The Minnesota Organization for Habilitation and Rehabilitation (MOHR) proudly joined hundreds of disability service providers, self-advocates, families, and allies from across the state who gathered in the Capitol Rotunda for the Disability Services Day at the Capitol, the state’s largest annual disability advocacy event, on Tuesday, March 24. United by a shared goal, they urged legislators to protect disability services from proposed budget cuts. Key concerns included defending day support services, waiver-funded services, and Extended Employment services - all of which face significant cuts from Governor Walz's budget proposal. Legislators from the Minnesota House and Senate spoke in support of Minnesotans with disabilities and the services they need to live healthy, fulfilling lives.
MOHR President and Executive Director of the East Range DAC, Robin Harkonen, thanked the crowd for their enthusiastic advocacy, “Our significant participation shows our state how impactful the disability community is.” Harkonen also called for continued efforts and building relationships with legislators, encouraging attendees, supporters, and allies to stay engaged by reaching out to lawmakers, sharing their stories, and participating in future advocacy actions to protect vital disability services. “During the 2025 legislative session, we had success thanks to impactful grassroots efforts just like these.”
Rep. Brion Curran of Vadnais Heights, Lead Author of the Best Life Alliance legislation and member of the House Human Services Finance Policy Committee, greeted the crowd, “Welcome to your house. This is your house.” They urged attendees to share their personal stories and specifically describe how additional funding cuts would impact their daily lives. They emphasized the importance of being direct and honest to help legislators understand the real-life effects of policy decisions.
Rep. Mohamud Noor of Minneapolis, DFL Co-Chair of the House Human Services Committee, spoke on the meaning of Disability Services Day: “It’s about dignity, it’s about inclusion, it’s about justice.” He encouraged lawmakers to center Minnesotans with disabilities in legislation, saying, “Our values are based on what we do to include everyone in our budget and include everyone in our policies.”
Rep. Kim Hicks of Rochester, who works for the Department of Human Services and serves on the Human Services Finance and Policy committee, led a chant: “Nothing about us without us.” Rep. Hicks addressed a bill on the House General Register that aims to increase disability rights in Minnesota, which she states legislators have not been allowed to hear, and asked self-advocates to demand that their legislators bring it to the floor: “You all have power, you all have votes, you all have dignity.”
Sen. Jim Abeler of Anoka, member of the Human Services Committee and the Health and Human Services Housing and Homeless Prevention Education Policy Committee, said of the state government, “This place belongs to you. It’s your government for you.” He told the group in the Capitol Rotunda, “You are never alone. You matter.” He asked the group to shout out their names so Governor Walz, who was not in attendance, could hear them in his office, a short distance from the Rotunda. Abeler reassured the crowd of the legislature’s dedication to their constituents, “There are no politics in this. It is not a Republican or Democrat thing…The Senate is committed on a bipartisan basis to make sure that you are all served well.”
Two self-advocates also took the stage. Lydia Dawley, a St. Paul School system employee and self-advocate who relies on daily caregiving, spoke about the Disability Independence Act, which she created to protect home and community-based services for Minnesotans with disabilities. “Without caregivers, I cannot eat, get dressed, brush my teeth, or go to work. These are not luxuries. These are basic human needs,” she said. “Rights alone are not enough. Without care, I cannot have those rights. Without care, independence disappears.”
Alma Silver, another self-advocate from the Twin Cities area, emphasized the direct threat to independence and safety posed by the freeze of 14 "high-risk" programs. “I spent weeks not knowing whether my caregivers were going to receive their next paycheck or not. Without the ability to pay my caregivers, I was faced with only one option, which was to leave behind the independent life I had built for myself in Minnesota.” She urged lawmakers to prohibit any suspension of life-sustaining services and asked Minnesota to take the lead in protecting disability rights.
Also attending were Rep. Dawn Gillman (Dassel), Rep. Peter Fischer (Maplewood), Rep. Joe Schomacker (Luverne), Rep. Lisa Demuth (Cold Spring), Rep. Heather Keeler (Moorhead), Assistant Majority Leader Sen. Liz Boldon (Rochester), Sen. Jeremy Miller (Winona), and Sue Schettle (CEO of ARRM).
After the rally, groups had the opportunity to meet with their legislators to share their stories and advocate to protect already insufficient funding from further cuts. Legislators meeting with agency and residential providers from Rochester applauded people for traveling to “their Capitol”, emphasizing the importance of advocating for their rights and services. Rep. Tina Liebling of Rochester told the group that they matter and urged them to “make your voices heard.” She explained to the group the roles of the three branches of government. “The Governor makes recommendations,” she said, “but it is the legislative branch that determines the funding.”
Funding conversations centered around efficiencies, the recent fraud concerns, and changes to the Disability Waiver Rate (DWRS) system. A long advocate for streamlining and coordination across state agencies, MOHR supports the Long Term Services and Supports Advisory Council, who are tasked with helping our state better utilize resources and improve outcomes. MOHR is committed to accountability and transparency, and our members are among the state’s leading sources of best practices. Fraud in Minnesota’s state-funded programs must be targeted - without negatively impacting Minnesotans in need of services.
MOHR partnered with others on legislation that proposes changing the current law, which requires every-other-year economic adjustments to reimbursement rates, to instead take place annually. It was extremely concerning to see that the Governor’s Supplemental Budget instead proposes moving our state backward in access to disability services by imposing arbitrary caps on the economic adjustments to the DWRS. In every corner of Minnesota, access to waiver-funded disability services helps Minnesotans with disabilities live full, community-integrated lives. To ensure this access, the state must continue to address the DWRS that underpins access to these services. At this time of significant workforce shortages, waiting lists for services, and repercussions from last session’s nearly $1 billion in reductions to DWRS, this proposal further exacerbates the very real gap between reimbursement rates and the cost of providing services.
The Absence and Utilization Factor in the Disability Waiver Rate System helps offset fixed program costs when participants have unplanned absences. Reducing this factor would significantly jeopardize access to life-changing Day Support Services, especially for programs serving people with the most complex health and disability needs. Their complex needs often come with more frequent absences. MOHR was extremely concerned to see this proposed reduction in the Governor’s Supplemental Budget.
MOHR also supports access to Extended Employment, a vital service that ensures Minnesotans with disabilities have access to long-term work opportunities, helping people earn wages, contribute to local businesses, and reduce reliance on public assistance. This cost-effective program should remain accessible to individuals who need these employment supports, including those eligible for DHS-waivered services.
