonstrated the federal government's commitment to ending violence against women and children. It ensures that victims no longer suffer in silence and that survivors have the services they need in their community. VAWA is a community based approach to ending violence and provides legal assistance, shelters, rape crisis services and improved law enforcement efforts.
VAWA expires on September 30, 2005.
The Violence Against Women Act, and all of its provisions - including critical funding to community violence prevention programs - expires in a few short months. The Sheila Wellstone Institute is leading a national grassroots campaign to save VAWA by reauthorizing this vital legislation. Check out the new section of the Sheila Wellstone Institue's website dedicated to this campaign - the VAWA Online Action Center.
The Sheila Wellstone Institute needs your help to make this campaign a success. VAWA legislation should be proposed in both houses of Congress in the coming weeks. If we don't see a bill by mid-June, we'll need your help to ask Congress "Where's VAWA"?
Other important VAWA Action Items will include:
- Writing letters to the editor
- Organizing your community with your local domestic or sexual violence program
- Encouraging your members of Congress to be champions on VAWA by writing letters, emails and faxes, calling and visiting your member of congress
- Hosting a Save VAWA house party
The mission at Wellstone Action and the Sheila Wellstone Institute is to carry on Paul and Sheila's work and to continue their advocacy for programs that helps improve people's lives. The Violence Against Women Act exemplifies Paul and Sheila's commitment to making government work for people. We hope that you will join us in the coming months as we organize to save VAWA.
Learn more about Wellstone! Action at www.wellstone.org.
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4. Budget Decisions - Taxes as a Part of the Solution
In Minnesota, the end of the regular session is in sight and all key budget decisions are on the table. The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits and the Minnesota is Watching Coalition urge nonprofit, labor, faith based organizations, and all Minnesotans to let legislators know we want them to make taxes a part of the budget solution. Their key message is:
"We need it. We can afford it. Make taxes part of the solution.
Take this reasonable leadership position. "
This coalition is asking Minnesotans to deluge legislators and the Governor's office with letters, emails, and phone calls, calling for taxes as part of the solution. The next week is crunch times for budget decisions at the Capitol. Find your legislators at Who Represent's Me?
Increased revenue through taxes is important because:
Every Minnesotan deserves a safe, decent, affordable place to call home: workers need affordable housing to make ends meet; children need stable housing to do their best in school; and preventing homelessness saves state resources as well as provides a solution for ending homelessness.
Minnesota's nursing homes need more funding for quality care for their residents and affordable health care for their workers.
The 30,000 Minnesotans whose health care coverage will be canceled are hard working people we all know-the barber down the street, the waitress working two jobs, small employers who can't afford group insurance, the farmer who has no alternative, the nursing home care assistant who cares for you mother-we can't turn our backs on our friends and neighbors.
Good quality child care gets children ready for school and helps parents stay in the workforce. The state's lack of investment in child care will result in fewer children who are ready for kindergarten and fewer stable, reliable workers in our economy.
In every classroom across the state, children should have a desk, a book, a highly qualified teacher, and a chance to succeed.
Our lakes, forests, and prairies are what make Minnesota a great place to live, work, and play. Cleaning up our most contaminated waters, and protecting our forests and prairies is crucial for our health and our environment.
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5. Minimum Wage to Increase
A bill that will increase the Minimum Wage rate in Minnesota from $5.15 to $6.15 for large employers and $4.90 to $5.25 for small employers. The bill was passed by the Senate and House (84-50) and will take effect on August 1 of this year, once signed by the Governor.
Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry reports that women are almost twice likely to earn the minimum wage as men, and about 128,000 (5 percent) of Minnesota's wage-and-salary workers earn less than the new minimum of $6.15. Food preparation and serving occupations have the highest rate of minimum-wage workers, with 38 percent of all minimum-wage workers in these occupations.
An increase in the minimum wage will affect far more than just those workers currently making $5.15 an hour. It affects everyone who now earns an hourly wage that is less than the new minimum. So, since the new minimum will be $6.15 an hour, it will directly increase the wages of everyone who now makes under $6.15. It could also indirectly cause a bump up in wages for everyone close to the new minimum.
Sixty percent of minimum wage earners are women and more than 40 percent are people of color. An increase in the minimum wage is one policy strategy to narrow the gender and minority wage gaps.
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6. PEACE Across the Northside
Over 1,000 neighbors from North Minneapolis and around the community will stand together, side-by-side, on 26th Ave N, stretching across the Northside. This event will make a collective statement that peace will prevail over violence.
Date: Friday, May 20th, 7pm - 10pm
Come and kick off a summer of peace in Minneapolis!
Individuals, organizations, and congregations can sign up now to participate in PEACE Across Northside! Or, just show up on 26th Ave at one of two starting points: Church of St. Philip, at Bryant Ave N. or Jordan New Life Community Church at Newton Ave N.
Call Tom Taylor, event organizer, at 612-788-4252 if you have questions.
© 2005 Copyright PEACE Foundation
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7. Contact Us
This legislative update is produced by Tubman Family Alliance, a pioneer in family violence prevention nationwide. Tubman Family Alliance offers a full range of services for all community members-men, women, and children-with the aim of preventing and ending family violence. You can get involved:
- Volunteer-yourself or with a group-at Tubman Family Alliance
- Invite the Tubman Speaker's Bureau to bring violence prevention outreach to your workplace, faith community, civic group or professional association.
For further information on legislative issues and how you can help take action, contact Randy Schubring, Director of Public Affairs at Tubman Family Alliance at 651-770-8544/612-825-3333 or at grassroots@tubmanfamilyalliance.org.
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This Public Policy Update Published May 18, 2005.
Editor: Randy Schubring
Writers: Margaret Ostrander
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