NV Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities (NGCDD) Legislative Committee Meeting Minutes from November 9, 2016

Tele-Conference
NV Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities
896 W. Nye Ln., STE 202
Carson City, NV 89703

Special Notes

· All items reviewed during this meeting are available for view on the NGCDD website; under the event created for this meeting: www.nevadaddcouncil.org

· Bolded text under a heading indicates an action taken by the NGCDD.

Introductions

Committee Members Present: Renee Portnell, Committee Chair; Jack Mayes; and Russell Lehmann

Committee Members Absent: Brian Patchett and Lisa Bonie

NGCDD Staff Present: Sherry Manning, Executive Director; Kari Horn, Projects Manager; and Jessica Banes, Executive Assistant

Guests Present: None

Call to Order

Meeting was called to order by Legislative Committee Chair, Renee Portnell at 1:32 PM.

Executive Assistant, Jessica Banes verified that the agenda for this meeting was posted to the appropriate locations on Wednesday, November 2, 2016.

Public Comment

None.

Approval of Minutes from the August 2016 Meeting

Jack Mayes made a motion to approve the minutes from the August 10, 2016 meeting as written. Russell Lehmann seconded the motion, and the motion passed unanimously.

Discussion on Intellectual/Developmental Disability Issues at the State and National Level

Sherry Manning, Executive Director of the NGCDD; and Jack Mayes with the Nevada Disability Advocacy and Law Center (NDALC) led a discussion on current initiatives at the State and National level, which may have an impact on persons with intellectual/developmental disabilities. The discussion points were as follows:

· Jack Mayes:

o Discussed the outcome of the elections:

§ Donald Trump is the President-Elect. Mr. Mayes discussed the impact that the change in presidency will have on appointed federal positions; as each new president generally brings in their choice of staff. Aaron Bishop currently serves as the Commissioner for the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD), and his position is one that will be included in the change.

§ Between now and January, Congress will need to pass budgets for the upcoming year, and they will work on passing Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis.

§ Nevada Senate is now democratic controlled after the elections.

o Nevada Legislature is coming up:

§ Governor Sandoval released the State agency budgets. Richard Whitley, Director of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) gave an overview of the budget for DHHS (see handout).

§ Nevada Disability Advocacy and Law Center (NDALC) is following some Bill Draft Requests.

· Sherry Manning:

o State agencies were directed to put together their budgets with a 5% decrease; however, with the marijuana bill passing, there is a possibility that cuts could be prevented.

o President-Elect, Donald Trump is proposing to repeal Obama Care, which could possibly have an effect on the monies needed for Medicaid expansion.

o New President Elect could have an impact on the 2019 budgets.

o December 10th is the due date for personal Bill Draft Requests (BDR). NGCDD, Vocational Rehabilitation, and Aging and Disability Services Division (ADSD) are working on a BDR with Assemblyman Mike Sprinkle. The BDR contains a mandate for employers to hire first from the 700-hour Program. Mrs. Manning gave an overview of what the 700-Hour Club is. Sally Ram with ADSD is working on the verbiage, and Assemblyman Sprinkle is working to get the BDR approved by analyst and legal.

o Commission on Services for Persons with Disabilities (CSPD) discussed bills on hearing impaired and interpreters at their last meeting.

o Passage of tax exemption on durable medical equipment will take one more vote to make it official.

Public Comment

None.

Next Meeting Date

The date of the next Legislative Committee meeting is to be determined. Currently, the Committee is scheduled to meet next on Wednesday, February 8, 2017 at 1:30 PM; however, due to NV Legislature beginning in February, the Committee will likely need to meet in January. Staff will send out dates to see what will work for everyone. NGCDD and NDALC Staff will begin reviewing Bill Draft Requests that could potentially impact people with I/DD.

Adjournment

Renee Portnell, Committee Chair called the meeting adjourned at 1:54 PM.

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