Executive Committee Minutes of Meeting Denver, Colorado May 22, 2010

Transcription

1 Executive Committee Minutes of Meeting Denver, Colorado May 22, 2010 Senator Balfour called the meeting to order. The following officers and members were present: Senator Don Balfour, President Senator Richard Moore, President-Elect Representative Melvin Neufeld, Vice President Speaker Joe Hackney, Immediate Past President Nancy Cyr, Staff Chair Tim Rice, Staff Vice Chair Gary VanLandingham, Immediate Past Staff Chair Executive Committee Members Senator Pamela Althoff Senator Roberto Arango Jonathan Ball Representative Rosie Berger John Bjornson Senator Curtis Bramble Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula Laura Clemens Representative Joni Cutler Representative Mark Falzone Senator Deb Fischer Representative Dan Flynn Representative John Grange Judy Hall Senator Kemp Hannon Senator Thelma Harper Senator Verna Jones Member Geoffrey Kelley Representative RaeAnn Kelsch Millicent MacFarland Senator Tom Niehaus Speaker Terie Norelli Roger Norman Julie Pelegrin Peggy Piety Representative Sharon Tomiko Santos Gary Schaefer Carol Shaw Senator John Arthur Smith Patsy Spaw Senator Bruce Starr Senator Leticia Van de Putte Gary Wieman Tom Wright Jan Yamane

2 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 2 A quorum was present with 42 members of the Executive Committee in attendance. Several guests and NCSL staff were also present. REMARKS OF THE PRESIDENT Senator Balfour called the meeting to order and asked the board members present to introduce themselves. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The Executive Committee approved the minutes of the meeting held in Savannah, Georgia, on January 30, REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Bill Pound noted that NCSL was operating on budget for the year and revenue and expenditures are about where they should be as of April 30. There have been two very successful seminars on redistricting. The Fall Forum went better than expected given the economic conditions. In terms of appropriations we may not reach the 90% level, but will be very close to it by the end of the year. With respect to the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, it is clearly the intent of the Executive Committee that states not be asked for further funding. Working with the Financial Accounting Foundation, attempts have been made to find an alternative funding mechanism. We had hoped this would be included in the Federal Financial Reform bill it was not in the Senate version, so the next chapter would be the conference committee. A great deal of work on states implementation of the Federal Health Reform has taken place. Staff has been working with several states on options for implementation. NCSL did a webinar recently on risk pool implementation. About 30 states have indicated they will operate their own risk pools, and 19 have indicated that they will not and allow the federal government to do it for them. Occasionally, and usually at the request of the leadership of the state, NCSL is requested to file an amicus brief. We are currently involved in filing in two cases. When we file it is always where there is a question of legislative authority. One is in North Carolina which involves a dispute over the governor s ability to redirect funds after passage of the budget, and the other is in Ohio which involves tobacco settlement funds. This case involves not only the governor but the legislature both being on the same side against plaintiffs that are suing over action that was taken. We are working with the Attorney General s office on this one.

3 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 3 REPORT ON TASK FORCE ON IMMIGRATION AND THE STATES Representative Sharon Tomiko Santos reported that the during the Spring Forum the Task Force, under the leadership of Senator John Watkins had met with Congressman Mike Pence s staff as well as in the West Wing of the White House with senior White house and Department of Homeland Security staff. At that time there was bipartisan legislation under consideration, sponsored by Senators Graham and Shumer. NCSL staff worked very closely with the Senators to ensure the states concerns were addressed in the draft bill. Regretfully those efforts are currently stalled. Even though we understand there is little likelihood that comprehensive immigration reforms will be passed before the election, the Task Force continues to be committed to ensure NCSL is a major player in this process. We believe there is a greater opportunity for passage of the Green Act on a bipartisan basis. This act, sponsored by Senator Durbin of Illinois and Senator Luger of Indiana, provides certain unauthorized students who have graduated from U.S. high schools an opportunity to earn permanent residency and a path to citizenship through higher education and/or military service. Representative Santos called the committee s attention to the quarterly report on state legislation contained in the agenda book. Almost 1,200 bills have been introduced this session that touch on immigration or immigrants. She also called the attention of the committee to the summary of the Arizona law contained in the agenda book. What it says is that all along in the absence of federal action to address the comprehensive nature of immigration policy a clearly federal jurisdictional item the states are going to continue their efforts to address the concerns of their citizenry on a local basis. REPORT ON TASK FORCE ON STATE AND LOCAL TAXATION OF COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONIC COMMERCE Representative Falzone reported that 19 members of the Task Force had met and spent considerable time discussing vendor compensation for sellers and how the compensation could be put in place. This discussion indicates the goal line is in sight. He called the committee s attention to the report in the agenda book which estimates that states will lose uncollected sales tax revenue of $23 billion in He announced that Georgia has now passed legislation to comply with the streamlined sales tax agreement. This makes 24 states now in compliance. Twenty-three current member states have received close to $500 million in previously uncollected sales tax through the voluntary program. The Task Force anticipates the Federal Main Street Fairness Act will be introduced in Congress after the Memorial Day recess. Senator Mike Enzi of Wyoming and Congressman Bill Delahunt of Massachusetts will be signing on as prime sponsors and members of the Executive Committee are asked to contact their congressional delegation and ask them to cosponsor this legislation. This would be a way Congress could help states without raising taxes.

4 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 4 REPORT ON TASK FORCE ON MILITARY AND VETERANS AFFAIRS Senator Van de Putte reported the Task Force had toured Buckley Air Force Base and had an opportunity to have a frank discussion with a panel of enlisted wounded warriors and their spouses. The Task Force also discussed encroachment, military readiness and increased utilization of the National Guard. One of the concerns is the post-911 GI bill benefits for National Guard personnel on Title 32 orders. While the regular forces on duty under Title 10 receive these benefits, National Guard personnel under Title 32 do not. It is believed this is unfair and an oversight for people fighting in similar situations. Senator Van de Putte then moved for the approval of a policy statement dealing with this issue. The Executive Committee approved the adoption of the resolution addressing Post 9/11 benefits for National Guard personnel on duty under Title 32. (Attachment 1 to minutes.) OTHER TASK FORCE REPORTS There were no reports from the Task Forces on Energy Supply, Federal Education Policy, Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, School Drop-Out Prevention, and Sustainability (Energy and Climate Change). REPORT FROM THE WORKING GROUP ON POLICY PROCESS AND THE STANDING COMMITTEES Speaker Norelli noted that the group had had three meetings. The group was asked to review the process that NCSL uses when it considers and adopts policy, particularly at the annual business meeting. The group was also asked to take on two other tasks: the number of meetings over the course of the year where committees actually take votes on policy (currently the Spring and Fall Forums) and to review the standing committee structure. Speaker Norelli called the committee s attention to the letter that had been sent to all legislative leaders outlining the recommendations that were being made. Only one legislative leader responded and that response expressed agreement with the recommendations. The group has developed recommendations for changes to rules and bylaws that would implement the proposed changes. The group believes that NCSL should maintain the current meeting schedule. It did look at other options and thought that the attendance was down because of the economy and now is not the time to make changes. The group also thinks the current committee structure should remain for the next two years. The group had one other recommendation and that is the establishment of a new Structure and Policy Development Subcommittee under the Executive Committee. This

5 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 5 subcommittee would be charged with reviewing standing committee structure and how NCSL develops policy positions. In particular this subcommittee should be asked to consider the Energy, Agriculture and Environment Committee structure. Many states, particularly agricultural states, feel that agricultural policy is not highlighted as much as they would like. Senator Starr thanked the members of the working group and noted that the recommendations had been reached on a consensus basis. He noted that the working group had been created primarily as a result of the issues that arose in the Philadelphia meeting as related to health policy. The primary change that addresses that issue is the recommendation to change the bylaws where the vote for passage of policy statements shifts from three-quarters of the member jurisdictions present and voting to three-quarters of the member jurisdictions responding to the quorum call. Senator Starr feels strongly that everyone should know the rules and that the rules should be enforced. Senator Moore moved for the adoption of the recommendation for bylaws and rules changes to the full membership. The Executive Committee approved the recommendation to present the bylaws and rules changes to the full membership. (Attachment 2). Senator Moore then moved to endorse the recommendations of the working group to establish the new subcommittee that will work on further development of the policy and process. The Executive Committee approved the recommendation to establish a new Subcommittee on Structure and Policy Process Development. REPORT ON STATE-FEDERAL ACTIVITIES Molly Ramsdell noted that the Washington office has been very busy since the last Executive Committee meeting. NCSL continues to push for Congress to provide states an additional six months of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) enhanced match. Passage of this legislation has been stalled, complicated by the fact the cost is estimated to be $200 billion with only about $60 billion being offset. Many members of Congress feel there needs to be more offset in the legislation. There is a link on the NCSL home page, which is updated frequently, showing the status of the Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (FMAP) extension. This legislation also contains $2.5 billion for a one year extension of the ARRA and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) contingency fund. NCSL continues to provide technical assistance and is developing resources for state legislatures that includes conference calls, a series of webinars, and numerous fact sheets. The NCSL website is being redesigned to make information more accessible for legislators and legislative staff.

6 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 6 NCSL is conducting a special health summit on July 25 as part of the Legislative Summit. With respect to health care reform, NCSL is creating a group of legislators and legislative staff to serve as an advisory board on activities related to implementation of health care reform. NCSL is working diligently with Congress on introduction of the Main Street Fairness Act. In addition, we have been working with former NCSL President Congressman Jim Costa from California on introducing changes to the Unfunded Mandate Act. The Washington office is also working on other issues including financial services reform, child nutrition, immigration reform, transportation reauthorization and distracted driving, as well as working with the federal deficit reduction commission. REPORT FROM THE BUDGET, FINANCE AND RULES COMMITTEE Senator Moore reported that the current budget status indicates a reasonable prospect that NCSL will be in the black at the of the fiscal year. The proposed budget for FY 2011 is essentially a level budget, using the same basic outline of FY Senator Moore moved for approval of the FY 2011 budget. The Executive Committee approved the adoption of the proposed FY 2011 budget. Senator Moore stated the committee had reviewed the revenue received from the various states many of them have paid in full, some have made partial payments, and others are still to be received. There was some discussion and staff was asked to do further research on what NCSL policy should be where states who are not fully paid seek services from NCSL. It is a reality of the fiscal situation in the states and full payment in every case may not be seen for the next year or two. The Budget Finance and Rules Committee reviewed the proposed dues schedule for Fiscal Years 2012 and 2013 and recommended approval of the scenario which does not increase dues in those years. Senator Moore moved for approval of that recommendation. The Executive Committee approved the recommendation to establish FY 2012 and 2013 dues at the current level. REPORT FROM THE PROGRAMS AND STRATEGIC PLANNING SUBCOMMITTEE Representative Neufeld reported that preregistration for the Legislative Summit is below average, but feels there will be sufficient registrants to meet our hotel confirmation requirements. The subcommittee also received a report on the focus groups recommendations. (Attachment 5.)

7 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 7 The subcommittee had presentations from interested cities for the Legislative Summit in FY 2015 and The subcommittee recommends that the Legislative Summit in 2015 be held in Seattle on August 3-6, and the Legislative Summit for 2016 be held in Baltimore. The Executive Committee approved the recommendation to hold the 2015 Legislative Summit in Seattle and the 2016 Legislative Summit in Baltimore. Representative Neufeld noted the subcommittee had received a report from the Trust for Representative Democracy. He called the Executive Committee s attention to the technical assistance projects listed in the agenda book and commented on the tremendous value of this assistance to the states. He reported that the subcommittee had also received a report on e-learning from Nancy Cyr. REPORT FROM THE LEGISLATIVE STAFF COORDINATING COMMITTEE Nancy Cyr reviewed the e-learning project. Through this project NCSL has reached a large number of legislative staff that might not otherwise be reached due to inability to travel. A webinar on writing for the legislative audience was conducted on April 15. This webinar reached 934 legislative staffers. From November 2009 to April 2010 eight webinars reached 1,706 legislative staff. It s a very successful effort. She thanked the NCSL Foundation for providing funds for this endeavor. In response to a question about whether the webinars were archived, she stated they were and staff who were unable to participate can take advantage of those archives. The Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee is sponsoring a volunteer opportunity at the Legislative Summit in Louisville. It s a book drive and is called United through Reading Program, hosted by the USO. (A short video was shown.) Ms. Cyr encouraged and welcomed support for this project. REPORT FROM THE STANDING COMMITTEES Judy Hall noted that the economic downturn and state budget and travel restrictions have caused many state and local organizations to report a 30% decrease in meeting attendance this year. Although attendance at the Spring Forum was down, it was only 7% below the attendance in Overall attendance was 551 with legislators showing a slight decrease and legislative staff up over the previous two forums. Evaluations were very positive; however, some members expressed disappointment that most committees did not have a quorum and were unable to conduct business. Plenary sessions were highly rated with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Energy Secretary Stephen Chu the primary speakers. The survey showed that over 71% of the attendees planned to attend the Fall Forum in Phoenix in December.

8 Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, May 22, 2010 Page 8 REPORT FROM NCSL FOUNDATION FOR STATE LEGISLATURES Speaker Hackney reported that the Foundation was on track to reach its goal of $1.735 million this year. There were 17 new sponsors. He called the committee s attention to the list of the Foundation sponsors and asked them to contact and encourage sponsorship of the Foundation by major civic minded corporations in their state that did not appear on the list. OTHER BUSINESS Senator Balfour stated the Legislator Nominating Committee would be chaired by Senator Steve Saland of New York. (Attachment 3.) Nancy Cyr reported that Pat O Donnell from Nebraska would chair the Legislative Staff nominating committee. (Attachment 4.) Meeting was adjourned. Attachments: 1 Resolution on Post 9/11 GI Benefits 2 Bylaws and Rules Changes 3 Legislator Nominating Committee 4. Legislative Staff Nominating Committee 5 Focus Group Action Recommendations