MCDHH Update- Good News So Far!!!
 

Our dream of having mandated newborn hearing screening and building a system that supports families with babies with hearing loss is getting closer to coming true. We also have had success in getting funds for interpreters for a transition program for deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind youth 18-21 and additional funds for MCDHH to cover interpreting costs.  And we are one step away from passing one of the strongest hearing aid insurance bills for kids in the country.

In seven of nine of our bills, we have the same amount of funding included in the Senate in the House.  The Deaf Mentor funding is in the House, but not in the Senate. The Early Hearing Detection Intervention Education Coordinator is partially funded in the House. These differences will be resolved during Conference Committees. We will fight for both of them to get in and the others to stay in!!                                       

Bill	House Amount	Senate Amount
Hearing Screening Mandate Funds from Blood Spot Fee	$2.799 million	$2.799 million
Hearing Aid Loaner Bank	$140,000	$140,000
Parent Guides	$200,000	$200,000
Deaf Mentor	$80,000	$0
EHDI Education Coordinator	$40,000	$0
VECTOR Transition Funding	$650,000	$500,000
Deafblind Bill	$1.7million	$1.7 million
MCDHH Funding	$100,000	$60,000
Kids Hearing Aid Insurance	Passed  (Waiting for final passage)	Passed (Waiting for final passage)

Thanks to the following people who came to testify on the bills: Dr. Karl White, National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management, Utah; Toni Fairbanks, Deaf Mentor and MCDHH member; Rhonda Sivarajah, parent and EHDI Advisory Board member;  Ia Yang and her beautiful daughter Ashley who is deafblind; John Clark, representative from the deafblind community; Anna Paulson, University of Minnesota; Nicole and Trent Brown and their charming daughters who are deaf- Linnea and Sophie; Greta Paulson, parent of deaf son and VECTOR coordinator; Martha Davies, student from VECTOR; Elise Knopf , board Chair of MCDHH; Patti Morelli Teachout , parent and MCDHH member;  Diane Wonchoba and her two boys Eric and Cameron; Dr. Peggy Nelson, audiologist, University of Minnesota; Patty Nancy Sturlaugson, teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Bobbi Cordano, Assistant Dean of the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, Patty Evans, parent of a deaf son, Dr. Susan Rose, University of Minnesota Deaf and Hard of Hearing Teacher’s Program for her editing of our EHDI PowerPoint and Cynthia Weitzel , our new MCDHH Public Policy Coordinator. Thanks to MCDHH members Liz McDevitt and Monique Hammond for showing up and giving support at the hearings.

Thanks to the DHHSD, especially Bruce Hodek for getting the DB bill funding in the Governor's budget.

Thanks too, to Capitol Hill Associates for their work on the Parent Guide bill and to Bob Vanasek for his help.

What happens next?

April 2, 2007 at 2 :00 p.m.   Deadline for bill passage for House and Senate

April 2 at 2 p.m. to April 10 at noon - Legislature is on spring break.  This means no committee hearings and no floor sessions.  Staff will be working, except for April 6 when all offices are closed.

April 10    Start of appointments to conference committees to negotiate the difference between the House and the Senate Bills.   Usually the House and the Senate appoint 3 to 5 members each for a total of 6 to 10 members who will be on the Conference Committees. There will be separate Conference Committees for Education, Health and Human Services and Energy (for the MCDHH Bills). We will let you know when members have been appointed and when the meetings will be scheduled. It will be after April 10th at noon.

April 27     Last date that the Senate and House leadership have to agree on how much money each conference committee will have to spend on their budget (setting targets).

May 21 Date that conference committee bills need to be passed on the floors of the Senate and the House. The bills are then sent to the Governor.

May 24 Once the governor has the bill, he or she may: sign it, and the bill becomes law; veto it within three days; or allow it to become law by not signing it. During session, the House and Senate can override a governor's veto. This requires a two-thirds vote in the House (90 votes) and Senate (45 votes). The governor also may "line-item veto" parts of a money bill, or "pocket veto" a bill passed during the last three days of the session by not signing it within 14 days after final adjournment .

What can you do now?  Thank our chief authors and heroes!! It makes a difference. They stuck their necks out for us and they deserve our thanks.   They may also be on conference committees and hopefully will remember us fondly!!!

Hearing Screening Bill-     

Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher   651-296-0170 rep.margaret.kelliher@house.mn

Representative Marty Seifert      651-296-5374 rep.marty.seifert@house.mn

Senator John Marty   6510296-5645 sen.john.marty@senate.mn

Representative Phyllis Kahn   651-296-4257 rep.phyllis.kahn@house.mn

Deaf Mentor Bill- Representative Patty Fritz 651 296-8237 rep.patty.fritz@house.mn

Senator Mary Olson   651.296.4913 sen.mary.olson@senate.mn

Hearing Aid Loaner Bank- Representative Tom Huntley   651-296-2228 rep.thomas.huntely@house.mn

Senator Ann Lynch  651.296.4848     sen.ann.lynch@senate.mn

Parent Guides- Senator Sheran 651.296.6153   sen.kathy.sheran@senate.mn

Representative Erin Murphy 651-296-8799 rep.erin.murphy@house.mn
EHDI Education Coordinator- Representative Norah Slawik, 651-296-7807 rep.nora.slawik@house.mn Representative Robin Brown 651- 2968216  rep.robin.brown@house.mn
Representative Mindy Greiling   651-296-3240 rep.mindy.greiling@house.mn

Representative Carlos Mariani 651-296-9714 rep.carlos.mariani@house.mn
Bud Heidgerken  651-296-4317 rep.bud.heiderken@house.mn
Representative Senator Charles Wiger 651.296.6820     sen.chuck.wiger@senate.mn

Hearing Aid Insurance Bill for Kids- Representative Tony Sertich (651) 296-0172   rep.tony.sertich@house.mn
Senator Tomassoni     651.296.8017   sen.david.tomassoni@senate.mn

MCDHH Increase in Funds- Senator Metzen 651.296.4370 sen.jim.metzen@senate.mn

Representative Gunther 651-2965387 rep.bob.gunther@house.mn VECTOR Funding-    Representative Mary Murphy  651-296-2676 rep.mary.murphy@house.mn

Representative Tom Rukavina   651-296-0170 rep.tom.rukavina@house.mn
Senator Scott Dibble   651.296.4191 sen.scott.dibble@senate.mn
Senator DaveTomassoni 651.296.8017 sen.david.tomassoni@senate.mn DeafBlind Funding Senator Fishbach   651.296.2084 sen.michelle.fischbach@senate.mn

Senator Paul E Koering 651.296.4875 sen.paul.koering@senate.mn

Representative Tom Huntley   651-296-2228 rep.thomas.huntely@house.mn

We are writing a blog of all the events that have led up to this, the other bills that we have been working on. It will posted on our website by Tuesday at www.mncdhh.com   We will be updating our website during the next few weeks.

Thanks for all of your efforts!!!  We appreciate your advocacy and all you have done to make a difference.  It’s working. We still have more to do.  The session isn’t over until May 21.   Conference committees will be meeting and final passage of the bills need to occur and then the Governor needs to sign the bills.

For information on how a bill becomes law go to this link: http://www.leg.state.mn.us/leg/howbill.asp#general