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[Dome]Interim Calendar and Briefing

December 13, 1995

Contents:
CALENDAR OF SCHEDULED MEETINGS
AGENDA INFORMATION REGARDING SCHEDULED MEETINGS
BRIEFINGS - INFORMATION REGARDING RECENT MEETINGS

Calendar of Scheduled Meetings

Friday, December 15, 1995
One-Call Statewide Underground Facility Notification Study Committee
10:00 a.m., Room 22
Livestock Production Study Committee Subcommittee Public Hearing
2:00 - 4:00 p.m., Brenton Bank, Meeting Room, Grinnell, IA
Tuesday, December 19, 1995
Fiscal Committee of the Legislative Council
9:00 a.m., Room 22
Thursday, December 21, 1995
Iowa Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations
10:00 a.m., Room 22
Wednesday, January 3, 1996
Administrative Rules Review Committee
10:00 a.m., Room 116
Thursday, January 4, 1996
Administrative Rules Review Committee
9:00 a.m., Room 116
Tuesday, January 16, 1996
Alternative Energy Production Study Committee
Scheduled to Meet Upon Adjournment, Room 116

Agenda Information Regarding Scheduled Meetings

One-Call Statewide Underground Facility Notification Study Committee

Co-chairperson: Senator Dennis Black
Co-chairperson: Representative James Van Fossen

Livestock Production Study Committee Subcommittee Public Hearing

Committee Co-chairperson: Senator Berl E. Priebe
Committee Co-chairperson: Representative Russell Eddie

Fiscal Committee of the Legislative Council

Co-chairperson: Senator Larry Murphy
Co-chairperson: Representative David Millage

Administrative Rules Review Committee

Co-chairperson: Senator Berl E. Priebe
Co-chairperson: Representative Janet Metcalf

Alternative Energy Production Study Committee

Co-chairperson: Senator Bill Fink
Co-chairperson: Representative Ronald Nutt

BRIEFINGS - Information Regarding Recent Meetings

STATE-COUNTY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

December 1, 1995

Background.
The State-County Management Committee has continued to meet at least monthly through the legislative session and the interim. The Committee was created in the 1994 Session in H.F. 2430 to make recommendations for joint state and county planning, implementing, and funding of mental health, mental retardation, and developmental disabilities (MH/MR/DD) services. The Committee includes state, county, and Governor's appointees, as well as legislative members. It is jointly staffed by the Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC).
January Report.
The Committee will include the following topics in its January report required by the Code of Iowa:
Statewide Consistency.
Concern has been raised that reforms, including those required by S.F. 69 do not require development of consistency of services for MH/DD. The Committee will review current funding structures, legal mandates, and legal settlement requirements to develop recommendations for changes.
County Management Authority.
The Committee noted the following areas in which a county does not have authority to manage MH/DD services: voluntary and involuntary commitments to state institutions and intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded (ICFMR), Medicaid home and community/based waiver services, and eligibility for case management services (for some of the areas, a county cannot manage reimbursement rates of contract requirements). The Committee will develop proposals over the next year.
Pooling of Funds.
The General Assembly should clarify laws so as to permit counties to voluntarily pool their MH/DD funds through regional entities, including MH/DD regional planning councils.
Service Cost Growth Factor.
The Governor's item veto of the methodology for establishing an annual growth factor for MH/DD costs and implementation provisions creates a number of problems identified by the Committee. The report includes concerns and options for addressing a growth factor.
Standards.
State agencies , including the Department of Inspections and Appeals and the State Fire Marshal, should be requested to revise administrative rules governing service providers to focus on outcomes rather than prescriptive standards.
Abuse Registries.
The General Assembly should revise statutes to enable community-based adult service providers to access state abuse registries to screen their staff members.
Confidential Information.
The Committee will review state confidentiality requirements applicable to counties and make recommendations as necessary for effective management of MH/DD services.
State Cases.
The state pays for certain cases in which there is no county of legal settlement and currently will not pay for a service unless the provider has a purchase of service contract with the state. The Department of Human Services should revise rules to allow for payment for any service provided under an approved county plan of a consumer's county of residence when the county has a contract with the provider.
Multiple Funding Streams.
The multiple funding streams for MH/DD services contribute to a complex and fragmenting systems. The committee discussed options for combining various state funding streams and will continue to develop options for legislative consideration. The Committee recommends that legislative consideration of the options include an assessment of the impact of each option upon county budgets.
Distribution of Property Tax Relief Moneys.
The Committee was directed to review the impact of the formula for distribution of property tax relief moneys to counties. The Committee recommends continuing the current formula, noting that the formula does not directly impact county MH/DD budgets as there is dollar for dollar property tax reduction requirement.
Remaining Issues.
The Committee was unable to develop specific recommendations for the January 1 report regarding a number of issues, including the following, but will continue to develop options for the Governor and General Assembly to consider:
Legal Issues.
The Committee has developed a legal work group composed of representatives of the Office of the Attorney General, counties, and provider and consumer advocacy organizations to review tort and other liability issues raised regarding recent funding and management reforms. The Committee will develop recommendations based upon the work group's report.
Benchmarks.
The Committee is reviewing materials from the Council on Human Investment in preparing benchmarks for efficiency and quality in the delivery of MH/DD services.

IOWA TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION

December 6, 1995

The Iowa Telecommunications and Technology Commission (ITTC) conducted the following business:

Video Rates.
The Commission discussed video rates charged for Iowa Communications Network (ICN) usage and received information from staff concerning the projected video rate for fiscal year 1996-1997. The projected rate was based upon the projected number of video hours for the fiscal period (269,100) and the total costs associated with providing video service for that period ($10,792,537). Based upon those factors, the projected video rate was calculated to be $40.11. After discussion concerning the information provided, the Committee established the rates for fiscal year 1996-1997 as follows:

The Commission also determined to review and establish rates for fiscal year 1997-1998 by no later than September 15, 1996.

ITTC Proposed Legislative Package.
The Commission reviewed and approved its proposed legislative package which includes the following items:
Next Meeting.
The next meeting of the Commission is tentatively scheduled for January 3, 1996.

CONFERENCE COMMITTEE ON SENATE FILE 13 - PARENTAL NOTIFICATION

December 6, 1995

A summary of the meeting is as follows:

Issues.
A summary of the Conference Committee's deliberations, compiled by the Legislative Service Bureau, was distributed and reviewed. The differences between the House and Senate were noted as:
  1. The definition of "medical emergency".
  2. The definition of "parent".
  3. The inclusion/exclusion of provisions relating to adoption.
  4. Clarification of the duties of a guardian ad litem, determining professionals who might be considered guardians ad litem by a judge, and the role of marital and family therapists in the judicial bypass process.
  5. The inclusion/exclusion of sexual abuse as a basis for exemption from notification.
  6. The extent of the participation of impregnators in the decision-making assistance program.
Prior Agreements.
The Committee noted that the following points were previously agreed to by the Committee:
  1. With regard to participation of the impregnator, the Committee agreed to insert the following language: "To the extent possible and at the discretion of the pregnant minor, the person responsible for impregnating the pregnant minor shall also be involved in the viewing of the video and in the receipt of written decision-making materials."
  2. With regard to the guardian ad litem (GAL) and the role of marital and family therapists in the judicial bypass process, the Committee requested that language be drafted to encourage the court to consider the appointment of certain licensed professionals as GAL. The Committee also suggested that language be drafted to require the appointing of a marital and family therapist for the pregnant minor if a petition for waiver of notification is denied by the court.
  3. With regard to the definition of "medical emergency" the Committee agreed to the following definition: "Medical Emergency" means a condition which, based upon a physician's judgment, necessitates an abortion to avert the minor's death, or for which a delay will create a risk of serious impairment of a major bodily function."
Sexual Abuse Issue.
The Committee discussed the issue of the inclusion/exclusion of sexual abuse as a basis for exemption from notification.
  1. Co-chairperson Boddicker moved to strike the language from the bill which allows an exemption from notification for sexual abuse. The motion failed.
  2. Representative Doderer moved to include a reference to incest in the language regarding the exemption from notification of sexual abuse. The motion failed.
  3. Senator Bartz moved that the language in the Senate File as amended, passed, and reprinted by the Senate, which allows an exemption from notification of sexual abuse, remain in the bill. The motion was approved.
Definition of "Parent".
The Committee discussed the definition of "parent" to be used in the bill. Senator Bartz distributed two amendments. The Committee agreed to review each amendment separately. The first amendment would define parent as "one parent or a legal guardian or custodian of a pregnant minor." The amendment would then allow an exemption from notification of a parent of a pregnant minor if a grandparent of the pregnant minor submitted a written statement authorizing the abortion and which also includes a statement that the grandparent would assume full financial responsibility for any complications arising from the abortion. The second amendment which amended the initial proposal would include aunts and uncles, 25 years of age or older, in the same capacity as grandparents. Following discussion on each proposal, the Committee voted and both motions failed.
Recess.
The Committee agreed to recess the meeting until such time as the Co-chairpersons call a subsequent meeting.

COUNCIL ON HUMAN INVESTMENT

December 7, 1995

The Council members discussed the following:

Benchmark Status.
The members discussed the use of focus groups in identifying programs and data elements to establish baselines and long-term numerical targets in the Strong Communities and Healthy Iowan's benchmarking efforts. The members also discussed the status of the development of program performance measures under the Strong Families, Economic Development, and Workforce Development effort.
"Outcomes-based performance budgeting" reference.
The members discussed the use of the term "outcomes-based performance budgeting" and the negative connotations of the term relative to its prior use in the education context. The members noted that in soliciting support for the Council's work, legislators and others have expressed concern over the terminology. Members expressed concern that the terminology might be a barrier in soliciting support in the future and discussed alternative terminology including "results-based," "return on investment," "managing for results," and "budgeting for results," among other suggestions. The council members agreed that Ms. Mary Noss Reavely, staff to the Council, would continue to develop options for presentation to the Council at its next meeting.
"Council on Human Investment."
The Council members discussed the possibility of changing the name of the Council to reflect its broad purpose and goals. After some discussion, the members developed a consensus that the "human" factor in the name is important and that the Council should retain its present name.
Ms. Noss Reavely.
Ms. Noss Reavely discussed the "Managing for Results" conference held in Austin, Texas, during the month of November which was attended by representatives of 45 states and 5 countries. Ms. Reavely noted that Iowa has a very comprehensive and well-developed performance management program relative to the other programs, but that other states have channeled much effort into public relations and that Iowa should do so as well.

Additional Discussion.

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