DHHS budgeting, strategic planning bill advanced

A bill that would require the state Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to include strategic plans in its budget requests advanced from general file March 6.

LB974, introduced by Omaha Sen. Heath Mello, would require DHHS to include strategic plans for the following divisions as part of the appropriations process for each of the next two state budget cycles:
• Division of Behavioral Health;
• Division of Developmental Disabilities; and
• Division of Medicaid and Long-term Care.

The bill also would extend an existing strategic plan requirement for the Division of Children and Family Services. The strategic plans would be required to include the main purpose of each program, verifiable and auditable goals for each division and benchmarks for improving performance on key goals.

The plans would required until June 30, 2019.

Mello said Nebraska’s largest state agency needs more accountability, oversight and transparency.

“Recent audits … have convinced me that these additional divisions should face greater scrutiny than our budget process currently provides,” he said.

Scottsbluff Sen. John Harms supported the bill, saying many states are moving toward performance-based budgeting. Nebraska’s current budget process leaves lawmakers struggling to determine DHHS’s goals and benchmarks, he said, and inhibits strategic planning.

“This is a start in the right direction,” Harms said.

An Appropriations Committee amendment, adopted 28-0, incorporated provisions of three additional bills:
• LB837, introduced by the Legislative Performance Audit Committee, which would prohibit the state Department of Administrative Services from authorizing agencies with seven or fewer full-time employees from conducting their own expenditure preaudits;
• LB969, introduced by Cedar Rapids Sen. Kate Sullivan, which would increase a cap on growth in the special education appropriation from 5 to 10 percent for future budget years; and
• LB1023, introduced by Mello, which would update statutory references to several budgetary reports and require that a copy of the reports be provided to the legislative fiscal analyst.

Senators advanced the amended bill to select file on a 32-0 vote.