Report
Meeting at Building 9, VAMC Campus
Call to order – 9:30, Invocation – Pledge of Allegiance
Greetings: Recognition of visitors and guests
Announcements -Jerry Kyser, Chair, Mike Rivard, Vice Chair.
Introducing Tom Tshida with Congressman Lewis’s office.
Introducing Paul Groskreutz, president of the MN State Reserve Officer Association and director of the Air Force Retired Activities Office.
1. Federal Congressional Representatives
Senator Amy Klobuchar – Kurt Johnson
*Not present.
Senator Tina Smith – Alex Schueller Reporting
*Smith sponsored the Mark Takai Atomic Veterans Healthcare Parity Act that was reintroduced from the last congressional session. She was one of the original sponsors.
*In the senate, Smith sponsored the National Guard Promotion Accountability Act and co-sponsored the Military Justice Improvement Act. The latter would reform procedures for prosecuting serious crimes to include sexual assaults, which takes the unit chain of command out of the prosecution seat and the adjutant general into the picture.. Smith has agreed to offer an amendment to the NDAA regarding the relief funding.
Q. On the sexual assault bill, does anyone report on how many assaults happened in Minnesota?
A. There was a previous bill she signed onto that would inform the DOJ [but not necessarily the public or anyone beyond the DOJ].
1st District Representative – Tim Walz – Shawn Schoesser
*Not present.
2nd District Representative – Jason Lewis – Tom Tshida Reporting
*Lewis voted for and the House passed sixteen bills impacting veterans. Most involved the VA, including a bill to expand the Choice program. He co-sponsored a bill combatting veteran opioid abuse, as well as bills to provide job training.
*Lewis supported the VA Mission Act, the Military Save Act, and the VA Accountability Act.
*This week, the House is voting on the minibus, which will include military construction and VA funding. Lewis will be supporting this.
*The VA Mission Act has passed both chambers and is just waiting for a signature from the president. It extends Choice for one year to allow the funding and preliminary groundwork for getting the new program in place. Benefits will be expanded to all veterans and everything will be under a single community care umbrella.
3rd District Representative – Erik Paulsen – Margaret Cavanaugh
*Not present.
4th District Representative – Betty McCollum – Connie Haddeland Reporting
*HR 299, The Blue Water Naval Veterans Bill, came out of committee and is currently on the House floor. It is expected to be voted on in the next week. It is estimated that 90,000 to 100,000 Vietnam war Naval veterans will be impacted. It’s funded through a mechanism that puts a fee on a veteran’s home loan, the total of $350. Blue Water naval veterans will be eligible for presumptive conditions. McCollum is supporting this legislation.
*We are concerned that many of our constituents are suffering illnesses related to Agent Orange, but will wait to see how the current legislation plays out before acting further.
*HR 1279 and HR 5671 both relate to burn pits. HR 1279 concerns establishing the risk and requiring more accountability and action on the part of the DOD. We are encouraging impacted veterans to sign up with the Burn Pit Registry so there can be more accurate data and aid in treatment.
*McCollum placed a congressional statement related to the VA Mission Act, speaking to her reasons for voting against the legislation, specifically related to mandatory discretionary funding.
*We had a good Academy Recognition Night with our graduates heading to service academies.
5th District Representative – Keith Ellison – Mike Siebenaler
*Not present.
6th District Representative – Tom Emmer – Alejandra Henriquez Reporting
*The House passed the VA Mission Act of 2018 to reform and reauthorize the Veterans Choice program. Emmer supported this.
*Congress passed a number of defense related bills before Memorial Day, including the Veterans Opioid Abuse Prevention Act and the Homeless Veteran Reintegration Organization Act, which will authorize the creation of a program of the same name.
*The FY2018 Construction and Veterans Appropriations Bill will be up for a floor vote later this week.
7th District Representative – Collin Peterson – Meg Louwagie
*Not present.
8th District Representative – Rick Nolan – Rick Olseen Reporting
*The Chisago Lakes Area is beginning to have a Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Community and we had the opportunity to see Annette Kuyper speaking to them earlier this week.
*Our DC staff has requested that Congress Comes to You reach out specifically to veterans. We have added this as a commitment.
*Nolan continues to support HR 5662, the Volunteer Drivers Act. We think there is a good chance it will pass.
Q. Is there coordination between the House and the senators supporting these bills to get things done so there is equal support on both sides?
A. Whoever the chief author of the legislation is will be working with their counterpart in the senate and with the leadership to move the legislation along.
YMCA Twin Cities (Minneapolis) – Amanda Hooper
*Not present.
County Veteran Service Officers – Robbie Robinson
*Not present.
2. Federal Agencies
VISN 23 – Director Janet Murphy – Ralph Heussner Reporting
* VISN Director Janet Murphy retired on May 29th. Our director, Pat Kelly, is the acting VISN director. Jason Petty, the deputy director, is currently on travel. Andre Kok is ill. They have asked Ralph Heussner to speak on their behalf.
*Leadership is in flux at the moment. Positions have been posted.
*The Acting Director of the Minneapolis VA is Darwin Goodspeed. He is the director of the Sioux Falls VA.
VA Regional Office – Kim Graves – Ron Woolery Reporting
*For the first time in almost two years, we have a real Undersecretary for Benefits. Dr. Paul Lawrence was recently confirmed. We have a new Principal Deputy Undersecretary and there will likely be a few more changes forthcoming. We are beginning to see direction coming from the leadership.
*The St. Paul Regional Office Service Center is in the process of going through training to a RAMP station. St. Paul was selected to become one of those stations.
Q. Concerning the ruling about ambulances for veterans, is that impacting your world?
A. That would be Ralph’s world. If it is not covered by the regular insurance, the VA won’t pay the copay. But if it’s beyond what the insurance would cover, the VA would cover that.
Q. Now that you’re doing RAMP here, is that going to slow down the non-RAMP claims?
A. There will be no non-RAMP appeals at St. Paul. All the legacy appeals will be bundled up and distributed to non-RAMP stations.
Q. Is that going to slow it down because you’re hiring new people for RAMP?
A. No. Right now, there is no change in FTE. I will have better answers for you once we see RAMP in action.
VAHCS Minneapolis – Director Patrick J. Kelly – Ralph Heussner Reporting
*We are now holding community events at all of our Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs). Each of our thirteen CBOCs must have one public community event each year. This is in addition to our annual meetings.
*There will be an event on June 7th in Albert Lee, where we will be telecommunicating between our leadership and the people in Albert Lee.
*There will be a town hall meeting in Rochester on June 14th. This will be a tele-town hall. We will be contacting 4,000+ veterans and asking them to stay on the line for a one hour conversation with the VA. On June 13th, we will send out an alert call to let veterans know what to expect.
*June 27th will be our third job fair in the last two years. Currently we have thirty-five local businesses that will be on-site, prepared to interview veterans. Prior to the interviews, we have career counselors ready to help veterans with interview prep. It will be held in the auditorium.
*The American Legion National Convention will be held in Minneapolis this year in August. We have been asked to offer support. We will be at the convention every day offering integrative health techniques. A shuttle bus will be available for veterans who need it.
*A researcher at the Minneapolis VA last year drew a fair amount of positive media attention. She is a neuropsychologist looking at early indicators of Alzheimer’s using artificial intelligence and is looking for approximately 400 seniors to participate in a four year study. Please contact the VA research office if you are interested.
*For the first time in over 10 years, the number of unique patients at the VA has declined. This is significant because VA funding is due to the number of unique patients and not the number of hospitalizations or outpatient care, both of which are on the rise. In response to this, we are making an effort to identify eligible but unenrolled veterans. We have been approved to do some advertising and marketing toward this in the next few months.
Q. How many years was Janet Murphy here for?
A. She was the network director for eight years and was with the VA for twenty-one years.
Q. What is your definition of a unique patient?
A. A unique patient has been seen at least one time per year. This could be for a pharmacy visit, annual physical, etc.
Q. Are you in a position to talk about the relocation/expansion of the Rochester VA clinic?
A. Not really. We are looking for a larger space within Rochester and do not intend to move from Rochester .
St. Cloud VA HCS – Director Stephen D. Black – Dave Hinchen Reporting
*We are doing second-round interviews for our Director of Mental Health Services and hope to have the position filled soon. Our canteen facility is nearly complete.
*There will be a ceremony honoring Vietnam veterans at the Monticello Community Center on June 18th.
*The Mental Health Summit will be held on July 13th at the Resource Training Center at Sartell.
*We are waiting for the president’s signature on the VA Mission Act. It concerns construction, hiring practices, and consolidation of care.
*We have a small (less than 1%) amount of positive growth at St. Cloud this year. Most of that growth is returning veterans or veterans who were not previously eligible for care.
*We are sponsoring the next meeting at St. Cloud on July 11th.
Ft. Snelling Cemetery – Jerry Kyser Reporting
*We have just reached our 75,00th rifle salute.
Vets Employment and Training Services [VETS] – David Seay
*Not present
3. State Agencies and MN Veteran Assistance Organizations
MN Department of Veteran Affairs – Ben Johnson Reporting
*We are working with the Department of Economic Employment state agency to do a veterans career fair on July 18th. It will be held in the Earle Brown Heritage Center from 2 to 6 PM.
*The MN Department of Veteran Affairs just announced four grants from the Supporting the Troops License Plates. The proceeds are divided between the Military Affairs and Veteran Affairs committees. There are opportunities to apply for grants to receive financial support for creative projects involving veterans. The four recipients are the Community Action Partnership of Hennepin County, who will be using the funds to do case management assistance and rental subsidies for veterans and their families, Every Third Saturday Inc., who will be using their funds to provide case management assistance for veterans and their families who have made recent positive changes in their lives such as exiting homelessness or completing a mental health or substance abuse program. Freedom Flight Inc. received a grant to purchase mobility accessible hot air balloon baskets for disabled veterans. The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe will be purchasing a handicap accessible van to support bringing wheelchair bound veterans to VA medical facilities.
*After the large turnout, we will likely only open one grant application session per year. Previously it was open twice a year. The next open session will likely be open in November.
*The 90th legislative session has ended. There were some veteran related pieces of legislation that were included in the state government finance tax bill that were vetoed by the governor. However, a lot of veteran-related legislation that we have reported on over the course of this session did come through in stand-alone bills and had relatively unanimous support.
*The New Homes Funding selected three communities for a total of $32 million. The communities are Bemidji, Montevideo, and Preston. They each received a differing amount based upon what their community needs. All of these communities have identified sites for the homes. More information will be forthcoming. The MN Department of Administration, the MN Department of Veteran Affairs, and the MN Department of Management will be meeting this week and next to begin the process of collaborating with these communities to develop their application packets for the federal funding. There is a significant amount of money available at the federal level if the VA chooses to access it. There is an additional annual appropriation for the state construction program. The earliest that we could potentially see federal funding would be 2021.
*We will continue to do campus planning at Minneapolis. We are not done assessing our needs in the Metro area. We are trying to determine how best to address the Hastings domiciliary, the Minneapolis domiciliary, and the Minneapolis home and we continue our commitment to serving all veterans.
*Concerning the bridge: we are working with the contractor to finalize the assessment of the additional issues that were identified at the final inspection.
*MDVA was successful in our Asset Preservation request. This will address major repairs at some of our existing veterans homes. We requested $31.1 million and were appropriated $9 million. This is the largest lump sum of asset preservation we have ever received.
*In total, the legislature appropriated between this year and last totaled nearly $2 billion.
*We have three new designations: the Purple Heart County designation, June 29th as General June Vessey Day, and July 16th will be Atomic Veterans Day in Minnesota. The official signing ceremony will be forthcoming.
*In legislative issues, there have been some statutory changes to the MN GI Bill. We added some additional language last year and there was confusion about the new permissible uses. We were able to get that clarified and passed by both chambers.
*Currently the Assignment of Military Payer Benefits prohibits individuals from attempting to lend veterans or their beneficiaries money in exchange for the rights to their pay or benefits. This is against federal law but Minnesota didn’t have any laws on the books or ways to penalize someone who took advantage of that. We successfully moved this through the legislature.
*There was no special session.
*Primaries are August 14th.
Q. What is the total pool of money involved with these license plate grants?
A. It varies from year to year. The amount is dependent on how many of the license plates are sold. The distribution this time around was $250,000 of grants. $90,000 to Community Action Partnership, $100,000 to the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, $37,500 for Freedom Flight Inc, and $50,000 for Every Third Saturday Inc. The grants are available from $1,000 to $100,000.
Q. Do the administrative fees come of that money?
A. We are authorized to utilize the funds to administer, but we have a full time grants manager who works with us through the VA. I am not sure about the particulars.
MN National Guard – Director Brian Winters Reporting
*Concerning the legislative session, one of the policy initiatives that made it through was granting authority to the Adjutant General to order (with their consent) serving and retired members to duty to support armory rentals at the expense of renter. This streamlines the process and expands the pool of potential armory workers for these events.
*One policy proposal that failed to advance on the state side, though it passed on the House, protected military training mission of the agency by preempting the authority of local governments to impact military training activities that conflict with local ordinances. We will continue to pursue this proposal.
*In terms of bonding, six of our eight requests were funded to $13 million. All of these were related to armory renovations. All of the grants that get state funding will get matching federal dollars.
*We are looking at a little over $10 million in our remaining needs for the next bonding session.
*In May we hosted Congressman Emmer and his wife for a tour of Camp Ripley, as well as several information briefings.
*Congressman Nolan’s office hosted an event on Camp Ripley on May 30th, Congress Comes to You, to discuss military and veteran issues.
*Two units are getting ready to deploy. Charlie Company of the 211 General Support Aviation Battalion in St. Cloud will have a ceremony on June 15th is at 10 AM. Senator Smith will be in attendance. June 16th will be the event for the 147 Financial Management Support Detachment. Their deployment ceremony will be in the Arden Hills training center at 2 PM. Senator Smith and Representative McCollum will be in attendance. Both of the units will be deploying to southwest Asia.
*We are currently interviewing for three Yellow Ribbon regional outreach coordinators in Camp Ripley, Mankato, and Cottage Grove. Those interviews are happening this week.
*There are two new Yellow Ribbon companies: Central Lakes College in Brainerd and Replenex in Eden Prairie. Initial kickoff meetings are scheduled for next week.
*We are watching the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program. The funding for that program comes from the DOD, then the National Guard bureau, then out to armories and training facilities across the country. This allows Camp Ripley to purchase or lease development rights of land all around the training ground border, preventing development up to the Camp Ripley border. The issue concerns the definition of what is considered an “installation”; there have been issues with real-estate attorneys. We are hoping this will pass this week.
*The Advanced Turbine Engine Program is focused on repairing and rebuilding M1 tank engines and transmissions. The program is at risk of being divested as an additional operation cost and has saved Minnesota alone $6.7 million. Senator Moran from Kansas will be introduced an amendment this week to fix this on a statutory side.
*We are tracking the NDAA and are waiting for the Senate Armed Services Committee markup to come out. Several things we are watching: there is some new language that has come out to potentially impact our Title 31 dual status full time military technician users, and changing some of the language that would guarantee those people a Title 5 dual status position in the agency if they are separated for any reason. They are currently guaranteed a position if they are separated due to a military-related disability, but this would expand that. This language is concerning because it gives people who retire from the military or separated from the military due to disciplinary actions a guaranteed avenue to stay in the agency. This would present challenges and limit our upward mobility within the force.
Military Action Group (MAG) – Jerry Kyser Reporting
*The next MAG meeting will be June 25th at 10 AM in the state office building.
*We will be meeting with Anderson and Dettmer to figure out our next steps.
MN Military Affairs – Major General Jon Jensen, Annette Kyper
*Not present.
MN Assistance Council For Veterans (MACV) – Jon Lovald Reporting
*The June legal clinic at the VA Medical Center will be held on the 12th. There will be another on the 14th in Anoka. There will be another in Minneapolis on July 10th.
*The next Stand Down will be happening at June 23rd in Rochester. There will be a smaller event in Princeton on July 5th.
*The metro Stand Down event this year will be a one-day event on August 14th at the Target Center.
*MACV will be participating with AUSA for the Army Birthday event out at Lake Minnetonka.
*The Wall That Heals is being set up at the state capital, to be opened from the 22nd through the 25th. MACV will be there with a booth and assisting with volunteers.
*MACV’s annual Salute to Servicewomen Golf Classic will take place on August 26th.
*We have taken possession of the house in Hibbing, which was donated through a partnership with United Way. The goodwill from that house created a story, which was seen by another veteran who wants to donate her house to be used by other female veterans. A team is looking at the new house.
*We are in the process of locking down a location for the next Betsy Lenore House.
Historic Fort Snelling – Tom Pfannenstiel
*Not present.
Twin Cities Public Television – Jerry Kyser Reporting
*The Healing Wall was given $600,000 in support of the project. A flyover has been authorized. It opens on the 21st.
*On the 23rd, there will be a flyover of Vietnam era equipment.
*There will be a number of public television programs.
4. Announcements
*The July meeting will be in St. Cloud.
*National Veterans Wheelchair Games will be July 29th through August 5th in Orlando, FL.
*Aspen Dental is doing their annual Day of Service, providing free dental care to veterans and service members on June 9th. Please make an appointment. Call 1-844-ASPEN HMM for more information.
*The Commemorative Air Force will be putting on a show on June 9th in South St. Paul, Fleming Field Airfield. www.cafmn.org
5. Meeting in Recess for five minutes
Our next meeting will be July 11th, 2018, at St. Cloud. We will send you a map and directions. Lunch will be provided.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
Treasurer’s Report as of 1 June 2018
Balance as of 1 May 2018 $3,123.40
Deposits for May 2018 $100.00
Expenses for March 2018
Transcription Expense ($120.00)
Balance as of 1 June, 2018 $3,103.40
Submitted by Donald Rask, Treasurer UVLC
End of UVLC June Report
VISN 23 Newsletter – June 2018