By Alex Derosier
Pioneer Press
MINNEAPOLIS — After an early hiccup in the committee process, a bill aimed at clarifying the types of force police officers can use on students in schools is back on track in the Minnesota Legislature.
Members of the House Public Safety Committee on Thursday unanimously passed an amended school resource officers bill after the measure stalled last week in the face of pushback from law enforcement on one side and activist groups on the other.
Police wanted more exemptions in the bill, and activist groups like Solutions Not Suspensions Coalition didn’t want a rollback of restrictions on face-down restraints.
If enacted, the bill would allow officers to use prone restraints on students and require school resource officer training under new standards to be developed by the Peace Officer Standards and Training Board.
New bill
The new version of the bill is a compromise between Democratic-Farmer-Labor and Republican lawmakers. GOP lawmakers were pushing for the bill to address police concerns, including giving school resource officers more discretion in how they approach the job.
The bill aims to clarify the confusion surrounding a 2023 state law that put new restrictions on officers’ use of prone restraints on students in schools.
It also defines school resource officers in state law, directs the state to create a set of conduct standards for school resource officers that would go into effect next year, and requires data collection on school officers’ use of force.
Bill sponsor Rep. Cedrick Frazier, DFL-New Hope, said it aims to provide “clarity transparency and accountability when needed.”
Balancing interestsAhead of Thursday’s vote, Frazier acknowledged difficulties in balancing the interests of law enforcement and the activist groups who say face-down restraints should never be permitted because they are excessively dangerous and more likely to be employed against students of color.
“I understand why this conversation has been so passionate, why folks have been so engaged about this,” he said. “Again, we’re coming off of such a tragic situation, when we had the murder of George Floyd , and that vision still resonates with many folks.”
Last fall, more than 40 law enforcement agencies withdrew from schools, citing liability concerns for officers using face-down restraints on students. Republicans pressured Gov. Tim Walz, a DFLer, to call a special session on the issue.
But Attorney General Keith Ellison in September issued an opinion addressing police concerns, at least temporarily, and many agencies sent officers back to schools. No special session happened, but Democratic-Farmer-Labor legislative leadership promised hearings on a permanent fix early on in the 2024 legislative session.
They made good on that pledge, but last week it became unclear whether the bill would remain on the fast track as it took criticism from both sides of the debate on police force in schools.
And amid criticism of the bill from progressive groups last week, it appeared DFL majorities in the legislature might need to court votes from minority Republicans to pass a school officers bill.
Bill passes out of committee
After more discussions with Republicans and law enforcement groups, Frazier presented changes to the bill that passed out of committee Thursday with the support of both parties.
Republicans wanted law enforcement concerns addressed in the bill and appear to have gotten their way on some core issues. It adds language aimed at preserving peace officers’ discretion in using force if new school officers’ conduct rules contradict their duty to protect the public as a whole.
GOP committee members expressed appreciation to their DFL colleagues for helping to address their concerns with the bill. A core Republican complaint about the change to SRO use-of-force rules last session was that it came into law without a discussion involving all stakeholders.
Rep. Jeff Witte, R-Lakeville, thanked Frazier and House Public Safety Chair Kelly Moller, DFL-Shoreview, for working with Republicans to reach a bipartisan solution to the SROs issue that took law enforcement concerns into account.
“That was missing the last time in this process,” said Witte, a former school resource officer.
Now that the SROs bill has cleared the Public Safety Committee in the House, it could see a floor vote in early March, House Speaker Melissa Hortman said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Senate Public Safety Committee passed its companion to the SROs bill on Wednesday and referred it to the Finance Committee. A Senate DFL spokesman said the caucus is still discussing a timeline for their version of the bill.
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