Minnesota House Passes Public Safety Supplemental Budget Bill

SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, the Minnesota House passed HF 5216, the joint Public Safety and Judiciary and Civil Law Supplemental Budget Bill. The public safety portion of the bill continues House Democrats’ comprehensive approach to public safety and crime prevention with support for victims, corrections staff assistance, traffic stop reform, and more.

A primary focus of this bill and the work of the Public Safety Committee this year is support for crime victims.This legislation includes $9.5 million for the Office of Justice Programs to distribute grants for crime victim services. The grants must be used for direct services and advocacy for victims of sexual assault, general crime, domestic violence, and child abuse. 

Funding is also included for the DPS to establish a Task Force on Domestic Violence and Firearms, which will research laws that require the surrender of firearms and identify best practices to protect law enforcement, victims, and others in the process of recovering surrendered firearms.

“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 Kelly Moller (DFL - Shoreview), Chair of the House Public Safety Policy Committee. “This bill has numerous provisions that strengthen protections for victim survivors and strengthen public safety in Minnesota.” 

This bill recognizes the important role corrections staff play in our public safety system by including a $7.9 million operations adjustment to help fund compensation increases for corrections staff. With this funding to fulfill negotiated contracts, a career in corrections is now competitive with comparable jobs and can ensure that our correctional facilities are safely staffed.

Lastly, this bill includes important provisions to improve interactions during traffic stops and creates a Task Force on Holistic and Effective Responses to Illicit Drug Use to analyze the best methods for handling illicit drug use and make recommendations to legislators on ideal policies to tackle this issue.

This budget 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 the floor session is available on House Public Information Services YouTube channel.

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