The 2024 legislative session starts on Monday, February 12. Together with disabled leaders, self-advocates, parents and family members, coalition partners, and other allies, we will work to advance policy solutions that create positive systems and social change. Through public policy work, we can:
Our 2024 policy goals cover five main areas:
These are called Social Determinants of Health. Building our agenda around the Social Determinants of Health shows how different policy issues are connected as they impact the lives of people with disabilities.
Here is the 2024 legislative agenda that was created by our Public Policy Committee and passed by the Board of Directors:
You can review our full legislative agenda and learn more here.
Do you want to get involved and support our advocacy work this session? Join The Arc Minnesota Capitol Connectors Teams!
To get involved, you will want to find out who represents you in the Minnesota State House of Representatives and Minnesota Senate. Enter your home address into this District Finder to learn more about your legislators.
In addition to the policy goals in our legislative agenda, The Arc Minnesota has a support agenda. Support agenda items are those led by other advocacy organizations, service providers, or coalition partners who we work closely with.
Our 2024 Support Agenda is still being developed. Check out our Support Agenda from 2023 to learn more about what we worked in partnership with others to advance at the Capitol.
In collaboration with our key partners, The Arc Minnesota supports legislative proposals that will positively impact Minnesotans with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This is not a complete list of proposals The Arc will monitor and support.
Download a copy of the 2023 Support Agenda (English PDF)
A critical and years-long shortage in the workforce of disability support professionals has real impacts on the lives of Minnesotans who have disabilities. Changing demographics, low reimbursement rates, and inadequate wages create instability for disabled people and providers alike. We support legislation that aims to improve Personal Care Assistance (PCA) / Community First Services and Supports, homecare programs, and other disability waiver services through rate, wage, and benefits increases as well as other innovative solutions and improvements.
Parents and spouses who provide full time support for individuals accessing the Consumer Directed Community Supports (CDCS) option of the waiver should have access to benefits that ensure stability for them and their family. We support efforts to ensure these individuals can access retirement, disability, and unemployment benefits.
Building on the 2020 guardianship reform bill, and efforts to promote less restrictive alternatives to guardianship, we support legislation that would fund grants to invest in organizations and projects statewide to help people establish SDM in their own lives.
Income and asset limits for MA perpetuate poverty for people with disabilities. We support changes to income limits for people with disabilities accessing MA.
Families report that the number of schools withholding or delaying recess as a form of punishment is on the rise. Exclusionary practices and punishment in schools leads to long-term harm for students with disabilities. We support the prohibition on withholding or delaying recess as form of punishment.
Currently, seniors age 62+ in Minnesota can take college courses at a rate of $25 – $75 per credit at any Minnesota State college. We support the expansion of those credit rates to any individual who accesses disability services, so that postsecondary education is more accessible to people with disabilities in Minnesota.
Accessibility barriers are prevalent in various aspects of life for people with disabilities. We support the accessibility package that aims to address barriers to the Individualized Educational Program (IEP) process for disabled parents of students with disabilities, sensory-friendly accommodations for public access spaces and large public events, and a workgroup to assess the accessibility of county and state services.