House Passes Public Safety and Judiciary Budget Bill

SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, the Minnesota House passed HF 2432, the Public Safety and Judiciary budget bill. The bill reflects the bipartisan agreements between the House DFL and GOP caucuses. It includes $50 million in additional ongoing funding per biennium for the Public Safety portion and $30 million for the Judiciary portion.

The public safety provisions of the bill focus on funding for victim services and de-escalation training for law enforcement. Minnesota’s victim services programs play a crucial public safety role by helping victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, and other crimes. These programs depend on federal funding, which has been unstable in recent years and have been targets of funding freezes and cuts under the Trump administration. Ensuring the survival of these programs is crucial to public safety in Minnesota.

The investments in law enforcement de-escalation training will help continue important training reforms enacted after Philando Castile’s death. Law enforcement agencies across the state rely on these training dollars.

“In a time when Trump has eliminated critical public safety programs and pardoned insurrectionists who assaulted law enforcement, I’m proud that we passed a bill which maintains and enhances Minnesota’s public safety efforts,” said Kelly Moller (DFL – Shoreview), Co-Chair of the Public Safety Committee. “Unlike federal Republicans, we recognize that services for victims of crime are an integral pillar of public safety, which is why we fund those needed services.  I look forward to continuing to push for the strongest proposals of this bill in conference committee.” 

Reflecting the Democrats’ priorities of a balanced approach to public safety, the bill invests in other major priorities including a funding boost to the the Department of Corrections which is responsible for significant staffing costs to keep facilities safe and the creation of a Minnesota Victims of Crime Account, to be managed by the Office of Justice Programs. This initiative will provide a sustainable source of funding for crime victim services grants. The bill also increases funding for the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to conduct fraud investigations, a part of the Democrats’ efforts to combat fraud across the state.

The Judiciary provisions of the bill modestly increases funding for the courts and certain state agencies, including funding for interpreter services, cybersecurity, and statutorily mandated psychological examinations. The bill also addresses data privacy and government transparency in several areas. 

“With the constitutional right to due process under threat from the Trump Administration, it’s more important than ever that we support Minnesota’s court system, keeping it accessible, efficient, and fair,” said Rep. Tina Liebling (DFL – Rochester), Co-Chair of the Judiciary Committee. “This bill supports cybersecurity within the Judicial branch, protects judicial safety by protecting personal information, and funds better public access to court records.”  

The bill helps protect public schools and other government entities from frivolous, time-consuming data requests from requesters who fail to collect the requested information.  The bill also protects the privacy of parents of public school students along with that of the students, enhancing the privacy and safety of students.

The bill also makes property records of judges private, adding an additional layer of security to protections previously enacted, and adds police officers to the list of those whose personal information may not be publicly disseminated without authority. With the rise of access to information from the internet making it easier for bad actors to access personal information, members of the Judiciary are at a heightened risk. These individuals make difficult decisions every day and are often reviled by the losing side. 

The House also passed the Public Safety policy bill, HF 1354. This bill includes a provision to require reporting on active shooter threats to improve response to safety issues in Minnesota’s schools. It also requires jails to provide incarcerated people with their prescribed medications. The bill includes further protections for victims of domestic violence by ensuring their communications with their advocates remain confidential.

The fiscal spreadsheets are available here for Public Safety and here For Judiciary. The complete bill language can be found here. Video of the floor debate on the bills can be found on the House Information YouTube page.

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