Minnesota House Passes Public Safety Policy Bill

SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, the Minnesota House passed HF 3614, the Public Safety Policy bill. The bill continues House Democrats’ comprehensive approach to public safety and crime prevention with support for victims, criminal justice reform, policy modernization, and more.

The bill is primarily directed toward improving support and outcomes for victims of crime. The bill implements important policies like enhanced confidentiality for victims and advocates and protection of data submitted to the Minnesota Sexual Assault Exam Payment Program. It also requires the Minnesota Department of Corrections to make a good-faith effort to notify a victim when the End-of-Confinement Review Committee has begun for the offender who victimized them and establishes a victim’s right to submit written input for the committee to consider.

“Our bill is a continuation of our efforts from last year, where we took a broad and holistic approach to public safety. With this bill we are building a more effective public safety system” said Chair Kelly Moller (DFL - Shoreview), author of the Public Safety Policy bill. “This bill has numerous provisions that strengthen protections for victim survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault and seek to prevent victimization.” 

Criminal justice reform is another major component of the legislation. This includes impactful reforms like extending the “Good Samaritan” protections for drug overdoses to anyone caring for the person experiencing the overdose even if they are under the influence of an illegal substance, ensuring newly discovered evidence can be considered if someone may have been wrongly convicted, and allowing prosecution in either county for sexual assaults in which the victim was incapacitated in one county and awoke in another county. These are strong reforms which will have a real and positive impact on Minnesota residents, making our criminal justice system more just and equitable.

The bill also modernizes our approach to public safety to meet new standards and address emerging issues. Some examples include provisions to prohibit the sale of human bones and another to prohibit police training on “excited delirium,” a debunked diagnostic theory that resulted in significant disparities and harm to people of color.

This policy bill builds on last year's success when lawmakers invested in a diverse set of tools to improve public safety including gun violence prevention, funding for law enforcement and victims of crime, and modernizing our statutes to better address crimes like catalytic converter theft and carjacking. The historic funding for public safety aid and community crime prevention continue to have a positive impact, benefiting every community across the state.

Video of Monday’s floor session is available on House Public Information Services YouTube channel.

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