BOARD/COMMISSION:  Community Solutions Advisory Council (July 1, 2023)

(1) three members representing Black Minnesotans of African heritage, one of whom is a parent with a child under the age of eight years at the time of the appointment;

(2) three members representing Latino and Latina Minnesotans with an ethnic heritage from Mexico, a country in Central or South America, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, or Puerto Rico, one of whom is a parent with a child under the age of eight years at the time of the appointment;

(3) three members representing Asian-Pacific Minnesotans with Asian-Pacific heritage, one of whom is a parent with a child under the age of eight years at the time of the appointment;

(4) three members representing the American Indian community, one of whom is a parent of a child under the age of eight years at the time of the appointment; and

(5) one member with research or academic expertise in racial equity and healthy child development.

(b) The commissioner must include representation from organizations with expertise in advocacy on behalf of communities of color and Indigenous communities in areas related to the grant program.

(c) At least three of the 13 members appointed under paragraph (a), clauses (1) to (4), of the advisory council must come from outside the seven-county metropolitan area.

The commissioner, in consultation with the Community Solutions Advisory Council, shall develop a request for proposals for healthy child development grants. In developing the proposals and awarding the grants, the commissioner shall consider building on the capacity of communities to promote child and family well-being and address social determinants of healthy child development. Proposals must focus on increasing racial equity and healthy child development and reducing health disparities experienced by children of color and American Indian children from prenatal to grade 3 and their families.

In awarding the grants, the commissioner shall provide strategic consideration and give priority to proposals from:

(1) organizations or entities led by people of color and serving communities of color;

(2) organizations or entities led by American Indians and serving American Indians, including Tribal Nations and Tribal organizations;

(3) organizations or entities with proposals focused on healthy development from prenatal to grade 3;

(4) organizations or entities with proposals focusing on multigenerational solutions;

(5) organizations or entities located in or with proposals to serve communities located in counties that are moderate to high risk according to the Wilder Research Risk and Reach Report; and

(6) community-based organizations that have historically served communities of color and American Indians and have not traditionally had access to state grant funding.

The advisory council may recommend additional strategic considerations and priorities to the commissioner.

The first round of grants must be awarded no later than April 15, 2024. Grants must be awarded annually thereafter. Grants are awarded for a period of three years.

The commissioner and the advisory council shall ensure that grant money is prioritized and awarded to organizations and entities that are within counties that have a higher proportion of people of color and American Indians than the state average, to the extent possible.

Grantees must report grant program outcomes to the commissioner on the forms and according to the timelines established by the commissioner.