COM EC

85 Stata Office Building, St. Paul, Minnesota 55155

JCJNE 1987

IN THIS ISSUE

l.B;IS!ATION 1987 T . summarizing action on Commission-endors'2d legislative prq;iosa1sdurlng th$ 1987 legislative sess~on.

'lbe. Cqmmission is beginning to plan .for its ·summer hearings. Each summer the Connnission hold$ $evepil. open· hearil1gs c>n ~ ecqnomj.c status ·of women •. in CQmmUnitiE:S . in. greater Minnesota. If you are interested in having the CQmmission> holcl a hearing in your community please contact the Commi~ion Office.

This document is made available electronically by the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library as part of an ongoing digital archiving project. http://www.leg.state.mn.us/lrl/lrl.asp

Legislative Summary 1987·· a:HITSSION .mIDORSED ur;J:S!ATidN WID:(ll P~

~·Etti.~ . .

~iai'bn tile ~c status. of wamen: Prevides . runas for· the Gommission for the 1988,:.;sg ·Biennium. (HF 131$) ..

BattereawOmenus ~! .Provides>$5.3 million for the biennium for cont,inued support .fo:t" the battered women.ts shelters in Minn,esota. (HF 243)

Displaded Homemaker· Programs: Provicies continued support for the .state's di~P,l(iced homeniaker ~rograms. Funds foJ: 'th~. program will 9-0ntinue. t() ·come from. the :marriage licel15e fees:. Projected funds fran this source are $2 :million :for the biennium. (HF 243)

Sexual Assault Programs: Provides $1. 3 million for the Sexual Assault Services Prog:r:am Which. provides training, .develops :materials and provides state coordination, administration and grants to local .connnunities for sexual assault program. (HF 243)

Family Planninq: Provides approximately $1.1 million to the Minnesota Department of Health fol: family pl<yming. special projects under the Community Hea.lth services Act. (HF 243)

Sliding Fee Health Insurance: .. Beginning July l, 1988 families with incomes bE;Iow :ms percent of the poverty I~velJvill.Qe ~l,igibl,e fqr very low .. cost prenatal care and com1;:irehen8ive outpatient coverage for children up to age 6. (HF 243)

Women. ·:Infants ~ Children Food PX09rffl11 J.WJC): Provides $1 :million in state funds to sypJ2lemeT1t the fed.eral.appropriation fqr·the wrc supplemental food program~ (HF 243)

Taxes - Sincile Heads of Households: A .new tax bracket. for single heads of households with dependents is created which taxes .single parents at a more favorable rate than single individuals with no dependel)ts. In previ()lJS Years single .heads of households were taxed. at the same rate as single individtl.als. (Chapter 268)

Taxes .;,., Dependent care Tax Cralit: .The refundable child care tax credit has been retained. and will continue to. be ta:l:geted to lower income taxpayers. It will appear on both .the Minnesota short and long income tax fonns. (Chapter 268)

Part-Time student Aid: Appropriates $2 :million per Year for the continuation of the Part-Time Grant Program for students of post-secondary institutions. (SF 1515) .

1 (Commission on the Econanic status of Women, Newsletter #115, June 1987)

on

STI':lte to sell bonds to education Hibbing,

(Anoka, J?aul, Thief River

care centers µuring the Comnlunit:y College will Hennepin Tech.nical Center and

""-"-L""l-,.L!Jt\..l local funds for child care

sliding fee.· progrpm fund· is· s~

welfare refonn iniatives institutions.

a;pprol?riation referral

"'""~-l.J..'--""" arrl referral 243)

appropriation. will be provide.grantsto assist

24.3)

eln:ibu:rse:merrc r,au:s through the ,...,..,.,.....,,..;,.,,..,.., care p:-17011iders

avieretGe wage for

June 1987)

Parents .employed. in companies with 21. or more. employees,. 'Who at 20 hollrS:i a week: and· have bean.on. the job for at least one year,

are entitle.cl to take up to . weeks unpaid leave 'When a .child is·. born or adopted. . the end, of the leave the. employee is eJ:1titled to return to her/his old position or a position of comparable duties,. numl::ier of hours and. pay. (Chapter359)

Pensions: Requires pension funds to . inforniation regarding rights and. benefits of pension plan member$. to a party to a dissolution action or to a former spouse Who is entitled. to ~ion rights or benefits as part of a marriage di~solµtion action. Also .requires direct payment to a former spouse. DescJ:'.'ibes how a pension plan is to out surviving spouse benefits .When there is more than one surviving spouse~ Requires .. court to try<t(J offset future pension benefits or. rights against liquid or readily .liquidated ll1&rital property. (Chapter 157)

Automatic wage withholding for or existing child support orders .oo· tested in a. five. C()unty. two· year.pilot program~. Results of the pilot program will be reported to the legislature 1989 and the benefit of making the .prog:ram statewide will be evalua:taj. withholding will be easier implement when support 30 arrears, it will no longer be necessary to return to court. (HF 243)

Domestic Abuse Act.: Prohibits the court in a temporary h~ing a ma.de .ana·notice given to party into the residence.·doeS not.void added to ·the notice given . th~. party Protection not voided the residence invited into theresidence. (Chapter 237}

Requires that When a jud9e mo has COltllllitt:ed a domestic assault the conditions of writ.te!l and. given to the. agency haying custody of the person to being released. Failure to give the order to arrested person does not invalidate the conditions of release. (Chapter 115)

Requires that the d0llle51::1.C abuse 'Wilen making ·a custody aece1:mlna:t.1.<)n ,,,.r.,...,,,,,,., tlb.e:i::e .domestic abuse nas occurred.

$500;000 to pursue er>t:r~::>rene1irsJ:up and to

3 (Commission on the Econd:nic status of """"'~'''"''.,.

Gender Bias in the Cow:ts Qtud,y: . Appropriates $50, ooo to the SUprenie court to conduct a study of. gender bias in the .Minnesota .judicial. system. (HF 131.5)

Gender Revision o:f Minnesota statutes: ·. Continues to remove nonsubstantive gender specific language from the Minnesota statutes. (Chapters 39 and 49)

a:nnssION ·EH:'JORSED l.EGIBIATION ·WHJ[CH

Respit:ecare ·.:tor caregivers: . . to develop .a system of coon:linatedse:rvices (it the county level to support caregivers. (HF 592 i SF 400)

~is: App:ropriate funds to .i:.onduct programs to reduce .rif:;k conditions related to osteoporosis. (HF 178; SF

Provides a grant SF 817)

Women's History Center: Provides funding in t..he capital budget. to be used for planning the. Minnesota Wanen1 s History original. bonding proposal)

'-1,_~_,uµ contracts for and hmo contracts to as stana.ard unless t..he policy is only for a specific

Requires that .health whict-1 cover .. dependents continue to cover the surviving spouse and dependents the death· of the insured. .until the date .the ·coverage would ha:-ve tenninated .or the surviving spouse becomes· covered under another group health surviving spouse can be required to pay / but the fee not 102 of the cost for the same period for.other spouses and dependE;nts.

Accident and ·health· insurance hospital· or medical eXpense coverage and. which cover the spouse dependent children of an insured must permit the spouse and children to continue coverage when the insured becomes enrolled in 1·1<::>'-1.J..'...a.J..c

Tennination of insurance co11e1:aqre dissolution fonner spouse OO:JOl1leS r-r<<r='~""" 1wv·ta.,...

required to.pay of· the· cost to has been a .<1"-4'-,_~!.U'-,.JI= '-'•.!.°"::>VJCU.\..·.l..Vl

11.38)

(Commission

and wanen se1:: ... asicle program. (HF

narrows the ~K.Ucu. conduct may be

L;.L..!-111..u10L.i.. 1':>'<::.Al.!O.J.. conduct.. Requires 3 {Chapter 114)

Ne'i11sl.eti::er #115, Jrine 1987) 4

3Jll NO

Commission on the Economic S tatu.s of. Women 85 State Office B.ui lding St. Pau 1 ., MN 55155

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