SRO Bill Approved by HouseOn Monday, the Minnesota House of Representatives passed comprehensive legislation to provide a uniform system across the state for districts that decide to have a School Resource Officer (SRO) program. It provides clarity law enforcement agencies and school districts sought last fall regarding the use-of-force standard. The bill creates a Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Board model policy. The policy will have minimum standards for proper use of force, response tactics to minimize the use of prone restraints and other physical holds, the duty to render care, alternative procedures to de-escalate conflict, and considerations to build constructive police relationships with students, administrators, and educational staff. The bill requires the POST Board to develop the model policy with impacted Minnesotans including law enforcement, education experts, local units of government, community advocates, and organizations representing youth. I want to thank my colleagues, especially Rep. Cedrick Frazier, for their work on this bill to solidify guidance from the Attorney General into law so School Resource Officer programs can continue with clarity. Budget Forecast & the Labor CommitteeLast week, state budget officials released a new economic forecast showing Minnesota’s economy is growing and our long-term budget outlook is stable. We are also in a strong position to weather unforeseen challenges down the road. Now, we are awaiting the Governor’s announcement of the supplemental budget. This will advise what bills we take up this year in the Labor Committee. I’ll continue to keep you updated on the progress of this as it unfolds. Fighting Worker Misclassification and Wage TheftThis week in the Labor Committee, we heard legislation authored by Rep. Emma Greenman to combat wage theft and worker misclassification. Misclassification is when an employer requires someone who, according to law should be an employee, to work as an independent contractor. While an employee of an organization receives legal protections under federal and state labor laws, independent contractors bear the burden of their own payroll taxes and have little to no labor protections. This is an issue I’ve been working on for 20 years. As this will be my last legislative session as your State Representative, I am hopeful that we can pass this bill into law, ending the long-fought battle for these protections. High Demand of Universal School Meals Prompts Legislation to Meet NeedParticipation in the universal school meals program has surpassed the initially anticipated increase by more than 20% across the state. To ensure we’re meeting the need and filling this gap, the Education Finance Committee approved legislation to continue these investments so no child goes hungry at school. This program has been saving working families money -- not having to pay for lunches is a significant tax break for many Minnesotan families. The bottom line is this: It's always a good things to feed kids. |