House adopts conference report on public-safety and judiciary bill, includes 4-year phase-out of Stillwater prison

The Minnesota House on an up-or-down voice vote adopted the conference committee report on House File 2432, a public-safety and judiciary omnibus bill, and repassed the bill as amended by the conference committee.

Representative Novotny, the bill author and conference co-chair, moved adoption and described the package as a fiscally constrained compromise that preserves priorities from both parties. "We think that it's a responsible bill that has cut spending, but still keeps priorities for both parties in place," Novotny said.

The conference report combines provisions from separate House and Senate public-safety and judiciary bills. Key policy and funding items mentioned on the floor include continued, though reduced, funding for the Philando Castile Law Enforcement Training program; additional funding for crime-victim advocacy programs; increases in penalties or sentencing provisions for offenses including first-degree human trafficking and first-degree arson;…