logo
Lawmakers release bipartisan human services budget bill

Lawmakers release bipartisan human services budget bill

Yahoo06-06-2025
May 15, 2025 at the Minnesota State Capitol. (Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer)
A bipartisan group of lawmakers released on Thursday the final draft of their plan to cut $270 million over the next two years from programs that serve the elderly and disabled.
The two-year, approximately $17 billion compromise human services budget will cut future spending on nursing homes and home care programs, though it will raise pay for nursing home and home care workers. The bill largely avoids pushing costs on to county governments, which was a core piece of the House plan.
The Department of Human Services currently accounts for around one-third of the state budget, and spending is expected to rapidly grow in the coming years as the population ages and the cost of providing care increases. The majority of the agency's budget goes toward Medical Assistance, Minnesota's Medicaid program.
Agreeing on a DHS budget was one of the biggest hurdles lawmakers needed to clear before they reconvene for a special session to pass the remaining budget bills.
Legislative leaders and Gov. Tim Walz are aiming to hold a special session on Saturday, but there's been no official announcement, and they've missed self-imposed deadlines before. If they don't finish the budget by the end of June, large parts of state government will shut down. Some state workers have already received furlough notices.
Throughout the legislative process, leaders agreed to target DHS for cuts, though both chambers passed very different plans. The DFL-backed Senate budget focused on reducing payments to nursing homes; the House version pushed costs onto counties while cutting spending on programs that provide care to people with disabilities.
The compromise budget bill makes the following cuts over the next two years:
$186 million by capping inflation adjustments for long-term care waivers, which pay for in-home care for people with disabilities, at the federal urban inflation rate (CPI-U) or 4%.
$51 million from changes to 'rate exceptions,' higher-than-usual payments for the care of people with extraordinary needs. The bill would create new limits on what is covered by the rate exception, and introduce new paperwork requirements.
Around $46 million by putting tighter limits on what Medical Assistance covers for day and unit based services, which help people with disabilities maintain life skills and participate in a community and activities. It also would cut pay for caretakers when they are sleeping on an overnight supervision shift.
$41 million from nursing homes by making a series of changes to how patients are classified, removing an incentive to create more single-bed rooms and capping some inflation adjustments.
It also generates more than $56 million in savings by increasing yearly fees paid to the state by nursing homes, and also increasing a reimbursement rate that corresponds to the fees, which pushes some costs onto the federal government.
The budget spends money on raises for nursing home and other care workers ($88 million) and on setting up a new licensing and oversight system for autism service providers ($11 million), some of which are under investigation by the FBI on suspicion of fraud.
The bill does not include a House proposal that would have shifted more than $150 million in costs to counties to pay for rate exceptions.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

House ethics panel tells Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to pay more for Met Gala attendance
House ethics panel tells Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to pay more for Met Gala attendance

Boston Globe

time15 minutes ago

  • Boston Globe

House ethics panel tells Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to pay more for Met Gala attendance

Advertisement As a guest of Vogue, Ocasio-Cortez and her partner received tickets to the gala valued at $35,000, as well as customized clothing, hair and makeup styling and a hotel room to prepare for the high-society event. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The congresswoman worked with an attorney to comply with House ethics rules and paid for most of the goods and services with personal funds, but the ethics panel found 'the payments were significantly delayed and some payments fell short of fair market value.' In a statement, Ocasio-Cortez's chief of staff, Mike Casca, said: 'The Congresswoman appreciates the Committee finding that she made efforts to ensure her compliance with House Rules and sought to act consistently with her ethical requirements as a Member of the House. She accepts the ruling and will remedy the remaining amounts, as she's done at each step in this process.' Advertisement Representative Mike Kelly Representative Mike Kelly speaks during a hearing on the Secret Service's security failures regarding the assassination attempts on Donald Trump, Dec. 5, 2024, in Washington. Rod Lamkey/Associated Press The House Ethics Committee issued a formal reproval Friday of Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., following a yearslong investigation into an insider-trading allegation over his wife's purchase of stock in a steel company in his Butler-area congressional district. The panel also said Kelly and his wife, Victoria Kelly, should divest of any stock in the company, Cleveland-Cliffs, before the congressman takes any further official actions related to it. While the committee said it 'did not find evidence' that Kelly 'knowingly or intentionally caused his spouse to trade based on insider information,' its report also said it 'did not receive full cooperation from Mrs. Kelly and was therefore unable to determine whether her stock purchase was improper.' However, the report said, 'Representative Kelly's failure to acknowledge the seriousness of the alleged misconduct' and of the investigation itself was a violation of the code of official conduct. The committee did 'not find a clear violation' of conflict of interest. The congressman said in a statement Friday, 'My family and I look forward to putting this distraction behind us.' Kelly noted the investigation has 'unnecessarily' lasted for nearly five years, and in the time since the Cleveland Cliffs Butler Works plant faced an uncertain future. 'Throughout this process, I have fought for the 1,400 workers at the plant, I've spoken with these workers, and they appreciate the hard work we have done to fight for those jobs and for Butler,' Kelly said. The investigation was launched after a July 2021 referral regarding allegations the congressman's wife may have purchased stock based on confidential or nonpublic information he had learned during official duties. Advertisement The Ethics Committee staff reviewed more than 25,000 pages of documents, the report said, and interviewed people including the congressman. It found Kelly had advocated for so-called Section 232 tariffs for the product the plant produced even after Mrs. Kelly held stock in Cleveland-Cliffs. 'He took several actions to specifically benefit Cleveland-Cliffs during the time his wife had a direct financial interest in the company,' it said. Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., speaks at an event, July 7, 2022, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press The House Ethics Committee announced Friday it had unanimously voted to reauthorize an investigative subcommittee to examine allegations involving Florida Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. In May, the Office of Congressional Ethics referred several allegations to the House Ethics committee, including claims Cherfilus-McCormick, a Democrat, accepted campaign contributions tied to official actions and requested community project funding for a for-profit entity. The south Florida congresswoman has previously faced scrutiny over her campaign activities and the use of her congressional office. And earlier this year, a Florida state agency sued a company owned by her family, alleging it overcharged the state by nearly $5.8 million for pandemic-related work and has refused to return the funds. In a statement, Cherfilus-McCormick underscored that the ethics panel had not reached any final decision and that the further review does not mean she made any violations. 'I fully respect the process and remain committed to cooperating with the Committee as it works to bring this inquiry to a close,' she said. Representative Henry Cuellar Representative Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, speaks during a campaign event, May 4, 2022, in San Antonio. Eric Gay/Associated Press The House Ethics Committee also reauthorized its investigation into Rep. Henry Cuellar over whether he engaged in multiple illegal abuses of his office. The committee launched its investigation into the Texas Democrat last year after the Justice Department indicted Cuellar on numerous federal charges, including bribery, conspiracy and money laundering. Advertisement The committee said in its reauthorization that lawmakers are 'aware of the risks associated with dual investigations' and cautioned that 'the mere fact of an investigation into these allegations does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred.' Cuellar's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti and Matt Brown contributed.

After Lara Trump opts out, president endorses RNC Chair Whatley for NC Senate race
After Lara Trump opts out, president endorses RNC Chair Whatley for NC Senate race

USA Today

time15 minutes ago

  • USA Today

After Lara Trump opts out, president endorses RNC Chair Whatley for NC Senate race

North Carolina is a pivotal battleground state and the Senate race is one of the premier contests of the upcoming midterm elections. There won't be a Trump on the ballot in North Carolina's Senate race, but the president is still putting his imprint on the marquee 2026 matchup. Lara Trump, President Donald Trump's daughter-in-law and his first choice for the U.S. Senate seat in the state where she was born, announced July 24 she won't be running. So the president went to his second choice, endorsing Republican National Committee chair and former North Carolina GOP Chair Michael Whatley in a July 24 social media post. Whatley was Trump's handpicked candidate to lead the RNC during the 2024 election cycle, helping him win the popular vote and secure victories in every swing state, including North Carolina. Whatley co-chaired the RNC with Lara Trump, who resigned after the election. Lara Trump is married to the president's second child, Eric Trump. More: Where did Trump's children go to college? See which schools they attended North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis opted not to seek re-election in 2026 after he announced his opposition to Trump's signature tax legislation, criticizing the bill's cuts to Medicaid. Whatley would give Trump a staunch supporter in the Senate if he wins, with the president declaring, "I need him in Washington." Whatley hasn't announced his plans, but is expected to run for the seat, according to media reports. Trump also endorsed a replacement for Whatley to chair the RNC, Florida state senator and former Florida GOP chair Joe Gruters. More: Melania Trump may get name on the Kennedy opera house. What has she done as first lady? Gruters is a longtime Trump supporter who co-chaired the president's 2016 campaign in Florida with current White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. "I'm looking forward to advancing President Trump's America First agenda as the next chair of the RNC," Gruters said in a statement. More: How Trump and 'terrific guy' Jeffrey Epstein's party boy friendship ended badly North Carolina is a pivotal battleground state and the Senate race is one of the premier contests of the upcoming midterm elections, which will decide if Republicans maintain control of Congress and the ability to enact Trump's agenda. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate. Democrats are expected to closely contest the North Carolina race. Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is considered a top potential Democratic candidate.

House Republicans Vote to Rename Kennedy Center Opera House After Melania Trump
House Republicans Vote to Rename Kennedy Center Opera House After Melania Trump

Yahoo

time43 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

House Republicans Vote to Rename Kennedy Center Opera House After Melania Trump

House Republicans have made passage of the fiscal 2026 Interior-Environment spending bill contingent, at least for now, on renaming the opera house at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts after Melania Trump. The procedural markup of the spending bill voted on by House appropriators on Tuesday contained a short amendment from Idaho Republican Rep. Mike Simpson: 'Makes technical changes, designates the First Lady Melania Trump Opera House.' More from The Hollywood Reporter Trump's End Game With The Wall Street Journal Defamation Lawsuit Scooter Braun's Response to Still-Angry Taylor Swift Fans on Catalog Purchase: "They Made the Horrible Miscalculation That I Care" Trump's Side Deal With "New Owners" of Paramount May Hint at FCC Concessions The amendment was adopted by a vote of 33 to 25, though the proposed legislation with the renaming amendment has yet to receive a vote by the full Congress, nor is such polling assured. Other sycophantic Republican lawmakers have similarly looked to honor (and flatter) Trump during his second term by, for example, Congressman Addison McDowell proposing legislation to redesignate Washington Dulles International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport; new Texas Rep. Brandon Gill proposing a measure to require all $100 bills be redesigned to have Trump's face on them; California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa announcing he's nominating Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize; and Upper New York State Rep. Claudia Tenney proposing Trump's birthday become a national holiday. The possible opera house renaming follows U.S. President Donald Trump and wife Melania in mid-June attending a local debut of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. The performance was marked by a protest attendance by local drag queens and an eruption of booing and reactive MAGA-rally-style chants from the crowd. The John F. Kennedy Center had already been retooled soon after Trump took control of the institution at the start of his second term, fired its entire board, then replaced them with loyalists including Susie Wiles, his chief of staff, second lady Usha Vance, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's wife, Allison, and Fox News hosts Maria Bartiromo and Laura Ingraham. The U.S. leader's hand-picked board soon elected Trump to be chairman of the cultural venue. A touring production of the hit musical Hamilton decided against going ahead with plans to play the Kennedy Center in light of Trump's takeover of the institution. Best of The Hollywood Reporter From 'Party in the U.S.A.' to 'Born in the U.S.A.': 20 of America's Most Patriotic (and Un-Patriotic) Musical Offerings Most Anticipated Concert Tours of 2025: Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and More Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store