Report

Meeting at Building 9, VAMC Campus

• Call to order – 09:30, Invocation – Pledge of Allegiance
• Greetings: Recognition of visitors and guests
• Announcements – Jerry Kyser, Chair; Mike Rivard, Vice Chair Introducing Hilary Hernandez, the head of the Appeals Team for the St. Paul regional office and the supervisor for the outreach and congressional liaisons.
• Introducing Emily Hansen, the Assistant Chief for the Services division at the St. Paul Regional office.
• Introducing Amanda Drilling, the Public Affairs officer for the St. Paul regional office.
• Introducing Barry Platt, the field ops manager with the MN Veterans Employment Program.
• Introducing Lieutenant Colonel Jason Hull with the MN National Guard, who will be replacing Brian Winter as the Director of Government Relations.
• Introducing Chuck DeMann from VWF.
• Introducing Yogi Moutry with the MN Veterans Employment Program. He will be working as an outreach coordinator for Native veterans in MN.

1. Federal Congressional Representatives and Senators

Senator Amy Klobuchar – Kurt Johnson reporting

• Klobuchar is no longer running for president and has endorsed Biden. • Klobuchar has come out in support of the CVSO Act, which would provide more resources for CVSOs nationwide. • Klobuchar’s office will be sending a letter similar to Collin Peterson’s supporting veterans service centers in Minnesota and increase resources. • Research has begun on potential legislative items for the fiscal year. Please contact Kurt Johnson with proposals.

Senator Tina Smith – Alex Schueller

• Not present.

1st District Representative – Jim Hagedorn – Joe Steck reporting

• Hagedorn has been undergoing cancer treatment for over a year. He is recovering well. The office has been meeting with numerous groups and encourages others to come.

2nd District Representative – Angie Craig – Angelo Farigs reporting

• Craig has recently signed onto the Agent Orange Improvement Act and the TriCare Reserve Select Improvement Act. • Craig’s office will be conducting a Minneapolis VA hospital tour on March 6th.

3rd District Representative – Dean Phillips – Rollie Olson reporting

• Phillips recently signed onto HR 5516, the Commitment to Veteran Support and Outreach Act, the CVSO Act, HR 4574, the Veterans Right to Breathe Act, HR 2200, the Keeping Our Promises Act and HR 5610, which add to the presumptive lists of illnesses from Agent Orange exposure, HR 2953, the Aviation Incentive Pay Parity Act, and HR 5169, the TriCare Fairness for National Guard and Retirees Act. • Phillips also signed onto the letter from Chairman Takano to President Trump asking Trump to take action on ill veterans who have been exposed to Agent Orange. He also signed onto Collin Peterson’s letter requesting to expand veterans centers to rural Minnesota. • Phillips is also working on an issue raised by Scott Walker, who is working with the Coalition of Vietnam War Veterans, concerning burial rites for Lao veterans. We are looking to develop a bill that would give burial rites to Lao veterans who want to be buried at Ft. Snelling. • On March 6th, Phillips will be visiting MACV’s new house in Bloomington for the ribbon cutting. Q. Save Our VA and Veterans for Peace encourage Representative Phillips to oppose HR 3083, which would accelerate the Air Commission that was created under the Mission Act and that would review and shut down VA facilities across the nation that they felt were not adequate. A. Please come and talk with us further.

4th District Representative – Betty McCollum – Connie Haddeland reporting

• McCollum’s office recently received a document from the IRS congressional staff liaison concerning tax resources for veterans and current members of the military. Please contact Connie Haddeland for a copy. • An electronic copy of McCollum’s bills is also available upon request. • McCollum has also signed onto the letter supporting additional resources and veterans centers for Minnesota. • An information evening will be held on April 15th at Mounds View High School concerning the service academy nomination process. The event will be open to the public. Currently over a dozen candidates have received offers to attend the various academies. Three women have accepted their placements, two to the Naval academy and one to West Point.

5th District Representative – Ilhan Omar – Akolade Gbadamosi reporting

• Omar met with several members of the MN National Guard in DC in the last week of February, as well as several members of Save Our VA. • Omar is committed to supporting veterans homes and that housing is a human right. • Omar recently introduced a foreign policy package entitled Pathway to Peace, including seven bills concerning how the US can be a leader in peace around the world. She is committed to ending endless wars and taking care of veterans and troops. More information is available upon request. • This will be Omar’s second year of service academy nominations. • Omar also signed onto Congressman Peterson’s letter pushing for the expansion of MN veterans centers. Q. Please convey our gratitude to Representative Omar for her support of Save Our VA. A. I will pass the message on.

6th District Representation – Tom Emmer – Alejandra Henriquez

• Emmer met with MN Disabled American Veterans in DC and the MN Department of Veterans Affairs in DC over the last week of February. He will also be meeting with the VFW during the first week of March. Emmer is also looking into HR 5516, the Commitment to Veterans Court and Outreach Act, which will provide more funding to counties. • Emmer’s office has hosted more than fifty town hall meetings over the past year and will continue to do so in 2020. • Emmer also signed onto the letter to Secretary Wilkie supporting the veterans center.

7th District Representative – Collin Peterson – Meg Louwagie reporting

• Thank you to everyone who provided supportive quotes for the veterans center letter to Secretary Wilkie. We appreciate the fast responses so the quotes could be included on the press release. Since the letter came out, Meg Louwagie has met with Heather Bailey, the director of the Sioux Falls veterans center. Bailey and several others have agreed to support Peterson’s activities in southwestern MN. Peterson will move ahead with creating community access points located in the southwest MN and bringing veteran services to that part of greater MN. Moving forward, letters will be sent out to local CVSOs to ensure the community access points are put in the correct locations. • Peterson has been submitting questions on the record for the funding and timing of priorities for the new Minnesota veterans homes. He has also been looking into the proposed state cemeteries. Q. In the past, Peterson’s office was asked to consider supporting HR 701. Do you know the status of this? A. No, but I will find out. Q. The American Legion would like to thank Meg Louwagie for carrying the ball on the veterans center issue and we stand ready to help in the future. A. Thank you.

8th District Representative – Pete Stauber – Margaret Cavanaugh

• Not present.

2. Federal Agencies

VISN 23 – Ron Woolery

• Not present.

VBA Regional Office – Kim Graves – Ron Sackett reporting

• Information is available upon request for veterans looking to file Blue Water Navy claims, or what to do if a veteran filed a claim in the past and was denied. Separate information is also available for survivors and dependents of Blue Water Navy veterans. • The Blue Water Navy processing is going well. After the opening on January 1st, there have been only a few bugs that have since been worked out. The St. Paul regional office is one of eight processing centers nationally for Blue Water Navy claims and the sole processing center for pension and survivor claims. • The Military Times had an article on the Solid Start Project that VBA rolled out in January. The Solid Start Project is an effort by the VBA to reach out to veterans in the first ninety days after separation from the military, again at the 180-day mark, and again at the one-year mark. The program has been running for several months and feedback has been positive thus far. • In terms of staffing, the regional office is currently running at 100% capacity. Q. What are the turnaround times on the claims? A. I will have to get back to you on the specific times. A packet is being prepared at the national level for public release addressing similar questions and is due out any day. Q. What is the timeframe for certifying eligibility for the Blue Water Navy claims? A. The claims go into the national work queue and are prioritized as Blue Water Navy claims. The claims are then pushed out to the processing centers, unless there is another factor that moves it up the priority list such as age or homelessness. The first task at each center is determining eligibility. After eligibility is confirmed, the claim then goes to processing. If there is an issue during the initial screening, the claim moves to another facility in Salt Lake City that conducts research with additional resources. Q. Does your office have information on the process of pre-claims for character discharges? A. Yes.

Mpls VA HCS – Director Patrick J. Kelly – Brad Doboszenski reporting

• Vietnam Veterans Day is coming up on March 29th, though it will be celebrated on March 30th. There will be a virtual Vietnam wall of faces, a short video, and refreshments. There will also be a VBA claims desk and other resources available. • March is Women’s History Month. The I Am Not Invisible Project took photographs of approximately eighty women veterans, and these photographs will be displayed in the flag atrium. • The road construction on Highway 5 will begin on April 1st. There will be two phases. Eastbound will be closed from April to August, and westbound will be closed from August to October. Additionally, 494 from the airport to 35 E will be under construction as well at intermittent times. A website (www.aroundtheairport.com) will provide up to date information on traffic conditions and road construction later in March. • On March 10th, Dr. Megan Press will be named the American Legion Physician of the Year in DC. Q. In terms of the vacancies at the VA hospital, my research shows there are approximately over 300 open positions. The vast majority are clinical positions. What is the director doing to fill those vacancies? A. There are a number of issues involved in that. Hiring physicians and caregivers in MN is slightly more difficult due to specific legislative issues. We are working on it. Q. I understand another issue is that the pay for VA clinical staff is generally not competitive when compared to the private sector. A. Government jobs don’t pay enough across the board. This is a widespread issue. Q. Thank you for sending out the Blue Water Navy PSA to the MN Military Radio. Has anyone heard the radio add or seen the one on TV? A. No.

St. Cloud VA HCS – Brent A. Thelen, PhD – Barry Venable – Tyler Breniek

• There is a new acting director for Associate Patient Care Services, Breta Monroe, who started on March 2nd. The selection for a permanent position will need to be approved in DC. • We are in the process of adding a second floor for the outpatient mental health building and constructing the women’s health clinic. It should be completed at the end of 2020. • The 2020 Veterans Art Competition was recently completed.

Ft. Snelling Cemetery – John Knapp reporting

• Ft. Snelling completed approximately 5,000 internments in 2019 and is on pace to hit that number in 2020. • The Fargo National Cemetery is now open and has conducted approximately one hundred internments. • The North Woods National Cemetery will open in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The opening date is TBD, but will likely be in August. • The Memorial Day event is coming up soon. Flags for Fort Snelling will provide flags. The organization is always looking for volunteers and donations. • We invite any and all congressional staffers to contact John Knapp for a tour of the cemetery. • The construction issues will impact funerals and Memorial Day. • There are a number of on-site construction projects this year. Several maintenance buildings are undergoing renovations, the construction of a new interior handling building, and five sections of the 166th will have headstones raised and realigned. • There have been just over 73,000 total rifle salutes for the Memorial Rifle Squad.

National Finance – Joe Schmitt reporting

• We are in the process of hiring thirty new employees at GS5, GS7, and GS9. We are also partnering with VHA and VBA to conduct hiring fairs. The positions are for financial admin specialists and accounts receivable technicians. • Joe Schmitt and Jon Rychalski, the VA’s Chief Financial Officer, will be testifying before the House Veteran Affairs Oversight Committee on March 10th concerning HR 5245, the Shield Act. • A meeting was held with the national commanders and executive directors for the American Legion and Wounded Warriors in the last week of February. To ensure that veteran needs are being met, the VA is working with the House and Senate Veteran Affairs Committee. Some issues include extending the waiver window from 180 days to 360 days, providing flexibility with credit reporting bureaus, and increasing suspension of collection from thirty days to ninety days. • We also spoke on the Born to Battle podcast with the Digital Media Services Office in the VA outlining the purpose and goals of the Debt Management Center. • The National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs conference was held in the last week of February in Arlington to work on understanding the VA’s processes and partnering with other veterans service organizations to better serve veterans. • The VA Debt Management Center has proposed a $1 million initiative to expand access and information. If funded, it will be executed by the end of 2020. • There is an expedited line for VSOs and congressional staffers with a 24/hour level of service.

3. State Agencies and MN Veteran Assistance Organizations

MN Dept. of Veteran Affairs – Larry Herke – Ben Johnson reporting

• The first deadline for committee action on bills is March 20th. The deadline was pushed back a week due to the caucuses. • There are four policy bills MN DVA is currently working on: permission to offer dental care to residents, permission to operate the adult daycare at the Minneapolis home, some cleanup language for the MN GI Bill to make it clear that there are three distinct programs within the GI Bill and all of them can access the $10,000 lifetime limit available to MN veterans, and an opportunity to share data from the homeless veterans registry with partners to become more agile when opportunities arise for housing. The delay between getting a veteran’s permission to share their information has caused problems in the past. The four bills should be introduced to the House during the week of March 4th. MN DVA has also scheduled a meeting to discuss the bills with the Senate. • There are also requests in for capital and local jobs. MN DVA is working with the local legislature on this issue. • There is a projected $1.51 billion surplus in the budget, meaning there are opportunities to fund one time programs. MN DVA has several that could be considered and will be rolled out the week of March 12th for review when the governor rolls out his supplemental budget request. • Commissioner Herke and Deputy Commissioner Brad Lindsey both attended the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs conference. Ben Johnson was also in attendance for several days. Updates on the state veterans homes were given to several members of congress, though MN DVA is still waiting for the latest numbers. • The Redwood County veterans cemetery received funding from the NCA in 2019 and MN DVA is hoping to receive additional funding for it in 2020. One challenge is that the NCA has identified ten areas in the US that do not have any access to a veterans cemetery and their goal is to establish a veterans cemetery within seventy-five miles of every veteran. Because Minnesota already has three veterans cemeteries, a tribal veterans cemetery, and a national cemetery at Ft. Snelling, the coverage is considered comprehensive and securing additional funding will be difficult. • MN DVA announced their participation in the governor’s challenge to prevent suicide in a collaborative effort between the VA, the VA Health Administration, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSA), and a coalition of other states to develop suicide prevention strategies and best practices. MN DVA will be seeking additional funding from the legislature to expand the research to identify gaps and support existing groups and practitioners. • In 2019, MN DVA was able to place 536 MN veterans in safe and secure housing. There are currently 277 veterans on the registry. One challenge is that approximately 85 of those veterans are not eligible for HUD vouchers. HR 715 would address this issue and MN DVA strongly encourages all House representatives to consider signing on. • MN DVA spoke with Senator Smith’s office about introducing a senate companion to HR 715. Senator Klobuchar’s staff was receptive to the idea as well. • HR 715 would direct the secretary of Housing and Development to develop a program to address those veterans who are not eligible for HUD vouchers. Without the HUD vouchers, MN DVA cannot end veteran homelessness. MN DVA hopes to become the fourth state to announce a functional end to veteran homelessness and has partnered with several federal partners, including the Mayo Clinic and Homemakers and Home Healthcare Aid. Q. MN DVA’s staff was mentioned the NASDVA Conference, highlighting their competence and drive. A. Thank you.

MN Military Affairs – Jon Jensen – Lt. Col. Brian Winter reporting

• MN Military Affairs was in DC during the last week of February with Major General Jon Jensen and Colonel Sean Manke to visit the federal delegation. A number of topics were discussed, including the December aviation accident, DOD spending, the C130 program, • Investigations have wrapped up for the December aviation accident. The Army’s safety investigation was internal and the collateral board’s investigation results will be released to the unit and family members. The brief will be released on March 12th. • The DOD is reprogramming approximately $3.8 billion in the defense budget. Of that, 34% will come out of the Reserve component. $392 million will come out of the C130J Program, which directly impacts the MN Guard and Reserve. $100 million of that will come out of appropriation for Humvee modernization, which will impact the Army National Guard, and $1.3 billion is targeted to come out of the National Guard Reserve equipment account. • In terms of the C130 program, the Air Force plans to divest itself of all H-models in the inventory and replace some of them with C130Js, but the overall inventory will be reduced from 300 C130Js in the Air Force fleet down to 235. This is a reduction of approximately five squadrons of C130s that will impact the Guard and Reserve. There is some risk to the 934th Airlift Wing and the 133rd Airlift Wing. • MN Military Affairs has released a state bonding request of approximately $11.8 million for improvements at four armories: Rosemount, Marshal, Moorhead, and Fergus Falls. All of these facilities are in need of upgrading. • HR 5169, the TriCare Fairness for National Guard and Reserve Retirees Act, could impact National Guard and Reserve retirees who are eligible to retire early based on qualifying active duty service. After completing the qualifying service, a veteran can turn the orders in and begin receiving retired pay at age fifty-nine. Until recently, this did not include medical benefits until age sixty. HR 5169 aims to correct the gap. • The 34th Expeditionary Aviation Brigade deployed approximately 600 soldiers who were impacted by the recent Iranian missile strike. Several soldiers experienced Traumatic Brain Injuries and have been returned to duty. • The 135th Infantry based out of Mankato is preparing to deploy. A deployment ceremony date will be announced soon. • Annette Kuyper will host a State of MN Yellow Ribbon Action Plan Review with Grant County Mendota Heights, and Mendota on March 11th. • Great River Energy will host the spring Yellow Ribbon Company seminar in Maplewood Grove on April 22nd. More details will be forthcoming. MN Assistance Council for Veterans (MACV) – Neal Loidolt – Shaun Riffe reporting • Of the 279 veterans on the MN homeless veterans registry, over 100 are currently holding vouchers. • MACV met in the last week of February with the Family Housing Fund, which partners with a number of different agencies. • There will be a ribbon cutting with Lennar and the Housing First Foundation on March 6th at 1:00 PM in Bloomington for MACV’s newest transition home. • There will be an open house from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM with the clients that will be living in the house on March 7th. • Upcoming vet law clinics will be held in Anoka on March 5th and at the VA’s Minneapolis campus on March 10th. More information is available on (www.mac-v.org). Details can also be found on the website concerning Homeless Day on the Hill on March 11th and Veterans Day on the Hill on April 20th. • The next Stand Down is in development. Dates will be forthcoming shortly. MN DEED Veteran Employment Program – Raymond Douha reporting • MN DEED is paid for by a grant from the US DOL called Jobs for Veterans Take Rent. Our deepest thanks to MN DVA, Veterans Affairs, MACV, and other agencies who have partnered with MN DEED. We are looking to expand. • There are fifty career force locations statewide. While MN DEED is focused on the Metro area, we do not want to forget about veterans living in rural communities and specifically Native American veterans. Yogi Moutry has been hired as an outreach coordinator to work with the eleven Minnesota tribes to provide services alongside the VA and other veterans groups. MN DEED will also be hiring another coordinator for Native American veterans in Bemidji within the next few weeks, in addition to a women veterans coordinator. • The RSV Program was developed to empower young service members with knowledge. Young service members who join the Guard directly after leaving high school are generally unaware of MN DEED and it’s hoped this will help them make more informed decisions after transitioning out of the Guard. The model will begin in MN and, if successful, would be pushed out further.

Military Action Group (MAG) – Jerry Kyser reporting

• The Honor Flights are looking for more Korea veterans to participate. • Vietnam Veterans Day is supported by the American Legion and the MN Vietnam Veterans Charity, which provides money for the scholarship. • The next MAG meeting will be on March 16th at 300 North at the state office building at 9:00 AM. So far, one bill in the senate, 3091, to eliminate the property tax on VFW, American Legion, DAV, and other public veteran properties. The House has not heard it yet. • On the state level, MAG is also supporting bills on high school diplomas for veterans from WWII and Korea who never received them, bill that would provide free license plates for Purple Heart recipients, and air medals for combat aviator. Q. Is there anything we can do about the gambling issue? A. We are supporting the bill concerning poll tabs, as is Representative Dettmer. This would switch the tax to be on the net instead of the gross and put the money back into the community.

Disabled American Veterans –Trent Dilks

• Not present.

MN CVSO – Greg Peterson reporting

• MN CVSO is seeking Republican support in the congressional delegation for HF 1516, the CVSO Act. This is a bipartisan effort to send funding into all fifty states to do work similar to what the MN CVSOs do. Many states do not have CVSOs. Currently there are more Democrats on the bill than Republicans. • A dozen CVSOs went to Washington during last week of February along with other veterans organizations. • MN CVSO is working with SnowGlobe public relations to ensure more people are aware of what CVSOs do and how to reach out to them. • Michelle Gatch retired on March 28th after eighteen years as a CVSO. A retired Navy chief has been brought on to replace her. Currently 77% of CVSOs have been in the position for less then ten years.

Vets for Peace – Jeff Roy – Arlys Herem reporting

• Vets for Peace was also in Washington over February, with twenty-two members from fourteen states and other guests. The group sent a day and a half on the hill and visited thirty-three representatives, including most veterans committee members. Vets for Peace advocated for fully funding and staffing the VA, reinforcing that the VA is better able to meet the unique needs that veterans have. Additionally, having data from veterans in a centralized location will make it easier to get a big picture on issues like outcomes from Agent Orange exposure. Vets for Peace also believes the sense of community within the VA for both patients and staff is important to maintain. • Vets for Peace asks the MN state representatives to the House to support HR 701 to fully fund and staff the VA and to oppose 3083, which would speed up the Air Commissions Act. This is part of the Mission Act. The senate counterpart is 853, which would eliminate the Air Act.

MN Humanities Center – Blake Rondeau reporting

• Submissions are currently open for the Veterans Voices award. The event will be held on October 10th, 2020 at the Wilder Center. More information will be available on the website (mnhum.org/veterans-voices/award/). MN Humanities has scaled down the event and attendees will need to register beforehand. • MN Humanities has deepened their partnership with Ampers radio station to bolster the Veterans Voices award recognition statewide. More details will be forthcoming. As part of that initiative, MN Humanities will also be doing the Warrior Writers Workshop. The workshops will be held on March 23rd in St. Paul, May 7th in Mankato, June 4th in Rochester, and July 9th in Duluth. All workshops will run from 6:30 to 8:30 PM. MN Humanities hopes to host more workshops in the future. • MN Humanities is also doing the Hikes in Humanities program with the VA Mental Health services and the DNR. This will entail squad-sized elements of veterans getting together, reading literature, and sharing green space therapy. The DNR has stated they would be willing to do a retreat instead of a day program if there is an interested family. If you know of any families that would like to participate, please contact Blake Rondeau at (651) 772–4248 or at (blake@mnhum.org). The DNR would provide tents and training. MN Humanities is hoping to identify four to five families to participate.

Paralyzed Veterans of America – Todd Kemery

• Not present.

Project Got Your Back / MNME – Allison Alstrin reporting

• Work continues on establishing Project Got Your Back’s goal to a wider audience. Project Got Your Back was founded with the idea of coordinating the various veterans organizations in a more effective manner. • Project Got Your Back was founded by a 2013 Bush Fellow. The money was provided by August Bush from 3M. The grant was used to start Project Got Your Back. Several years ago, the founder’s previous employer turned into a foundation which then chose to invest in Project Got Your Back. The foundation has asked to remain anonymous. The funding provided several hundred thousand dollars to get the project off the ground. • Project Got Your Back is currently funded by the Bush Innovation Grant, the first veteran-related project to have done so. The project is not competing with other service organizations for funds. • Project Got Your Back has been working on an infrastructure project for three years. • The quarterly community meeting will be held at Torg Brewery on March 5th. In the past, over eighty people have been in attendance. • More information is available on the website, (mnme.us). • Project Got Your Back was asked by the federal VA to take and evolve a Veterans Experience Action Council, a national model. Project Got Your Back is partnering with the local VBA and VHA, as well as other veterans organizations to build from the existing Stand Down model and expand it out. Stand Downs will still exist within this larger event. The date is TBD, but the even will likely be held at Target field.

MN Military Museum – Randal Dietrich reporting

• The next Vietnam War roundtable will be held on March 16th at Concordia University in St. Paul. The roundtables are monthly, sponsored by the MN Military Museum and Twin Cities Public Television. • Concept drawings for the new military museum at Camp Ripley will be brought to April’s UVLC meeting. A $14 million dollar bonding bill is under consideration to build the new facility, authored by Senator Gazelka and co-authored in the House by Kresha, Eklund and Dettmer. The first exhibit in this new space will be an exploration of the post 9/11 experience. • MN Military Museum will be speaking about the proposed new facility on Minnesota Military Radio on March 15th. Additional media appearances will be planned for the spring.

MN Historical Society – Tom Lalim reporting

• The Historic Ft. Snelling Museum will be a Blue Star museum again this year, meaning active military personnel and their families can get into the fort for free. The fort will also be free for self-identified veterans and their families to attend. • As of right now, the plan is for work to begin on the new visitor’s center in May. The visor’s center will be in the cavalry building, which was originally built in 1904. Q. What is the status of the fort’s name change? A. That is unclear. Per the last update, the information was still being reviewed from the public submissions.

Veterans Resilience Project – Larry Johnson reporting

• HF 3427 and SF 3797 both concern making EMDR treatment available for veterans. • A pilot program in 2014 demonstrated the positive effect of EMDR treatment on thirty post 9/11 veterans and an established network of twenty-fived qualified therapists. Secretary Shulkin mandated several EMDR therapists in every VA, but this has since stalled. • The Veterans Resilience Project was started as a non-profit to expand access to EMDR treatment. The network of therapists is still active. Between therapists willing to work at reduced rates and a generous donation from a veteran, the project hopes to create adequate funding to establish the infrastructure so the organization can continue to grow and expand. Q. What happened the therapists mandated by Shulkin? A. The process is ongoing, but very slow. It has been difficult to train new therapists.

4. The next UVLC meeting will be on April 1st, 2020.

5. Business Meeting.

Business Meeting • As of February 1, 2020, the budget was $2,026.39. There were dues deposits of $800 and expenses of $150. As of March 1, 2020, the balance was $2,676.39. The budget was approved. • There are seven organizations that have not paid their dues. The Marine Corps organization has said their dues are on the way, the Military Officers Association of American has not paid, the National Guard Association of MN has not paid, Special Forces Association Chapter 20 has not paid, Veterans for Peace Chapter 27 has not paid, and Project Got Your Back has not paid. • A suggestion was raised to increase and formalize UVLC’s budget so the group can attend more events and have a greater impact. The MN Vietnam Veterans Charity has pledged to contribute some funds to the UVLC. Continuing to support the American Legion and VWF is essential to ensure these communities do not disappear. • The American Legion and VWF have expressed their support of the UVLC. Because the Commander’s Taskforce is not a 501C3, it requires unanimous support of issues. This makes it difficult to join a bipartisan organization like the UVLC. Continuing to support the American Legion and VWF is essential to ensure these communities do not disappear. • Jerry Kyser, the CVSOs, and the Commander’s Taskforce will be meeting before April 20th. Any bills that the UVLC intends to support on Veterans Day on the Hill should be submitted before then. • A motion was entered to support SF 1175 and HF 585, which would reopen Building 6. Senator Jerry Newton and Representative Rob Eklund are the leaders involved. The motion was accepted. • A motion was entered to support the bill that would provide high school diplomas for veterans who served in WWII and Korea who went in before graduating high school. The districts involved would pay for the administrative aspect. The motion was accepted. • A motion was entered to support HF 3427 and SF 3797, which would link EMDR treatment with the Lutheran Social Services of MN (LSS) out of the existing mental health referral procedures from CVSOs to LSS, which provide free mental health assistance. This is funded by the state of MN through the LSS Core Grant. The motion was accepted. • A motion was entered to support HF 3552 by Representative Bahner to give free license plates to Purple Heart recipients. The motion was accepted. • To be more proactive, it was suggested the UVLC could provide a list of dates at every meeting for when relevant bills will be heard and strongly encourage members to testify in support of them. This information could be included at the bottom of the agenda. It was pointed out that directing people to see the updated website or potentially something more social-media driven would have a more immediate impact. • Alison Alstrin suggested developing a more comprehensive communication strategy to mobilize UVLC members in support of legislation. Mike Rivard suggested following the example of the Minnesota Farmers Union, which has a political officer who handles similar issues. • It was suggested that a link to the House Veteran Affairs Committee and the Senate Veteran Affairs Committee be added to the email when the meeting reports are sent out, where the hearing times and pending bills are listed. There are issues with members who are not tech savvy, however. • It was suggested pushing for more state representatives to attend the UVLC meetings. • Alison Alstrin will take point on this issue. • A motion was raised to support the Air Medal license plates. The motion was accepted.