1 LIGHTLY EDITED FILE VRS Staff and Community Partner Forum Vocational Rehabilitation Services Remote CART February 4, 2025 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. * * * * * This text is being provided in a lightly edited draft format, and is the work product of the CART captioner. Any reproduction, publication, or other use of this CART file without the express written consent of the captioner is strictly prohibited. Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) is provided in order to facilitate communication accessibility, and this lightly edited CART file may not be a totally verbatim record of the proceedings. Due to the live nature of the event, some names and/or terms may be misspelled. This text may also contain phonetic attempts at sounds and words that were spoken and environmental sounds that occurred during the event. * * * * * CART Provided by Jayne Carriker, RPR, CRR, CRC Paradigm Reporting & Captioning, a Veritext Company 612.339.0545 captioning-paradigm@veritext.com CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 2 >> Lori: Good morning, everyone. Welcome. We'll get started in about a minute or two here, so welcome. >> Lori: Good morning, everyone. Welcome. My name is Lori Thorpe, and I'm the director of contracts and partnerships with VRS, and we're so glad -- >> Recording in progress. >> -- to have you join us today, and yes, this meeting will be recorded, and we will post it on our website as soon as it's ready for distribution, so again thank you for joining us. And in the chat you'll see a link to CART captioning for anyone that would like that. There's also a link for today's PowerPoint in the chat. And we're going to have all questions today come through a Microsoft form rather than in the chat, and so please also see the chat for a link to that Microsoft form. And we're hoping to answer most of your questions through a PowerPoint presentation that we prepared, and I'm glad to welcome Dee Torgerson. She is the VRS director, and she's going to be kicking us off today as we walk through our information. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 3 So welcome, Dee. >> Dee: Great. Thank you, Lori. As Lori said, I'm Dee Torgerson. I'm the director with Voc Rehab Services, and good morning. I'm glad that you are able to join us today. So similar to what we're all seeing in the news about the state forecasts and also across other VR programs nationally, Minnesota's VR program, we also have some budget concerns. We continue to forecast a challenging year ahead. So we're here today to share the latest updates as we continue to navigate the challenges moving forward. So today we're going to do four different things. We want to provide a brief overview on some of the major budget drivers and trends that we're seeing. We want to share the latest forecast and projections with you. And we want to review some cost savings strategies that we've already implemented and some others that are being considered. And then as Lori indicated, we will save some time at the end to be able to answer questions that you may have. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 4 As we move forward into the year with plans to change how we operate to reduce our spending, I think it's really important to remember that why we operate does not change. We have an important mission to continue together. Serving our VRS participants remains our clear focus and purpose, and I so appreciate that in Minnesota we have strong community partners, and we have weathered storms together in the past. Our continued focus and collaboration is going to help us through these difficult times together as well. Go ahead to the next slide. So let's review the overall issues and funding challenges that we're facing. Due to the pandemic, VRS served fewer participants. That led to a surplus of carryover funds in federal fiscal years 21, 22 and 23. So will where did that surplus come from? That surplus is the unused money due to serving fewer customers during the pandemic, and it led to carryover where we only have two years to spend that money where it would have been returned to the federal government. You may also recall that at that same time we were struggling, and many of you were as well, with hiring enough staff to provide services following a long-time CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 5 state hiring freeze, which nearly led to the closing of all service categories. Now, we already had categories 2 through 4 closed -- excuse me -- for many years. And then in the years 2022 and 23, VRS was able to hire additional staff to strategically serve students and youth in order to help us meet the 15% spending preemployment transition services or Pre-ETS requirement that is part of WIOA, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. Rather than sending millions of dollars back to the federal government during those years, federal fiscal years 21 through 24, VRS chose to invest in participants, our staff, and our community rehab partners. So together we were able to successfully reach out to and serve more students and adults with disabilities than we had in the past several years. Now, let me explain a little bit about the difficulty with surplus or carryover funds in our federal grant. The federal VR program must use all of its funding within a two-year time period of receiving each award. They call that period of performance, so we're not able to carry over those funds indefinitely. VRS has always worked hard to invest any awarded funds CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 6 to directly serve Minnesotans rather than return those unused federal funds back to the treasury. At the same time that all of these things were happening, costs have continued to greatly increase including staff salaries and also increases in service delivery costs. One example of those increased case services cost is in the area of Pre-ETS. Now, we had our 15% set aside, that's the amount of money that we need to spend according to WIOA. And we were building up the program to try to meet that. And where we landed in building up that program in our staffing and choosing to contract out for those case services, we landed at a 29% spending in those Pre-ETS. So we've been working to stabilize these services, and we're looking for more efficiencies in delivering those services. Other case service cost examples in increases are for tuition, supplies, and assistive technology. The demand for services remains high both for students and adults, and as I said, we're now serving more students and adults than we have in the past several years. Despite the increase service demand and costs, VRS, we continue to be flat funded. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 7 We had anticipated a COLA, it's a cost-of-living increase, of 7% federally. All of the state programs anticipated that in federal fiscal year 23. We did not get that increase in 23, 24, or 25. Along with that, our state budget is similar to the VRS budget forecast, and so therefore our state match also remains flat. Minnesota is far from alone in this. There are many VR programs across the nation that are struggling with very similar budget challenges. As a result, we do anticipate low availability of reallotment funds. Those are funds returned to the federal program by VR programs, and I'll talk a little bit more about that later. And we anticipate a high demand for any available reallotment funds from across the nation due to that. Go ahead to the next slide. We've been working very closely within our agency and also with the Minnesota Department of Management and Budget, otherwise known as MMB, on our budget forecasting and planning. We've also been working closely with our SRC, the State Rehabilitation Council, and today we're bringing you the CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 8 most recent details in order to continue those discussions with all of you as valued partners in our mission. We have been actively seeking forecasting information about potential increases in resources. That picture has recently become clearer, and unfortunately based on state and federal budget projections, we do not anticipate there to be any increase in resources. Given what we've learned, we're planning on our budget to be based on flat funding. Of course, as you've been hearing in the news, the federal funding picture is still quite unclear, and we do need to continue to be nimble yet planful to potential changes or decreases in that funding. As you can see on this slide, approximately 80% of our VRS funding is from a federal grant. And we are regulated and funded within the federal Department of Education. So, again, that federal funding remains very unclear. The federal government needs to pass a budget by mid March or possibly extend the current continuing resolution. Impacts from recent decisions from the new federal administration are still unknown. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 9 Given the indications within the first two weeks of the new administration, I think it's prudent for us to plan accordingly and identify cost savings in order to preserve the future of services for people with disabilities in Minnesota. Go ahead to the next slide. So our fiscal forecasting for VRS is a moderate approach, and it's based on the factors currently known to us. These factors are listed in the slide, and they continue to be fluid. They include our federal fiscal year 23 and 25 -- through 25 federal award remaining flat at $47.4 million. Federal fiscal year 25, we do not project a cost-of-living federal increase. Federal fiscal year 25, it is uncertain if any reallotment federal dollars will be available, and we won't even know about that availability until September of this year. And then the same is for federal fiscal year 26. We don't expect an increase, and we are uncertain about any reallotment dollars. So we're watching these factors very closely. And as I've said, we need to be agile in our response in CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 10 order to protect the service provisions for those currently being served. We're monitoring funding shifts and meeting weekly to review and update our forecast models. For instance, if we were to receive some increased resources in the way of like a federal cost-of-living increase or some reallotment dollars, we could potentially move persons off of a wait list into services. On the other hand, if there are cuts to state or federal funding, we would need to implement further cost-saving measures. As it stands today, a state budget shortfall is forecasted, and the VRS budget forecast really mirrors that of our state budget. And then added to do that the federal administration change, and if week one and two of the new administration is any indication of what is to come, it is going to be a very challenging year. Go ahead to the next slide. All right. So this slide outlines the available funding since 2020 along with estimates for federal fiscal years 25 and 26. So as you can see, again, just the federal award and the state match is flat, no increases for -- we haven't had CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 11 increases for several years, and we are not expecting increases. I want to talk a little bit more about the reallotment funds. Minnesota's program services, we have benefited from reallotment funds in the past. Reallotment funds happen when other federal VR programs across the nation return unused funds, and then those funds are redistributed to other states who request and can use those funds. They can also be redistributed through DIF, Disability Innovation Fund grants. Additional unused funds are returned to the federal treasury. In recent years many states had unused federal funds and returned those funds. Multiple DIF grants were offered in the past several years, and this did create overall concern from the federal government about the VR federal program and funding. Many states who returned those funds were audited by RSA due to those concerns. As I mentioned, Minnesota has worked really hard to invest our federal funds, and we have not returned funds nor have we been audited by RSA for returning unused CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 12 funds. You'll see on the chart here that in 2023 we did not request any reallotment, and that really was due to the large carryover amount that was available from the reduced pandemic spending. We did receive some reallotment funds in 2024. We received them in September of 2024. And 5.4 million is the maximum amount that we could currently request due to current state match fund requirements. Now, again, we do not know if there will be any reallotment funds available or awarded for federal fiscal year 25 and 26. As I've mentioned, many states are facing similar budget issues as VRS due to flat funding and increased costs. Last year there was a much lower level of funds returned, and most states did not receive their full amount of reallotment funds. Most received around 13% of what they requested. Last year Minnesota was fortunate to have received the full amount that we requested. We do not anticipate that again for the next couple of years, 25 and 26. So, again, the overall amount of federal funding is not anticipated to increase, and frankly it is possible that CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 13 it could decrease. Go ahead to the next slide. So you'll see on this slide just the -- we wanted to be able to share the number of people that we are all serving together. The number of people that we're serving increased by 2,000 from program year 2020. That is remarkable and exceptional. Introductory career services, which are those Pre-ETS services to potentially eligible students, those are continued to increase along with the total number of participants served, and then of course the costs of all of those services have greatly increased. Go ahead to the next one. Here in this slide you can see the VRS case expenditures. Case service spending increased from 17.1 million in 2017 to 28.4 million in the most recent year 2024. Case service spending has nearly doubled since 2021. Job placement services, Pre-ETS services, training and tuition, those make up the largest part of case service expenditures. Our current financial forecasting shows that if we continue this spending trajectory without making any changes, we will not have funding to continue services CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 14 or operation of the program through the year. Our analysis indicates that VRS case service spending really needs to be at about $20 million for us to remain sustainable given our current grant awards. Unlike the state or federal government, we are not able to operate with a deficit. Go ahead to the next slide. Lori, I just want to do a check. Are you hearing me okay? Because once in a while I get a message saying my internet is unstable. So it's good? Okay, thank you. All right. So on this slide you'll see this is our forecasting model, and it shows the projecting of spending if we made no changes whatsoever. Based on those projections, we have already made changes, and we are shrinking that gap that you see between the expenditures and available spending. So just take a little closer look at this chart. That top turquoise line, that shows the rising expenditures in the VR program. Now, that's inclusive of salaries and benefits, operations, and case service spending. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 15 The bar chart shows the program funding. That includes the federal award, reallotment dollars, ticket to work program income, and state funding. So you can see during the pandemic the federal fiscal years 2020 through federal fiscal year 2022, the funding exceeded the spending. However, the past two years and the current year estimates show an increasing gap between that funding and the expenditures. And, again, that's if we were to continue on our same trajectory of spending without making changes. Not shown on this graph is the carryover funding from the federal grant award, and, again, that has to be used within the time following the fiscal year, but that -- those additional carryover funds have allowed VR to spend more than the available funding, and that includes for years 2019, 23 and 24. We currently have a very small and modest amount of carryover funding for federal fiscal year 25, and it absolutely will not fill that predicted gap. All right. Let's go to the next one. I want to talk a little bit more about some of the cost savings that we are in the process of implementing or have already implemented. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 16 We are currently in the process of closing categories 2 through 4. Now, there are still several steps that needed to be -- that need to be completed in order for us to do this. We recently met with our state rehabilitation council and had a public hearing on that, so that part is complete. And there was support, by the way, in -- during that meeting to close those categories of services. We are in the process of amending our state plan, and then RSA, our federal regulators need to approve it, and then we need to implement. So I'm unsure of the date of when that will happen, but we hope to get it done possibly -- if all goes well possibly by March. It's a little unknown again because of some of the things happening at the federal level as well that might have an impact on getting approval. So we will see, and we will keep you updated on that. So closing of those categories, that does not impact people who are already in VR services. It impacts new applicants, so new applicants after the date that we begin that closure of categories, they will go on a wait list, and they will be removed as capacity and funding becomes available in accordance with their CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 17 date of application. Referrals and information for other partner and other grant services will be provided to those new applicants. You know, we have had these categories closed for many years in the past, and they were only recently opened for the past couple of years. Based upon the impact of federal funding and future fiscal forecasting, it may become necessary for us to close category 1 in the near future. You know, government funding, it can vary, and the federal government built controls so that agencies could adjust resources as needed in order to sustain the program long term and really to preserve those services for those people who are currently receiving services. That is what order of selection or closing categories to new applicants is. So those who are already in the program, they must be provided the full array of services that are needed. We have already implemented -- go ahead and click to the next one. Sorry. We have already implemented increased internal controls and the monthly authorizations for our funded case services. Go to the next one. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 18 We are continuing an internal VRS hiring freeze, also not filling current or any new vacancies within VRS. Operational costs, we have tighter controls on those, and we're working to decrease our overall operational costs. Internal direct services, Chris McVey, our VRS deputy director, she's going to provide some further details shortly around this, but as we have talked with you about previously, we do need -- we have needed to sustain our Pre-ETS services and referrals at the 15% federal requirement level, and we're now working to stabilize those services and become more efficient in the delivery of those services. Also regarding direct placement services, our internal staff have worked really hard to build up the business engagement networks, and we've deployed our staff for that work. Now we're really right sizing that to more direct services as we have done in the past. So as VRS rebalances, I assure we do continue to need our external partners for delivery of all services. And then the last thing that we're working on is our internal workforce planning, and we're working with our staff and have several meetings about this as well. We're working closely with our internal HR and MMB on CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 19 our internal VRS staffing levels for long-term sustainability. All right. Let's go to the next one. I want to review. There's been a little bit of confusion around, you know, authorization of services and whose responsibility that is. Our federal regulations are very clear in our fiscal responsibilities. When we see some conflicts with providers and our staff, it is typically in this area, so we want to make sure that we review this information with you. This fiscal responsibility pertains to all purchases and costs including case service purchases such as Pre-ETS, placement, and follow-up. It's VRS's responsibility to determine the service needs and provision, and that responsibility by federal regulation, it cannot be delegated to any other entity including our partners. So you'll see the first thing on the list is allocable, and what does it mean to be allocable. We need to make sure that the service is needed for a successful outcome. Does it meet the intent and purpose of the VRS program? CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 20 And will the participant benefit? That is what it means to be allocable. When we're looking at the next one, allowable, we have to make sure that the professional technical contract pricing was followed. Was a fee schedule applied if it's required? Was there a state contract used if required? Were necessary bids obtained? That is allowable. And then reasonable. Is it ordinary or fair rate for that geographic area? Can that purchase be defended? That is what our staff are looking at to determine if it's reasonable. And then finally is it necessary? Is this the minimum amount required to meet the need for this person? Is it a comparable benefit, or are there other resources available? Those are the things that are staff are looking at around that. This means that the task must be necessary for the performance or administration of the voc rehab service program, follows its own business practices. We need to follow procurement processes, and we must be CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 21 prudent under state and local laws with the fair market prices and fall within the terms established by RSA or the Rehabilitation Services Administration. So I am going to at this point turn it over to Chris, and she's going to talk a little bit about informed choice because we have heard that as a concern for providers as well. >> Chris: Thank you, Dee. Good morning, everybody. I'm going to review informed choice, and at a high level informed choice includes these concepts, and I'm going to read the slide, the bullets. Informed choice is a voluntary, well-considered decision an individual makes based on options, information, and understanding. Informed choice is used to ensure that recipients of vocational rehabilitation services have the information needed to make informed decisions that will lead to a success in their rehabilitation plans, and VRS staff must work as a partner with that person. And then the third bullet, the counseling process will identify the services and activities to achieve the vocational goal. But informed choice is more than just this. How does this apply to our conversation today about CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 22 Pre-ETS and placement services? This is where the VR fiscal responsibilities always coexist with informed choice. So when VRS has an ability to serve individuals with VR internal staff, it is the first option to discuss with VR counselors. Only in situations after consultation with the local RAM and it is determined VRS isn't able to provide the service directly due to capacity issues or unique needs or choice of the individual, would staff have additional informed choice conversation about other service providers replacement and preemployment transition service. This goes back to the fiscal responsibility to meet the need of the individual and to provide the person with information they need to make an informed choice. Here are some things that you might want -- that you might want to include in an informed choice conversation, and this is guidance that we give to our counselors and VRS staff. This is not a prescribed way to have an informed choice conversation but simply a helpful tool, and it includes things like the pros and cons, resources, information, options and alternatives, values, culture, lifestyle, characteristics, and an opportunity for individuals to CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 23 ask questions. Informed choice is not selecting a job goal for the person without their input, doing all the things the person wants without having a counseling conversation or to avoid conflict. It's not putting all participants through the same employment plan services without consideration of the person's unique individual needs. Informed choice is not informing the person of their appeals rights for fear of cap. And it's not selecting a provider based only on the counselor's personal relationship with the provider. I'm going to hand the next slide off to Lori Thorpe. Thank you. Lori, you're muted. >> Lori: Thank you. Let's try that again. So as of January 1 of this year, VRS requires contracted Pre-ETS services be authorized on a monthly basis. While quarterly or semi-annual authorizations are convenient, they don't provide the level of financial oversight and control that we need in today's dynamic environment, and here's why. First of all, timely monitoring of expenditures. Monthly authorizations allow us to track our CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 24 expenditures in realtime giving us a clearer picture of our financial health on a month-by-month basis. This ensures we don't wait several months to realize if there are budget overruns or services are being underutilized. By making these decisions monthly, we can quickly identify and address any issues before they escalate. Number two, agility and flexibility. The business landscape is always evolving, and our needs may change month to month. By having a monthly authorization process in place, we can be more agile in adjusting our budgets and services to meet the challenges. It gives us the flexibility to adapt to unforeseen challenges without waiting months to make adjustments. Improve forecasting. Authorizing services monthly helps us to create a more accurate cash flow projection. With monthly insight we can make more precise predictions for the upcoming quarters and adjust our spending patterns accordingly. This proactive approach helps ensure we stay within budget and maintain a strong financial position. Enhanced accountability. Monthly review of service expenditures create a greater CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 25 sense of accountability for both internal teams and our community rehab providers. This consistent review process encourages better performance and more thoughtful use of our resources, ensuring we're making the most of our investments every month. Avoiding surprises. Quarterly or semi-annual approvals place VRS at risk of accumulating unnecessary costs that could have been mitigated with more frequent monitoring. For example, if we overestimate our service usage in a quarter and approve payments up front, we may face unexpected budget constraints by the end of that period. Monthly authorizations help prevent such surprises and ensure we're only spending on services we actually need and use. By transitioning to this monthly service authorizations, we will be better equipped to manage our cash flow, make timely adjustments and ensure sure we're always operating within our financial capacity. This proactive approach will not only improve our financial discipline, but also help us achieve better results and maintain a sustainable budget. Now I'll hand it back to you, Chris. Thank you. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 26 >> Chris: Thanks so much, Lori. So regarding our Pre-ETS services, since January 1 of 2025, VRS counselors, Pre-ETS representatives and their managers, their RAMs, rehab area managers, are working together to determine necessary Pre-ETS services required each month or introductory career services, ICS, and full service student VRS participants. VRS can authorize to community rehabilitation providers for the necessary Pre-ETS services when services cannot be provided by internal staff. Authorizations for required Pre-ETS services must be approved by a RAM each month. What I want to share about this protocol that we've had in place, which did start January 1, it speaks to all the things Dee Torgerson and Lori Thorpe were just speaking about regarding our responsibility receiving both federal and state funds. And at the same time it just gives us that opportunity to really have a sense of what our Pre-ETS services -- those students that are receiving those services, what their needs are and focusing on that and not on what would be nice to have or want. Really focusing on what is truly necessary to help that student in their employment goal as they move forward or in their goals around career development. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 27 So I'm wanting to be really clear with both our VRS staff and our community partners, this does not mean that we won't be working with and requiring the services of our community rehabilitation providers. We absolutely cannot do this work alone. And so just to give you an idea of the numbers of Pre-ETS representatives that we have in our program, there's approximately two Pre-ETS reps per VRS team. We serve over 450 school districts each year. We make -- and that's not including charter schools. We are getting to those schools as often as we can, and there is no way that our Pre-ETS representatives can meet the full need of students around those introductory career services. So I wanted to make that clear because I know there's a lot of information out there that's been floating around about the fact that VRS is no longer authorizing for Pre-ETS services. That's simply not true. Utilizing this process as Lori has laid out really gives us -- by doing it month by month, it's giving us a much better picture of our spending and ability to even know where we're at and then forecasting for each month. Next slide, please. So regarding job placement services, VRS staff are CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 28 making job placement service delivery decisions as follows. So initially all participants currently in -- want to make this clear. All participants that are currently in a performance- based agreement with a community rehabilitation provider, they will continue in that PBA, absolutely. Regarding new placement services, our counselors are having conversations with their RAM to determine the ability of the VRS placement staff on that team to take on that -- potentially take on that individual who is needing placement services or whether a community rehabilitation provider will be referred to for that placement and retention support. And that VRS will authorize for PBAs when approved by a RAM. So wanting to make that really clear is that in terms of the numbers of our placement staff, we have placement professionals on every team or most teams throughout the state. Actually we have a couple teams that do not have a placement coordinator. But on average there's one to two placement professionals per VRS team. And, again, it speaks to just we just cannot possibly CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 29 internally meet the needs of all the individuals that we're working with and assist them with placement and retention services. So, again, we need our community partners to assist us in delivering those job placement and supports that I know that many of our VR participants need. I'm going to hand it back to Lori. >> Lori: Thank you. So first I'm going to talk a little bit about E1MN PBAs, and as Chris said, any PBAs already in progress will continue as planned and as you're already working with the individuals, and in most cases VRS will continue to refer to you our partners our E1MN PBA referrals. So those will be typically continuing to go to our partners, so that's one area I would say, you know, definitely be ready for. And same with job placement, job coaching. As Chris said, we don't have capacity internally, and so we will be relying on you our partners as well. So next slide. And I know we had a few questions too about what about IPS, individual placement and support. With the IPS model, it's a mental health provider and a community rehab provider. That makes up the IPS team in each of the projects, and CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 30 so yes, those will continue as they already do, so great. Next slide. I'm going to hand it over to Dee. >> Dee: Awesome. Thank you, Lori and Chris. Well, again, as we move forward into this year with plans to change how we operate to reduce spending, again, the why we operate will not change. Our mission together to empower Minnesotans with disabilities to achieve their goals for employment, independent living and community integration, that is what continues to drive and inspire our work. Serving VRS participants remains our clear focus and frankly our purpose. As both Lori and Chris have explained, we continue to need and rely upon our community partners to deliver services to participants. Minnesota VR, we have a long history and a strong network of partners. We have worked through difficult times before. Just a reminder of some of those times thinking back to the 2008 market crash. We have had within VRS varied levels of government funding and resources through the years. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 31 We have had a significant time period in VRS where we had all categories closed for several years. And then, of course, most recently the pandemic of 2022, which completely changed everything about how we deliver services. What I have appreciated is how we've been able to come together during those difficult times, and we have worked our way through those challenges together in order to sustain quality services for Minnesotans with disabilities. Minnesota, it remains one of the strongest states for disability services overall. Our challenge together is to remain focused on providing those quality services for those people who need us most so that if you're a person with a disability in Minnesota, you have the best opportunities to live the life that you choose. These forums are one of the many ways that we work together in service to people with disabilities along with the regional visits that our community partnership team has completed and then our connections with our VRS community partner liaisons. These are absolutely difficult and uncertain times for every one of us. Our goal today was to provide you with clear and CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 32 consistent information and to clarify any questions that you may have. And so now I think I'm sending it -- I'm not sure who I'm sending it to, Lori, Janeen I think so we can open up for questions. >> Lori: Thank you, Dee. Thank you, Janeen. >> Janeen: Yeah, thank you so much, Dee. I'm going to go ahead and spotlight all the potential folks that might get in on answering some questions here, so if you'll give me just a minute. And then starting with one of the common themes that we've been hearing is regarding E1MN, just wanting to verify, is everyone -- it's a couple-part question but I'm combining a few today. Is everyone who is on a Medicaid waiver considered category 1? And if someone on Medicaid waiver is not able to be served by VR, is VR going to start providing notes to our waiver funders or to case managers so that waiver dollars can pay for job search? Chris, go ahead. >> Chris: Yeah, thank you. Chris McVey. Regarding people who are on Medicaid waivers, we cannot CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 33 make an assumption that all of those individuals are category -- priority category 1 meaning having three or more functional limitations. I believe in most cases that will be the case, but we have to take every individual that applies for services and really personalize to them what are the impacts of their disabilities. So we can't make that assumption in every case, but in many cases they will fall into that first category. Can you also explain -- or just share again, Janeen, what the additional questions were. >> Janeen: Yes, and I apologize. I'm working off of one screen today. Second part to that question is just are we going to be providing -- you know, if someone on a case -- or a waiver with a case manager is unable to receive that find portion or placement in voc rehab, will VRS be providing documentation of that to the waiver case managers so that waiver dollars can be utilized? >> Chris: Yes, so thank you. If the individual is on a waiting list, now if that's -- when we close categories 2 through 4, because we do not have any closed categories at this time, the counselor will absolutely be in communication with that county -- or contracted case manager and the person and their CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 34 team, let them know about the circumstances, if they are on a waiting list. And we don't want to hold up the individual in any way, so if there is communication or documentation that's required that explains that the person is on a waiting list, we would be providing that to the county or to that contracted case manager and the provider so that they are aware of that so that the person then could go forward and receive services funded through the waiver. >> Janeen: Thank you, Chris. I think that answers it. Now there's -- again I'm trying to rephrase for everyone because we've received multiple questions about this. First of all, what is the timing again of potentially closing down categories 2 through 4? And then we're receiving a lot of different questions that are getting at the point of how are participants determined to be in different categories or priority for service, and also some questioning around why aren't we just closing all categories if we have a budget issue? What was the rubric that was used to decide funding-wise that this will work to just close 2 through 4? >> Dee: I will start with answering that and look to Chris and Lori for help with some other parts of that. So, again, we are actively working right now on closing CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 35 2 through 4, and my best guess on a time estimate is sometime in March that we would do this, that we would have that accomplished and complete those steps. We looked at closing category 1. Again, we have multiple things that we're managing at the same time and that we're working on forecasting, and we didn't move towards closing all categories quite frankly because it's devastating to everybody. It's devastating to participants, to our providers, to our staff, to everybody involved. And so we really want some time to see how some of these other cost-saving measures, how that impacts our predicted model, and, again, as I talked about in the presentation, we're really waiting to see what the federal landscape looks like. So I anticipate it may become necessary for us to close category 1. I do not have information on the timing of that, but we will continue to provide you updates and updates on our forecasting models as we go through the year. Determination of categories, that is a whole big explanation, but yep, good, Lori. You're muted. >> Janeen: Chris, if you don't mind sharing with us about categories for service. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 36 I think Lori's audio got lost somehow. >> Chris: Absolutely. So federally there are 7 areas of functional limitation. They range anywhere from communication to interpersonal skills to work tolerance and work skills, 7 total as I said. The counselor that is meeting with the individual does a full initial interview and learns about the person, learns about the challenges that are created and I -- how that person just experiences that disability, and then from that documentation that comes, we request documentation of disability or verification of disability, and makes a determination along with that initial interview, along with that consulting and knowing and learning about the person and making those determinations about the numbers of functional limitations. Again, there are 7. They are laid out by our federal agency, Rehabilitation Services Administration. And the counselor identifies based on documentation and the initial interview which of those functional limitations the person is experiencing as a result of the disability or disabilities that they have. And so just to let you know, we've got the priority for CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 37 services for category 4 is 0 functional limitations, category 3 is one functional limitation, category 2 is two or more functional limitations. And category 1 is three or four of those functional limitations. So just to give you some background, this is something that VRS is not in charge of in terms of what are those functional limitations or the numbers of functional limitations in terms of the 7, and so hopefully that's helpful to people around how we determine eligibility for services but that priority for services is really what we're talking about here. So thank you. >> Janeen: And this is Janeen. Oh, Lori, did you want to share something or try to talk again? >> Lori: I wanted to see if you could hear me. >> Janeen: Yes, we can now. Thank you. >> Lori: Thank you. >> Janeen: Fantastic. I may be putting too much together, so we can certainly split it out by placement and Pre-ETS. But I think a common theme then is you are stating that if it's important or necessary for an individual to CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 38 continue to receive Pre-ETS services that they will do so. And what we're getting is several comments or questions that that is not what our partners are hearing from offices. They're being told Pre-ETS has been completely cut off, they're not receiving any referrals, etc. Then there's a similar concern about that with performance-based agreements and job placement. And just sort of wanting to know can we state clearly will there continue to be any PBA referrals, and Pre-ETS referrals or authorizing. And with that just wanting some answers around like what are internal caseloads for job placement, how are we able to, you know, determine that our internal placement folks are getting quality outcomes. We certainly have our updating that our partners are required to do. Real briefly, Lauri, did you need something, Lauri Krouse, our interpreter? Okay. Your hand is up. I just wanted to verify that you didn't have an emergency. Okay. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 39 So back to that question. >> Chris: I can speak to this. Really from the director of our agency Dee Torgerson, myself as deputy director to our regional directors, to our RAMs, our rehab area managers, we will continue to authorize for Pre-ETS services and PBAs for individuals that are in need of those services, and so it is not correct that -- I mean and if people are hearing that, it's okay to ask that question like where are you hearing this from? And then I would -- I mean suggest either reaching out to me, Chris McVey, to the area regional director, in the north it's Jeri Werner. In the metro it's Becky Sunder. And in the south it's Lisa Hat, and let's try to get clear on what it is that we're saying, which is when an individual needs Pre-ETS services and it can't be delivered internally, which in many cases it can't, then we are going to look to our community partners to provide those services. The second is around PBA. We know that with E1MN PBAs, they are going to be provided by our community partners. If it's a general PBA, the person needs placement or retention, they're not on a Medicaid waiver, we will CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 40 look first to our internal resources, our placement staff to see if they have capacity. If not, then that -- those placement services will be provided by our community partners. Please know I'm open to any communication that people want to send to me about this, and I'll quickly work with our regional directors and RAMs to ensure that there's that understanding. Thank you. >> Janeen: Did anyone else want to add anything or... okay. And I apologize. And you spoke to the PBAs and the fact that some of those will still be continuing in our internal controls on quality outcomes for individuals. Okay. Excellent. Another question we're getting is kind of a big one, all-around communication. Just wondering when will partners know more about categories being closed, about the types and levels of referrals they're going to continue to get? They're all needing to make internal decisions about staffing and budgeting as well. Also just expressing some concern like Pre-ETS was cut CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 41 off rather abruptly. Some of them had had -- you know, some of our partner staff had had year-long relationships with students and families, and they didn't get a chance to say good-bye or to have any type of closure or handoff. So kind of a big concern echoing through multiple questions and statements around what are the communication plans moving forward? Are they going to be timely and in a way that really helps because partner businesses are feeling like they are kind of not receiving the information they need in order to make their own planning decisions as well. And some staff. >> Dee: Yeah, I'll start with that, and then maybe Chris and Lori can add to that. And I understand that question, and I understand some of the frustrations around communication. We have been working really hard internally. I mean we have to work with our agency and with MMB and with our SRC around we want to make sure we have an accurate forecast and that we're making sound business decisions for our agency, so that has taken us some time to do that. We will continue to have these forums -- Janeen, are they scheduled every other month right now? CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 42 >> Janeen: Yes, they are bimonthly. >> Dee: Thank you. We will continue to have those. If there's a need to have additional ones, we can schedule them. We will be sending out communications, for instance, once we have a plan date of closing of categories, we will make sure that we send that information out to you ahead of time. You know, we're open to other ways that works best to communicate with everyone. I think you can continue, both Chris and Lori have said that they're available as well as the -- you know, your community partner liaisons if you have questions or concerns or suggestions quite frankly. We're open to that and how we can communicate better. And thanks. Lori just put in the chat the next community forum is April 1 at 10:30 a.m., the next scheduled one. Chris and Lori, anything you want to add to that question? >> Chris: Go ahead, Lori first. >> Lori: I would like to add that the way we typically community is through a GovDelivery e-mail blast that goes out. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 43 So it goes to over 1700 people throughout Minnesota and the region. So if you're not receiving those, I would ask that you please send me an e-mail, and I can get you the link to sign up for those blasts. And they're meant for anyone that has an interest in VRS and our rehabilitation community in a larger way. So please send me an e-mail right away. Chris. >> Chris: Thank you, Lori. Just regarding the part of the question that gets at providers experiencing like an abrupt end to the services they are providing to grant students. We worked closely, and the we is Chris McVey, the regional directors, and our RAMs to work with our counselors and Pre-ETS reps to really review every student that was receiving introductory career services. And what we found in many cases were individuals that were getting all five services, all five services, and I know that in the years as we were building on Pre-ETS services and making those services available, we as an agency and then you as our partners developed a way of engaging and getting -- students getting access to those Pre-ETS supports and services that is just not sustainable for us. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 44 So we have been working with our RAMs and our counselors and Pre-ETS reps to really look at what is needed and what is necessary. So if there were existing services the community partner was providing, we were not saying end those services, but we were saying ending those services when the counselor or the Pre-ETS rep, they're making a determination that there are some services that were no longer -- it was like need to have versus want to have, okay. And as Dee was sharing earlier, we just cannot sustain the amount of spending that we've been doing. We don't have the funds to do it. Therefore, that's part of the strategy is working with our staff, and they're the decision makers, about what Pre-ETS services, in this case what Pre-ETS services were necessary for the student versus wanted or nice to have. We always want to be person-centered, and we should never make the assumption that a student requires all five Pre-ETS required services. So, again, that's the ask we have of our VRS staff at this time that are serving students, and that's specific around Pre-ETS. Thank you. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 45 >> Janeen: This is Janeen. I just want to share a couple notes. We're getting some comments about very specific situations or I know there's a regional concern that, oh, gosh, it felt like all authorizations got frozen. Those sorts of questions we will follow up with more of a detailed answer. I'd like to commit to like referring those concerns on to the specific areas they might affect. So if you want to go into the MS form and just say, hey, I'm the one who asked this question, if you would like a personalized follow-up, my team and myself working with Dee and Chris can get back to you with some of those specific concerns and questions. Okay? Another comment very quickly, the reason we turn off videos and chat for our forums is that we are wanting to put out a quality accessible recording onto our CP website for future reference, and oftentimes chat and other videos on interferes with that ability. So just a clarification again, I know we frequently get comments and questions about not caring for the fact that we're not able to chat. But I just want to continue to encourage you to interact through the MS form. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 46 We receive all your comments and questions that way. The next question is kind of a tough one. But I'm just going to phrase it because it's been put in there many, many times. Just an overall comment on what happened, feeling like the governor's budget was maybe out last November. There's been warnings of where funding is heading. So what happened that, you know, our 5.4 million of reallotment has already been spent, etc. I know that some of this was shared in there, but I think there's an overall concern of was funding or budgeting somehow not paid attention to or mishandled in some way. So I would invite Dee and Chris to share a little more transparently about reiterating maybe some of your points from the PowerPoint today. >> Dee: Yeah, I mean it is a legitimate question, and I know it's difficult to sort of understand. It wasn't too long ago where we had a surplus of funds and we were building up programs and building up Pre-ETS and hiring staff and investing in technologies. And then it's been a large swing now the other way. So I understand that, and I understand how abrupt that feels for everyone including us. Really -- really what happened, again, I think it aligns CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 47 very similarly to everything we've heard about state funding forecast, federal budget forecast. You know, flat funding resources remaining flat and all of the costs going up. We did invest those funds as I talked about in the presentation directly into services and serving more people. We had concerns of the sustainability of that, and we started to address those, you know, actually fairly quickly. We also wanted to have really strong fiscal forecasting. It is a -- it is a complicated program. Our, you know, grant systems and all of the different formulas of money that we have coming into the system, it is one of the most complicated federal grant programs that is in existence. And so it takes some time and some specific talent and abilities to get that forecasting correct. So that is really what we have been focusing on particularly over this past year. And as I described, most state VR programs are in a very similar situation. There are many, many other states who have either already closed categories, working towards closing categories, and in similar situations. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 48 I'll be honest, what we had hoped was that we would be -- that we would get some increased resources. As I outlined in the presentation in 2023, everyone across the nation, all federal VR programs were anticipating a 7% cost-of-living increase. That would have helped stabilize the program. Nobody got that. That wasn't provided, and that federal funding remained flat. The state budget forecast came out, and yet, you know, it's something that we were working -- we were hoping to increase some state resources, but they just aren't available, so our -- I'm thankful that we continue to have a strong match in that we continue to have additional match available so that if there is reallotment dollars available, we can at least request them. So we're in a good position in Minnesota. That is not how all states are. So that really is the situation. I mean I sort of attune it similarly to -- I was thinking about how do I sort of explain this in a way that people can understand. And it's like if you have a job and you have your base salary, you're expecting a raise but that raise doesn't CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 49 happen. Maybe you're looking at getting a part-time job, but you aren't able to get that part-time job, so your income remains flat. In the meantime everything is going up. Your cost of living is going up. Your rent costs are going up. All of those things are going up, and so you have to make adjustments in those. That is the simplest way that I really can explain it to people. And that is what has happened cumulatively through the years. >> Chris: And Dee, one of the things that you said as we -- thank you so much. And Dee, one of the things that you've been saying -- Something else that Dee Torgerson has been talking about as I've been meeting with her and others on our leadership team is that the forecast is that we will be overspent by September 30 of 2025 if we change nothing else. So where we are now is that we are changing things. And there's been a whole host of things that we've been doing and that we plan to do so that we're not in a place where we are overspent at the end of CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 50 September 2025. That's a key difference from where we've been in VR in Minnesota forever is where we might know on a month-to-month basis where we are. As Dee said, the forecasting is something that's very different. And so we don't -- we have this -- we have Jackie Christoferson who has these incredibly terrific skills, but it brings us the knowledge and the awareness about what's going to happen if we don't make changes. So I just wanted to add that, Dee, as something you say almost every time. Thank you. >> Janeen: And a quick follow-up question, I want to be responsive within the topic. By how much are we going to be overspent on 9/30 if we made no changes? That just popped in, and, again, since we don't have chat, I'm trying to be a little more responsive. >> Dee: Thanks, Janeen. Yeah, I appreciate that, and I'm -- I mean you can go back and refer to that chart in the PowerPoint and see those numbers. I'll be honest, I'm reluctant to share that number because it gets miscommunicated, and all of a sudden I'm CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 51 hearing, oh, VRS is $10 million overspent. That is not the case, so you can go see the gap analysis that we have in that chart, and again we're working every day to close that gap. The other thing I do want to say along with some of the comments Chris had made around our forecasting is that we are a bit ahead of this in our planning because we know how long it takes to move and change some of the spending trajectory, so we are a bit ahead of this due to what we're seeing in our fiscal forecasting. I anticipate you're going to see more of this from all places across the state, other agencies, other partners in other areas so... >> This the interpreter. I hate to interrupt. Lauri, one of our other interpreters, had some technical difficulty. If you're able to let her back in, that would be great. Thank you. >> Janeen: So there's not a waiting room in place, and we should have capacity, but I will look for her name and make her a cohost if I can. Or if one of my partner cohosts on my team could do that, I'd actually really appreciate it. So the next question is what about all the other CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 52 authorizations? You know, there's a lot of people, students that get like drivers permit or training support. There OJE, there's JSST, there's all the different job-related services. Is there a plan to continue to refer those out to community partners? Are we trying to have internal staff cover any of that? Just wanting to know more about those training type authorizations. >> This is Chris McVey, and thank you for that question. We have over 12,000 people that we're currently serving, and it's probably more than that. And we want to ensure that every person who is working with VRS now who has an open case, who is in an employment plan or in the process of developing an employment plan, our focus is on helping them reach their employment goals, and with the counselor and that person identifying what those services are, what those needs are and ensuring that they're getting those needs met. So what I would say is that we absolutely will continue to work with our partners to like get them part of helping this person to move forward, so whether it's post secondary institution, whether it's a community CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 53 rehabilitation partner, whether it's a contract, it's really about what the person needs, and I want to be really clear about that, and I appreciate our policy coordinator Heather Farmer, what she just shared with me is like RAMs and counselors are considering and discussing whether an outcome or goal has been met for planned services, so that's also something we have to consider. And rest assured that our rehab area managers, their counselors, and the staff that support individuals with disabilities that are VRS clients, we are wanting to help them to move forward. As a matter of fact, there was just discussion yesterday with our youth services team members about a great opportunity that's going to be coming up for individuals with autism. And we are going to absolutely support them as they prepare for industry-required and in-demand jobs, and we're talking about what the price point for that is going to be. And that's absolutely what we have to do. That's -- as Dee was saying earlier, there are measures that we can take when we -- a VR agency doesn't have all the funds to meet the demands. And it's by employing those that we ensure that the CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 54 people that are currently in our services and receiving our support continue to receive that support. So I hope that's clear. All the services, really our focus right now on looking at and really examining the necessity for services is around Pre-ETS and PBA, and we've laid that out pretty clearly. The other services generally are often not services that our internal staff can provide. So again we really need our community partners and look forward to our staff calling on you for those needs. Thank you. >> This is the interpreter once again. My team has successfully signed back in. Are you able to cohost her so that she can take over, please? >> Janeen: Yes, that's all in place. Thank you, Gina. >> Lauri: Sorry about that. >> Janeen: All right. Moving on to VR staffing, what was the rationale for adding so much VR staffing if we had this projection of, you know, again folks are looking back a little further, why did we add middle management positions such as a Pre-ETS manager and new contract liaisons, that's been I CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 55 think over three years now. But all those types of positions. So wondering, you know, is VR going to trim -- especially there's been comments about us being top heavy with management, middle management and admin staff. Just wondering if you want to speak to that. And then also what's kind of the workforce plans, what are the internal staffing plans moving forward. >> Dee: Yeah, I can start, and perhaps Chris can then add to that, and we'll be talking directly with our internal staff. If we have internal staff here, we have a meeting coming up February 11. We'll be providing some more information then. We -- you know, we were in different times when we added those staff. We were coming actually out of a staff shortage. We were working hard. We hadn't been meeting our 15% Pre-ETS requirement for several years, so we were building up that program and bringing in people to be able to cultivate those services, and in most of those services were going out to our providers. So we successfully built those services, and now we're CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 56 working again as I had outlined to level them out and to sustain them. We didn't have the forecast that we have right now quite frankly. We anticipated increased resources, and that hasn't happened, and therefore, we've had to make the adjustments needed. Chris, anything else around sort of the strategies around hiring the Pre-ETS people that we want to speak to? Let me just say one more thing about the internal staffing. Again, I don't have -- I really don't have specific details to add around that other than, again, we're working closely with our internal human resources and others, and we'll continue to -- and the unions as well, and we'll continue to provide information as we have it to our internals. >> Chris: Yes, thanks, Dee. You know it really is true that as we are in now federal fiscal year 25, it was just a few years ago where we had significant staffing shortages, and we knew that there was a lot more demand for preemployment transition services than we had the capacity to provide. So it's with that that we increased the number of CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 57 Pre-ETS reps that are serving students right now, that are meeting with the school staff, connecting with our community partners. The decision around adding staff really was moving from one Pre-ETS rep per team to pretty much two Pre-ETS reps per team. In greater Minnesota where we have hundreds of miles between offices, in some cases we have three Pre-ETS reps. What we know is there's over 45,000 students that are either in an IEP or receiving some type of special education, and just knowing that the demand was there and we had not risen up to that 15% led to us making that decision. And I know Dee too as you said, we anticipated the ongoing funding from the federal -- from congress, and that didn't come. And so as we were making those decisions, we were hearing and anticipating that we'd be getting those additional federal funds, so we made that decision. I do want to also say that in terms of the numbers of staff that we've added in the last couple of years, there's been a huge focus on direct service delivery. We wanted people meeting with students in those schools working with counselors, working with our VR techs, and CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 58 so predominantly the number of the staffing additions that we've made are truly out in our teams throughout the state. In terms of why we hired a Pre-ETS, now we call per our youth services manager, we have a lot of focus on the work that we do with students and youth. 60% of the people that we serve are students under the age of 24. And we believe that in order to administer this program, to get the work done, to make clear, you know, what our responsibilities are versus the school versus the waiver fund if a person is on a Medicaid waiver. We thought it was and I still we believe that it's absolutely essential that we have that level of leadership that's giving guidance to our leadership but also to field teams and also helping us to develop the curriculum and support the staff need to deliver services to students. So very few of the hires that we've made at the administrative level, much more focus on getting services to students and support to schools and making Pre-ETS services available. Thank you. >> Dee: I just want to add just one more stat that we know about is that 85% of our current internal VRS staff CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 59 provide direct services to people. Actually it's a little more than that, but we have about 15% of our staff who are management or kind of administrative more specialist positions, so just want to share. >> This is Lori. If I could add something, too, and that's the -- I know, Janeen, you asked about contract liaisons for example. And so we do have over 200 partners now statewide with a real focus on especially greater Minnesota where there's areas that don't have, you know, providers or many providers. And there's also a lot of new Americans that have come to Minnesota and maybe they're not English speaking, and we want to offer partners that reflect that cultural diversity and those opportunities as well. So, for example, each of the contract liaisons, they have over 50 partners now that they're working with each, and so it's hard to know, you know, kind of -- this is a big boat, right? It's a big ship, and the people that are necessary to keep the ship running and support the direct service staff and of course our participants and our partners, so thank you. >> Janeen: This is Janeen. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 60 I know we're getting close on time, so I have a couple quick messages. First of all, the MS form that's being shared will not be monitored for long after this meeting, so please get your questions in now following the meeting. Or if you hear of any staff members, etc., that are going to watch the recording, please have them e-mail their questions or comments directly to contract liaisons, Lori Thorpe or, you know, something of that nature, and we can forward them on to executive leadership, Chris McVey, Dee Torgerson. A couple more quick questions. Oh, and a follow-up comment. I really appreciate everyone who took the time to phrase their very real fears and concerns in a respectful manner. Just a gentle reminder that that respect and kindness is something we all deserve, and if it's not something that you would say with your camera off in person, then I would hope that it doesn't show up in the forms. So have had a few not as respectful, but that's okay. I'm not judging because again I know there's a lot of anger and a lot of fear and a lot of real sadness and grief today, but just sharing that that kindness and respect is owed all across and I think we're hearing CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 61 very clearly your concerns that our communication hasn't felt timely enough, clear enough, respectful, and so that is definitely going to be worked on as much as possible too and just wanted to share that. A couple more quick questions and then we'll go right up to noon. I'm so sorry. Chris and Dee, what if a client actually really wants to work with a partner, they're dissatisfied with internal placement, they're dissatisfied with internal Pre-ETS staff. Are we going to be honoring client requests to specifically work with partners? >> Chris: Yes, I'll take that question. We do want to hear from our -- from our staff. I'm sorry. We do want to hear -- sorry, our participants. Okay. That's who we're serving. That's who -- they're here for a reason, and so in the event that someone was not satisfied with working with an internal VR staff, for example, or with a community partner that they've been working with, the best place for them to go is to make contact with the rehab area manager on that team, and if they're not -- you know, also we want to immediately refer them also to CAP, the CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 62 Client Assistance Project. That's always something when there's disagreement about the services that someone is getting, we never want to like hold back on giving them access to the Client Assistance Project, absolutely not. We welcome that. And so people should, our participants should feel that they have options if they're not satisfied with the provider that is being offered to them. >> Janeen: Okay. And then a follow-up question. Well, not a follow-up question. A separate question, and it's in multiple parts. What happens if the department of ed closes down? Are our staff being pushed to go back into offices per the federal worker mandate to go back to offices? And then a separate question which I'll hold until we answer those first two. >> Dee: Yeah, those are the questions, aren't they? I do not have those answers. We're not hearing anything from RSA, our federal funders and regulators about any of that. At this point, you know, we're state employees even though most of our funding is federal funding, so that mandate, that federal mandate for everybody going into CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 63 the office at this point doesn't apply to us. I can't predict the future, so I really don't know what's to come. The Department of Education, again, I don't know. I do not know, and I don't have any insight into that, you know, if they get rid of Department of Education. We have heard some of our federal technical assistance folks mentioned that I mean we could possibly be moved into another department. In the past they have tried to move the federal VR program into the labor and industry program to be more closely aligned. That -- I don't think that's a huge concern for us because we sort of already live in that environment in Minnesota. But I don't know. I don't know what the future holds. It has been pretty insane these last couple of weeks, and I don't know, but as we learn information and when that -- when and if that information becomes clear, we will share that. >> Janeen: Okay. This is Janeen again. The second part is, what is our -- we don't have a specific legislative liaison within VR but DEED overall, CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 64 the Department of Employment and Economic Development, does have legislative liaisons. What are they doing to support VR? And what can we as a service community say to legislators or do to encourage additional state funds for voc rehab? >> Dee: Honestly that is a little bit tricky because of the budget forecast that has come out. I really don't have an answer to that question at this point. As I've said, we right now have a healthy state budget. We are overmatched which allows us to draw down additional funds, so I think honestly we're in a pretty good position legislatively. I would hope that -- I mean there isn't proposed state cuts, but who knows what can happen in legislative session. I would hope that we can continue to maintain that flat funding. Cuts would be pretty -- further state cuts would be pretty detrimental to our program, but I'm not anticipating that at this time. >> Janeen: This is Janeen again. One final question, I'm going to squeak it in under the wire. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 65 Just wanting to verify that existing performance-based agreement milestones that have been authorized at that $1 amount, that those are going to be honored at the whole amount, will all four milestones be paid or would there be any risks of us not honoring that encumbered funding? >> This is Lori, and yes, those will be paid, and they're locked in, and yeah, those will be honored. Absolutely. >> Janeen: Okay. We have two minutes left, but again the complexity of what's being asked, there's -- oh, here's one question we can answer real quick. How is the RSA grant distributed to the states or drawn down? Is that annually, biannually, quarterly? And are the RSA grants specifically authorized by congress? >> Dee: Yes, it is based -- it's a formula grant. It is authorized by congress. And we -- so, yeah, we typically are provided the full grant award. Right now it's a little bit -- we don't have our full grant award because we're in a continuing resolution for the federal funding. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 66 However, we draw down monthly from that federal grant for our -- from that federal grant for our services. >> Janeen: Excellent. Well, Dee and Chris, thank you so much for coming to the forum today and sharing a lot of really valuable information. Just a reminder to everyone, hurry up and get your questions or comments into the form. It's not going to be monitored much past the end of this meeting. Secondly if you want a specific personal follow-up, either reach out to your contract liaison or, you know, indicate that in your question or comment in the form. You can go ahead and add your name. There are some specific areas I did not address here in this meeting including I know there's a region specific concern that's being raised multiple times about some messaging. That will be handled via the regional director for that region and the regional area managers, so we will go ahead and take care of that on the back side and try to get out some of these additional answers to you as needed. With that, Lori, I'll turn it over to you to wrap up. >> Recording stopped. CART captioning file NOT A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT 67 >> Lori: Yeah, I echo that, Janeen. Just so glad that, Dee and Chris, you could be here and lead this forum today. And please join us. Our next forum will be April 1, which is a Tuesday 10:30, and if we have communication that needs to get out before then, we will either call a meeting or absolutely get ahold of me, and we do communicate through that GovDelivery option as well. So thank you for being here, and please take care. Bye-bye. 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