House public safety finance DE2 reviewed; witnesses warn operating adjustments fall short

The Committee on Public Safety, Finance and Policy met to walk through the DE2 amendment to House File 2,432, the House public safety finance bill, and heard multiple agency and stakeholder witnesses say the committee—s funding target leaves substantial operating gaps for the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the Department of Corrections (DOC).

Committee staff opened with a line-by-line spreadsheet walkthrough of Article 1 of the DE2 amendment, comparing the governor—s recommendations (shaded columns) with the House proposal. The walkthrough identified additions to agency bases, program transfers (including fraud investigators moved into the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension), and a set of operating adjustments. Committee members were told the House package adds $50,000,000 per biennium above the February forecast, well below the operating-adjustment totals described in the governor—s budget materials.

The difference matters because testimony from agency leaders and labor representatives described immediate operational impacts. Commissioner Bob Jacobson of the Department of Public Safety told the committee the department—s top priority was the operating adjustment, which pays salaries, rent, information technology and other ongoing costs. Jacobson said the proposed House-level adjustments risked cuts of sworn peace officer positions in the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, could leave the new statewide emergency operations center unaffordable when it opens later this spring, and would hinder federal grant administration at a time when some federal grants have been paused or canceled. "I am hopeful that this committee will adopt the amendment to include the agency wide GRAMa administration authority," Jacobson said, arguing for resources to administer and oversee grants.

Paul Schnell, commissioner of the Department of Corrections, said the department—s requested operating adjustment was much larger than the amount in the DE2 package and that funding at the proposed level would force layoffs and reductions that would undermine safety and programming inside facilities. "At this funding level, the DOC will struggle to maintain safe staffing levels," Schnell said. He warned of potential facility lockdowns, increased idleness and reduced programming, and called such outcomes "warehousing," which he described as counterproductive to public safety.

Representatives of labor and local government echoed those concerns. Devin Bruce of MAPE and Ethan Vogel of AFSCME Council 5 described effects on rehabilitation services, evidence testing and other day-to-day operations. Emilio Lamba of the Association of Minnesota Counties urged full funding of the community supervision formula to support counties carrying out probation and supervised-release responsibilities for roughly 95,000 people.

Committee staff repeatedly noted the committee is not taking final action on the bill during this hearing; members will continue amendment debate and vote on the DE2 at a later meeting. Representative Fice moved to approve the committee minutes from 04/02/2025 earlier in the meeting; the voice motion passed.

The committee discussion also recorded numerous line items and one-time additions in Article 1, including operating adjustments for Homeland Security and Emergency Management, additions to urban search-and-rescue and hazardous-materials response teams, and funding for intensive peace-officer training (IC POET). The staff spreadsheet referenced a proposed transfer of $1,815,000 for fraud and financial crimes activity into the BCA and a proposed creation of a crime victims special revenue account funded by new surcharges and assessments.

The committee adjourned with plans to resume amendment work the following day and with staff materials and written testimony left on members— desks for the next hearing.