Committee hears informational presentation on House File 3220 to fund law-enforcement Knox Boxes at schools

The Capital Investment Committee on April 29 heard an informational presentation on House File 3220, which would cancel an expiring $1,800,000 balance from the 2018 school‑safety grants and reappropriate the money to purchase law‑enforcement Knox Boxes for schools across Minnesota.

The bill was introduced by Representative Green, who said the A‑1 amendment adds tribal contract schools to the bill’s scope and that the funding would be sufficient to outfit every public school in the state with one law‑enforcement Knox Box. The sponsor cited existing local adoption—"66 school districts including Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Rochester, Duluth have already installed these secure key boxes, which is equal to about 180 school facilities statewide"—and national guidance, including recommendations in the U.S. Department of Justice’s report after the Robb Elementary (Uvalde) tragedy, as support for wider deployment.

Representative Jeff Witte, a co‑author who described his background as a former Burnsville police officer, said the boxes give law enforcement immediate access to building keys and can speed response in an active emergency. "Seconds can truly matter," Witte said, describing placement and relationship‑building with school staff as part of safe implementation. Knox Company representative Peter Clough answered committee questions about product configuration and said police and fire often maintain separate boxes for liability and key‑control reasons.

Committee members asked whether the proposed law‑enforcement boxes would be separate from fire department boxes and raised liability and maintenance questions. Representative Frederick asked specifically whether the law‑enforcement box would be separate; sponsors and the Knox Company said boxes can be dual but are often kept distinct so that a missing key in one box does not compromise the other emergency service. The sponsors also stressed minimal maintenance needs for schools and suggested the program aligns with the original intent of the 2018 grants.

The presentation was informational; no committee action or vote occurred on House File 3220 during the April 29 meeting. Sponsors indicated they will pursue next steps consistent with the committee’s usual bill process.