The 2003 Legislature is already running at full speed even as approximately 60 new members try to find their way. Nobody is surprised that much of the session will be spent on fixing the $4.5 billion deficit that’s staring legislators right in the face. Like last year, the plan of action will be completed in two separate phases - Phase I and Phase II.

In Phase I, the Governor and Legislature will attempt to plug the $356 million hole for the current fiscal year, which ends in June 2003. Indications are the Phase I piece will be fixed by either late January or early February. In Phase II the Governor and Legislature will attempt to fill an even larger hole - a $4.2 billion deficit for the 2004-05 budget. The Legislature will need to fix the smaller of the two holes before they can think about filling the massive $4.2 billion crevasse. Remember this deficit total does not include an inflationary calculation and the fact that a February forecast could project a larger number. The administration will release a plan for resolving the $356 million shortfall in the next couple of weeks. The administration will also submit a proposal by February 18 to the Legislature that deals with the $4.2 billion deficit. The bottom line is that much of the discussion will be focused on the enormous deficit. Compounding the complexity of the budget challenge is Governor Pawlenty’s tax pledge.

For the sake of comparison, the 2002 Legislature faced a similar problem. The Legislature attacked a large deficit of approximately $2 billion in a Phase I approach within the first month of the session. The remaining three months of the 2002 session focused fixing the Phase II of a $437 million dollar deficit discovered in the February 2002 forecast. The shift in the payment schedule to school districts - from a 90 percent-10 percent schedule to an 83 percent-17 percent schedule - ultimately resolved the Phase II of the 2002 budget crisis.

Profile on Life Support

Watch for a bill abolishing the controversial Profile of Learning and setting the framework for new standards. We have learned that HF 2 authored by Rep. Kielkucki (R-Lester Prairie) in the House and the senate companion carried by Senator Gen Olson (R-Minnetrista) would repeal the Profile of Learning statute and establish a task force to establish new educational standards. The bill will be offered by the end of the week.

Generally, the first ten House bills of the session signify members’ top goals. That gives a pretty good indication that the repeal of the Profile of Learning ranked high on a number of members’ priority lists. At this time, we simply cannot tell you who would make up the task force charged with establishing new educational standards. Indications are that parents, teachers, school board members, higher education representatives, experts on standards development and representatives from the business community will comprise the stakeholder group. We will get this information out as soon as we learn who is assigned to the task force. Nonetheless, this group will face an enormous challenge considering the new testing, standard requirements and the established time lines under the No Child Left Behind Act.

Other policy and finance items which we believe may be “in play”:

• Pledge of Allegiance requirement
• January 15 deadline
• 3 additional day mandate
• Unfunded mandates
• Restoration of the 90/10 payment schedule
• Online learning and testing opportunities
• Timely scoring and reporting of test results
• Tuition tax credits

MSBA to Advocate Minnesota School Needs at Federal Level

Your MSBA Board of Directors will be attending the National School Boards Federal Relations Network Conference (FRN) on February 2-4 in Washington D.C. The highlight of the FRN conference is spending a full day on Capitol Hill meeting with Minnesota’s Congressional Delegation and their staff members. Directors and staff will focus on the challenges that school district are facing with the new No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA), the unfunded mandates associated with the Individual with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and the need to increase federal spending to improve student achievement. In addition, Directors will be following up with our delegation regarding the Medicaid reimbursement rulemaking controversy, which could have an impact on the reimbursements districts receive through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services for their neediest students.

Pawlenty and New Commissioner Invited to MSBA Leadership Conference, Held January 16-17

Governor Pawlenty and the new Commissioner of CFL (or Education, as some have speculated) have been invited to address school board members and superintendents at the 2003 Leadership Conference. The conference is at the Minneapolis Convention Center on January 16-17. At press time, a new Commissioner had not been appointed and Governor Pawlenty’s schedule is still rather fluid. However, a high-ranking CFL representative will attend regardless. Whether or not the Governor or the new Commissioner can attend, we hope to see you at this outstanding conference for school leaders.

Listen to Bob Meeks’ Legislative Updates 24/7

In our continued effort to bring the daily events in St. Paul closer to you, MSBA has equipped the web site so you can listen to current and archived Lobby Line reports. You need to have Real Player, Microsoft Media or Quick Time to listen to the daily reports through your computer. Go to www.mnmsba.org, select Governmental Relations from the menu and choose the Lobby Line button. Give it a try and listen while you work!

Capitol Factoid: The Legislature can meet for 120 legislative days during a biennium. A legislative day is when either body meets in session.

Caucus Leadership:

Speaker of the House: Rep. Steve Sviggum (R-Kenyon)
House Majority Leader: Erik Paulson (R-Eden Prairie)
House Minority Leader: Rep. Matt Entenza (D-St Paul)
Senate Majority Leader: Senator John Hottinger (D-St Peter)
Assistant Majority Leader: Senator Ann Rest (D-New Hope)
Senate Minority Leader: Dick Day (R-Owatonna)
President of the Senate: Senator Jim Metzen (D-South St. Paul)

Committee Chairs to make note:

House of Representatives:

Education Policy - Rep. Barb Sykora (R-Excelsior)
Education Finance - Alice Seagren (R-Bloomington)
Taxes - Ron Abrams (R-Minntonka)

Senate:

E-12 Budget Division - Senator Leroy Stumpf (D-Thief River Falls)
Education Policy - Senator Steve Kelley (D-Hopkins)
Taxes - Senator Larry Pogemiller (D-Minneapolis)
Finance - Senator Richard Cohen (D-St Paul)

Comments and Questions can be directed to MSBA Asst. Director of Govt. Relations Kirk Schneidawind - kschneidawind@mnmsba.org