Fixing Things

Keeping Up with Dave Fern - August 15, 2024

Here’s a confession. I didn’t vote for HB 872, establishing The Behavioral Health System for Future Generations Commission. There you go.

And yet, I am now a member of the Commission, a responsibility along with the Property Tax Task Force that has dominated my political life between legislative sessions.

The bill was introduced so late that the session was nearing the end. I was influenced by a Democrat perspective that too much power was vested with the governor’s office to reject (or approve) various recommendations of the Commission. If I had crossed paths with sponsor Rep. Bob Keenan of Bigfork, perhaps he would have given me a briefing and I would have voted for the passage of the bill. No harm done. The bill passed with a governor’s signature, and we find ourselves a year into an exhaustive study of the department within DPHHS controlling services for Montanans who have developmental disabilities and behavioral health maladies.

How I was appointed is an interesting story. During COVID-19, 13 residents at the Whitefish nursing home died prematurely. I met the elderly spouse of one of the soon-to-be victims while knocking on doors two campaigns ago. Agitated, he said to me, “My wife has COVID-19, she’s at the nursing home and they won’t let me visit her.”

The next day I went to the nursing home, and unable to enter, I left I note on the door requesting a meeting or phone call to better understand the situation. I followed up a week later with a visit to the constituent and he said, “She’s been transferred to Kalispell, and she’ll be dead soon.”

Sometime into the future, still stinging from this conversation, I called Rep. Keenan, a person I had a cordial but somewhat distant relationship with and asked if he’d like to get together and talk about nursing homes. I was unaware of the representative’s long relationship with DPHHS and his attempts at reforming a division that deals with mental health. The short of it being that we found a common concern and developed a friendship. Perhaps my name went into his cerebral Rolodex, but low and behold, following the bill’s passage, Keenan called with a possible invite. A few strings had to be pulled because I was a member of Tax, not a finance or human services committee. The magic of persuasion worked, and I found myself on the Commission.

There are $300 million attached to this bill, thanks to surplus money from last year’s revenue collections. That’s no small change in Montana! This money can be used for near-term initiatives (NTIs), things that already have infrastructure such as increasing group home beds. We’ve spent the commission’s cap of about $40 million for the NTIs and to date have found no resistance from the governor. There is $75 million reserved for facilities, improvement, purchase, and construction. There are reserves of about $60 million. Lastly, the remaining dollars are to be used for planning and implementing up to 21 recommendations to fix the system: from short-term crisis care, case worker training, tuition reimbursements, and peer and family training, to prevention and presence in our schools.

The cost after development is an additional $44 million to the base budget of DPHHS. Will implementation of the recommendations save the state money? We believe so. Assigned to staff members is the task of estimating the low-hanging fruit where savings are possible. How do we know if sustainable funding will be passed in a subsequent legislature? Will a governor’s office and a budget director support the spending? Will the state’s revenue collections continue to support such investments? And you thought it was easy being a legislator, predicting with a high degree of confidence such positive outcomes.

The next meeting for the commission is Aug 26 in Helena. We will take the advice and questions from a recent presentation to three joint committees, and we will hear the recommendation priorities from the Department. Once again, we will listen to input from our stakeholders: the providers and users of the system.

There is no going back. The system must be reformed. There are too many ill people in homeless shelters, detention centers, and young Montanans with complex cases who have been sent out of state for treatment and care.

I want Montana government to improve through a process driven model that removes politics and encourages trust and honesty among stakeholders, politicians and department employees.

Keeping Up with Dave - Thursday, April 25, 2024

Daily, news appears suggesting the performance shortfalls of Montana government agencies. Just yesterday we learned from an audit committee that the Department of Corrections had failed to deliver educational opportunities for most of the facilities inmates, contradicting the intent of recent legislation.

We can look at conditions at the state hospital, the medicaid rewinding process, skepticism towards the Public Service Commission, the animosity towards the state Supreme Court. The list is long towards displeasure of many essential government agencies.

I serve on the Behavioral Health systems for Future Generations Commission. The purpose of the Commission is to allocate 300 million dollars towards reforms for services accessed by our developmentally disabled populations and the wide array of services aimed to meets the mental health needs of Montanan’s. Perhaps the biggest faux pas I made was voting against the bill (HB 872), which established this forward thinking commission and one I would ironically be appointed to. It was a late in the session bill, I had too little time to consider so I followed the advice of the party. The bill puts final approval for the initiatives and long term plan to the governor, potentially problematic from the party’s perspective. To date, all initiatives for short term funding in the form of grants, have been approved. By late June, the Commission will have authored a long term plan for the governor’s office approval.

Our Commission which includes six legislators works well for several reasons. Members have been given “permission” to act in a non partisan manor. As we meet across the state, listening to providers and users of the system, we can objectively take in information, eliminating the white noise of partisans and organizations that profit from disruption. Said one Commission legislator, “I feel like I’m among friends and that is rare in those first floor rooms. It’s a nice thing to shoot for, but since term limits, it’s just not there anymore”. Secondly, we really like one another. When a meeting adjourns, individuals talk to one another. Said one member to me, “It’s so exciting to part of something where real change will occur. We’re actually making a difference” Relationships are deep and authentic. There is trust established between staff members and legislators.

Perhaps the 872 Commission serves as a model for government agency improvement. It reminds me of strategic planning over a twenty four year period on the school board I served. The board wanted to set realistic expectations, that were fiscally realistic and goals within the capacity of the organization. Most importantly, the board measured the results and tied it to an objective evaluation of our district superintendent. This is how government should work, but the public mostly hears about more newsworthy topics. Moving ahead, I want Montana government to improve through a process driven model that removes politics and encourages trust and honesty among stakeholders, politicians and department employees.

A full eclipse of the sun is like nothing else I witnessed before.

Keeping Up with Dave - Monday, April 8, 2024

A full eclipse of the sun is like nothing else I witnessed before. On August 20, 2017 I drove south to Jackson Hole Wyoming, specifically Wilson, Wyo a community in Teton County, a few miles out of Jackson at the base of Teton Pass. We lived in Jackson for several years in the 1980’s a decade before the population explosion, before the designation of wealthiest county in the United States had been bestowed upon it. I learned a job, an occupation that was transferrable to the Flathead. The occupation eventually leading to self employment; an unplanned career yielding a degree of financial stability. A house was purchased in affordable Whitefish of 1989. Our children were matriculating through the school system. Politics would come later, starting with the Whitefish School Board in the 1990’s eventually “graduating” to the Montana legislature.

On the morning of the eclipse, August 21, 2017, the village residents had opened their yards to what I recall as a sampling of a varied breakfast menu with an ample supply of champaign; a communal feast of good will. The excitement, giddiness and expectations were palatable from residents of all ages. I still get pretty emotional as I recall the lead-up to totality. It was a stop time moment of good will and reverence for something of such magnificence.
As I thought about this topic, I wondered what might have happened if totality occurred on a day when the legislature was in session. Perhaps on such a day when emotions were running high in trepidation of a bill that would break apart the body, with emotions that could not be controlled. The speaker of the day in the House then says, “We will suspend the floor session for 90 minutes and push forward subsequent committee meetings so members of the body and staff can witness outside the solar eclipse”

Totality proved to be greater than the differences in social or economic policy. For a while good will did prevail. Our differences evaporated enough to yield kindness, understanding and empathy. The political lines were blurred and we agreed to disagree with grace.
Lucky you, if you made it to Buffalo NY or central Texas for totality on April 8. Your life will be changed forever!

I signed up early to support Constitutional Amendments (CI), 126 and 127

Keeping Up with Dave - Friday, March 28, 2024

Last week the Flathead Republican Party endorsed two challengers vying to oust incumbent legislatures. It seems the incumbents were deemed too “moderate” and had refused to go along with a screening application process, a litmus test to party platform loyalty over perhaps the priorities of their constituents. The same could happen with my side as well so let’s not pretend that such political blood sport competition can’t extend (Here in the Flathead, the local Democrat Committee doesn’t endorse primaries and has no application process for a non-existent, phantom endorsement). Lets think about this logically. There are two players in the game for all political thought in the state and country. The Greens, Libertarians and Independents have a minuscule if not impossible chance for victory. While a platform is important it may not speak as clearly to the abundance of issues. And limited to two options, with the primary deciding the outcome in many locales, one can understand the zealousness of a bullying central committee. Democrats in Havre versus the needs of Democrats in Missoula. Different needs from the Hi-line to the dynamic and growing university city. The same goes for various legislative districts served by the Republican Party in the Flathead.

The story of the Flathead Republican Central Committee actions is the best reason I can think of to sign up and support CI 126 and 127. It allows for more competition and empowers a greater pool of voters making important decisions for now and the future. If in fact an individual who receives a gold star on their application best represents the district, then so be it.

“I’m Sending My Ballot In Today. I’ll Vote to Override.”

Keeping Up with Dave - Friday, March 22, 2024

I signed up early to support Constitutional Amendments (CI), 126 and 127. In the clearest of language the CI’s would allow the top four vote getters in a primary to advance to the general election and if the winning candidate doesn’t yield over 50% of the vote, a remedy such as a follow up election of the top two OR ranked choice voting OR any other remedy approved by the legislature would be enacted. Despite support, I was craving hard evidence that the initiative would reform politics while empowering more voters to make important decisions on the outcome of legislative and state elections.
Last week the Flathead Republican Party endorsed two challengers vying to oust incumbent legislatures. It seems the incumbents were deemed too “moderate” and had refused to go along with a screening application process, a litmus test to party platform loyalty over perhaps the priorities of their constituents. The same could happen with my side as well so let’s not pretend that such political blood sport competition can’t extend (Here in the Flathead, the local Democrat Committee
doesn’t endorse primaries and has no application process for a non-existent, phantom endorsement). Lets think about this logically. There are two players in the game for all political thought in the state and country. The Greens, Libertarians and Independents have a minuscule if not impossible chance for victory. While a platform is important it may not speak as clearly to the abundance of issues. And limited to two options, with the primary deciding the outcome in many locales, one can understand the zealousness of a bullying central committee. Democrats in Havre versus the needs of Democrats in Missoula. Different needs from the Hi-line to the dynamic and growing university city. The same goes for various legislative districts served by the Republican Party in the Flathead.
The story of the Flathead Republican Central Committee actions is the best reason I can think of to sign up and support CI 126 and 127. It allows for more competition and empowers a greater pool of voters making important decisions for now and the future. If in fact an individual who receives a gold star on their application best represents the district, then so be it.

You can watch the hearing HERE.

There was a very diverse group of supporters, Ranchers, County Commissioners, Conservationists and Environmentalists. The sponsor, Sen Lang, Malta, is the classic prototype of a conservative eastern Montana guy. He almost broke down in his closing remarks as he realized the significance of this bill in bringing people together.

Mike is going to lose his bill. After a very long delay, the highest court (the one that is often the whipping child of the right), ordered the secretary of state to send legislators the ballots to override or not SB442, vetoed by the governor on the last day of the session when the House was still in session but the Senate had sine die’d, gone home, finished business.

The bill envisions a transfer of Marijuana Tax receipts that would have gone to the general fund, instead going to rural county roads that specifically act as connectors to recreation and agriculture parcels. As Lang often reminds us, “Theres are a lot of gumbo roads after the spring melt” There are budget caps for our cities and counties. The half of inflation growth with limited taxable growth just doesn’t leave much room to fix the gumbo roads.

The governor does not approve of such a transfer. As he states in his veto letter, “Senate Bill 442 creates an illusion that the state will accept increasing responsibility for matters that are strictly under the jurisdiction of local authorities”. My friend Hamilton, the outgoing Rep from Bozeman says, “442 was what I thought legislation was supposed to be. A bill with many willing partners, all willing to give up something to get somethings”.

So, perhaps this is much bigger than spring gumbo in rural Phillips County. Many Republican had cold feet and will like NOT override the veto. Leadership need not be tone deaf. Soft skills matter. We’re squandering an opportunity to show our state something about collaboration.

I’m sending my ballot back today. I’ll vote to override!