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 Emma Weiss, the Women Veterans Program Manager with the Minneapolis VA.
1. Federal Congressional Representatives
Senator Amy Klobuchar – Kurt Johnson
• Not present.
Senator Tina Smith – Alex Schueller reporting
• Not present.
1st District Representative – Jim Hagedorn – Joe Steck reporting
• Hagedorn has co-sponsored the VA Small Business Administration, signed onto the Blue Water Navy Veterans Act, Resolution 10, the use of the rotunda in Washington to honor the last Medal of Honor recipient from WWII, HR 1605 Education Savings Accounts for Military Families Act of 2019, the DOD letter funding prostate cancer research, and is looking into HF 344, the Chiropractic Act. He also signed onto HR 808, promoting access to diabetic shoes.
2nd District Representative – Angie Craig – Mike Siebenaler reporting
• Craig is on the Agricultural Committee and recently held a meeting in Wabasha on rural mental health. Nearly 40% of the attendees were veterans. We are starting up a group that will meet on a periodic basis to talk about mental health issues, how to get additional providers, and solutions beyond telemedicine.
Q. With the number of infrastructure grants going out, veteran owned businesses are at a disadvantage compared to other minorities. Will you bring this up to the congresswoman?
A. She is already looking into it.
3rd District Representative – Dean Phillips – Zach Rodvold reporting
• Phillips has signed onto HR 1830 the National Purple Heart Wall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act, HR 801 the Reserve Component Employer Incentive Compensation and Relief Act of 2019, and HR 613 the Reserve Component Select Improvement Act. Phillips has also already co-sponsored the Burn Pits act.
*Phillips spent time with the Guard and Reserve over the April recess at Camp Ripley.
*If there are any members of the 3rd District interested in participating in the Veterans Advisory group, please contact Zack Rovold. Initial conversations are underway.
Q. The Veteran Small Business Enhancement Act was passed in January, but there are issues with getting it implemented in practice. Will you look into this?
A. We will look into it.
4th District Representative – Betty McCollum – Connie Haddeland reporting
• McCollum attended and spoke at a sexual assault Stand Down undertaken by the National Guard for all of their key leadership across the state.
*A Service Academy Information Night was held recently.
*Hearings continue in Washington on Defense Appropriations.
*An updated bill list will be forthcoming at the next meeting.
*On May 13th, there will be a dinner honoring all of the upcoming Service Academy attendees their families, and liaison officers.
Q. Does McCollum’s appropriations seat have any bearings on what funds go to the VA?
A. She does not sit on the Military Construction And Veteran Affairs.
Q. Please inform McCollum that the 2018 Mission Act was an un-funded mandate. This is problematic moving forward.
A. I will speak with the legislative director. This should be brought to the attention of the Veteran Affairs Committee as well.
5th District Representative – Ilhan Omar – TBA
• Not present.
6th District Representative – Tom Emmer – Alejandra Henriquez
• Not present.
7th District Representative – Collin Peterson – Meg Louwagie reporting
• 7th District has started doing their own Service Academy nights, in addition to partnering with other districts. The first one was in Bemidji on April 11th.
*The 7th District will be partnering with Emmer’s office next week in St. Cloud.
*Peterson made several questions on the record to the VA secretary. The first question was about the skilled nursing homes and wanting to know when the department will be willing to update him on the status of the applications. The response was that the applications have been reviewed and approved for the fiscal year 2020 priority list. The second question pertained to the memorandum agreement with the VA and whether the secretary would be committing to accelerating the timeline between the grant decisions made by the VA when the state receives the completed memorandum agreement. The VA stated it is currently looking into ways to streamline the application process and will be working with programs regulations to find improvements. The next question was when could we expect to see the VA State Home Construction Grant priority list for fiscal year 2019. The VA responded the fiscal 2019 State Home Construction Priority List will be released to congressional members and governors of the state on March 22nd. The fourth question concerned toxins of war. The VA is committed to working on this.
Q. Because there are so many veterans in the farm communities now, the flooding has been devastating to the community. What is the Chairman of the Agricultural Committee doing to address this?
A. I am not involved with the Agricultural Committee, but I will ask.
8th District Representative – Peter Stauber – Margaret Cavanaugh
• Not present
2. Federal Agencies
VISN 23 – Andre Kok – Jason Petti reporting
• Introducing Dr. John Smyrski, the new Chief Medical Officer.
*We are currently recruiting for a Medical Center Director in St. Cloud. We are also recruiting for a new Public Affairs officer.
*There will be a number of events held in St. Cloud celebrating women veterans.
*We will have someone from contracting come to a UVLC meeting and talk about veteran owned companies.
*June 6th is the D-Day for the Mission Act, coinciding with the 75th Anniversary of D Day. Each medical center within the network had to select a Mission Act Champion. There will also be training focused on eligibility, priority group changes, payments, how veterans can utilize their access, how to deal with complaints, and how to access emergency care.
*The Mission Act is there to improve the VA’s ability to provide high quality care to veterans in a timely fashion and build a more veteran-centric system. The Mission Act has over fifty sections. It will allow VISN 23 to partner with the community, though VISN 23 has done this in the past. We hope this will make things easier and more reliable than they have been in the past.
*Another part of the Mission Act will focus on caregiver support. This hasn’t been rolled out yet, but will be an expansion of the current caregiver support program.
VBA Regional Office – Kim Graves – Ron Woolery reporting
• The week of May 6th is Public Service Recognition Week.
*There are no new updates with the Blue Water Navy Veterans Act, but the VBA is still looking for veterans who applied for VA benefits under Agent Orange Presumptive in the past and were denied because they were classed as a Blue Water Navy veteran, and is asking those individuals to reapply.
Q. Are there any survivor or dependent benefits associated with the Blue Water Act?
A. That is still being discussed.
VAHCS Minneapolis – Director Patrick J. Kelly – Ralph Heussner reporting
• There have been a number of calls about the Mission Act. Community Care launches on June 6th. The caregiver program has received a number of questions concerning eligibility and we encourage everyone to review the current laws. The caregiver program does not currently cover neurological conditions for the Vietnam era. We have set up a daily incident command to respond to questions as they arise.
*The VA has many programs to help stop smoking. The smoke shack at the back of the hospital is being demolished as part of VA Directive 1805.
*VA Research Day is May 1st. There will be a noon address.
*VA Research Week will be held on May 13th through the 17th.
*There will be two more CBOC open houses and town hall meetings. May 15th will be in Hibbing, May 16th will be in Ely.
*Introducing Emma Weiss, the new Women Veterans Program Manager. She works to ensure there are designated women’s health providers and PACT teams at every CBOC, and that women veterans have opportunities for continuing education in women’s health, especially specific to treatment guidelines and best practices.
*Women’s health is unique to the VA because it crosses service lines. We provide primary care to women, but also provide maternity services, infertility, breast care, gynecology specialists, and military sexual trauma services. Current initiatives include working to address sexual assault response within the VA center and dealing with harassment within the VA.
*The center is also working to reach women veterans who are currently not enrolled in the VA. There will be a table in the flag atrium for every day during the upcoming Women’s Health Week (May 13th through May 17th). Each day will highlight a different area of service.
Q. Concerning the Rochester VA clinic relocation, are they going to add a section for women’s programs?
A. The Rochester CBOC will be opening on July 22nd after renovations are complete. There will be space for expanded women’s programs, but I currently have no details.
St. Cloud VA HCS – Interim Director Heath Streck – Dave Hintgen
• Not present.
Ft. Snelling Cemetery – John Knapp reporting
• Preparations are underway for Memorial Day.
*On May 2nd at 5:00 PM, there will be a short Carry the Load ceremony where a plaque will be dedicated to the organization. Carry the Load is a partnership the National Cemetery Association has made. Carry the Load is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing active and meaningful ways to honor and celebrate the sacrifices made by our nation’s heroes; military veterans, first responders, and their families.
*The Memorial Day ceremony will begin at 10:00 AM. There will be a flyover. The guest speakers will be a Korea war veteran and Major General Jody Daniels, the commanding general of the 88th Readiness Division at Ft. Snelling.
*The Flags for Ft. Snelling will follow the Memorial Day ceremony.
*Doors Open Minneapolis will be held on May 18th and 19th. The event allows tours of historical public buildings. Ft. Snelling is one of the sites.
*The National Cemetery Administration is opening two new cemeteries in North Dakota. Dates are unknown. One will be north of Fargo. The goal is to have veterans buried within 75 miles of their homes and to ensure the NCA has reasonable open space for most of the nation’s veterans.
Q. Are you still doing Saturday burials?
A. We conducted a study on Saturday burials for 18 months. The study has been completed. It is unclear if we will continue to offer Saturday burials in the future. We expect an answer within 30 days.
3. State Agencies and MN Veteran Assistance Organizations
MN Department of Veteran Affairs – Jerry Kyser reporting
• Legislative Update:
*The Disabled and Deceased Veterans Homestead Market Value Exclusion Value has eliminated the eight year window.
*The Airport Armed Forces Center Remodeling Appropriation of $100,000 was approved.
*Veterans Courts Preference Hiring Establishment has been referred to the Military Affairs and Conference Committees.
*Retirement Pay Income Tax Subtraction Extension has been expanded.
*Domestic Abuse Programs for Veterans and their Families has been appropriated.
*The Minneapolis Veterans Home Extension for non-state contributions allowed.
*Sentencing Veterans for Criminal Offenses Related to Service Connected Disorders. We are hoping to expand this program to other counties.
*The Veterans Voices on Public Radio appropriation.
• The MN Humanities Center Veterans Voices appropriation.
*Allowing Veterans to Use Alternative IDs for Fish and Game Licenses. This has been killed.
*The press release for the support SOT license plate fund has been sent out. $15 will go to the state of MN, $15 goes to the Department of Veteran Affairs.
*Fishing For Life was awarded $20,000 for their program. Middle Rivers Veterans Outdoors received $20,000. The Region Five Development Commission, which is trying to gather numbers of veterans in the agricultural community to develop a food program and teach survival schools, was put together with the Department of Agriculture and the state of MN.
*23rd Veterans is a rehabilitation program that received nearly $90,000 for veterans with PTSD to participate in an Outward Bound program.
*Honor Flight Twin Cities was awarded $50,000 for the last flight.
*There is no set time for the next MAG meeting.
*The next Honor Flight will be on November 2nd.
American Legion – Andrew Peters reporting
•
MN Military Affairs – Jon Jensen – Director Brian Winter reporting
• Congressman Philips was given a congressional orientation of Camp Ripley on April 25th.
*There was a sexual assault prevention Stand Down on April 25th. Congresswoman McCollum was a speaker at that event.
*April 27th was the fist combined MN National Guard Officers and Enlisted Association. The Commissioner of the Department of Veterans Affairs spoke, in addition to Representative Pete Stauber and his wife, Judy Stauber, as the keynotes.
*The senate’s State Governance Finance Bill, SF 2227, was recently amended. With this amendment, the bill supports all of the MN Military Affairs budget requests for the next biennium.
*March 20th was the Spring Yellow Ribbon Company Seminar at the Mall of America.
*On April 18th, St. Paul Community and Technical College was recognized as a Yellow Ribbon Company.
*The Chisago Lakes Yellow Ribbon Community Proclamation will be on May 4th from 1:00 to 2:00 PM at the Chisago Lakes Middle School.
*May 16th will be the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Bosslift at the 135 Infantry Unit Base in Mankato.
*The 147th Casualty Liaison Team 3 will have a deployment ceremony on May 18th at Arden Hills.
*EcoLab will be recognized as a Yellow Ribbon Company on May 22nd.
*There will be a Serving Our Troops event on May 25th at the St. Paul River Center. This will be happening concurrently in Kuwait and in St. Paul. The Serving Our Troops group will be serving stakes to the 34th Infantry Division that are forward deployed and at the same time, meals to their family members back home.
*June 1st will be the Welcome Home ceremony for the 851st Vertical Engineering Company in St. Cloud.
*September 15th will be the annual open house for Camp Ripley from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. The US Air Force portrait will be unveiled at the state veterans cemetery there at 12:00 PM. Anticipated attendance is approximately 3,000.
934th Airlift Wing – Col. Anthony Polashek reporting
• For a number of years, the C130s have been overtasked and out of compliance with the Secretary of Defense guidelines. Fully 1/3 of the unit will be deploying this year. The C130s will need to be replaced sooner than expected.
*There will be a new shooting range in our facility, which has been there since WWII. The current shooting range is not adequate to our needs. It will be completed by next spring. We are hopeful that some of the other buildings from WWII will be able to replaced or updated soon.
MN Assistance Council for Veterans – Jon Lovald reporting
• As of May 29th, the number of homeless veterans on the registry in Minnesota is 234. Thanks to some momentum from the governor and the newly appointed commissioners at MDVA, the list is becoming more detailed. In addition to names, the list will soon include information about how many two-bedroom units are needed and how many legal issues are expected to arise, etc.
*The next legal clinic will be May 14th in Minneapolis. There will be one in Duluth on June 6th.
*MACV will have a motorcycle awareness ride in Mankato on May 18th. This will be the second annual awareness ride.
*MACV will be featured the weekend of the 4th on American Heroes Outdoors on FSN. Links to the episode will be provided on MDVA’s website.
*The Metro Stand Down will be held on August 16th. The MN Twins will host at the new pavilion.
Minnesota Department of Transportation – George Castillo reporting
• There have been issues with recruiting veteran businesses. There are currently 160 veteran owned businesses registered in Minnesota. Many of them are unaware of the benefits of being registered with the state. Benefits include a 6% preference for veteran owned businesses in consideration for state contracts. On the other hand, the Disadvantaged Enterprise Program does not include veterans.
MN Humanities Center – Blake Rondeau reporting
• The Veterans Voice Award is in its seventh year. The requested funding is to take the award and do it at the Union Depot on October 5th. This year, veterans can now nominate themselves. Submissions open on April 3rd and will close on July 21st. The awardee will be notified August 15th or 16th.
*We will be hosting Warrior Writer Workshops around the state. There is a tentative date for Duluth on June 9th. May 16th for Minneapolis, June 8th in St. Cloud, and in July in Wynonna. There will also be one in Granite Falls in June. More information is available on the MN Humanities Center website (https://mnhum.org).
*There will be an educator’s salon in August for college professors. Facilitators will talk about what professors can do for reintegrating veterans in the academics.
Allison Alstrin – Project Got Your Back
• Not present.
Paralyzed Veterans of America – Todd Kemery
• Not present.
MN Military Museum at Camp Ripley – Randal Dietrich reporting
• We thank Representative Philips for touring the MN Military Museum.
*May 8th is the 100th Anniversary of the welcome home parade for the 151st from WWI. In honor of that anniversary, the museum has taken on the acquisition and restoration of a French 75 mm cannon.
*The last Vietnam War Roundtable will be happening on May 20th at Concordia University. Roundtables will resume in September. More information can be found at (mnvietnam.org).
*There are several funding requests underway to expand the reach of the museum, both to support the General Vessey Legacy and launch a comprehensive, statewide survey and story gathering on the Global War on Terror in anticipation of the 20-year anniversary in 2021.
Veterans For Peace – David Cooley reporting
• Concerning veteran suicides, there is an independent nonprofit, the Joint Commission, that tracks 21,000 healthcare organizations throughout the country. They have noted the suicide rate of VA centers is below that of the private sectors. It has dropped 80% since the VA has put more emphasis on suicide prevention.
*Vets for Peace has put together a letter to Representative Takano.