Safe schools revenue increase and safe schools aid expansion to charter and nonpublic schools

A bill for an act

relating to education finance; increasing safe schools revenue; expanding safe

schools aid to charter schools and nonpublic schools; requiring a report;

appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 123B.41, by

adding a subdivision; 123B.61; 126C.44; proposing coding for new law in

Minnesota Statutes, chapter 123B.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 123B.41, is amended by adding a subdivision

to read:

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Subd. 16.

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Safe schools activities.

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"Safe schools activities" means the student and staff

safety measures authorized in section 126C.44, subdivision 4.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective July 1, 2025.

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Sec. 2.

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[123B.442] SCHOOL SAFETY MEASURES.

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(a) Each school year, the commissioner must allot to the school districts or intermediary

service areas for the purposes of school safety activities authorized in section 123B.41,

subdivision 16, the amount calculated under section 126C.44, subdivision 2e, for distribution

to a respective nonpublic school located within that school district.

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(b) A nonpublic school receiving funds under this section must annually prepare a report

detailing its expenditures of these funds on qualifying school safety activities and provide

that report to the school district making the allotment.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective July 1, 2025.

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Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 123B.61, is amended to read:

123B.61 PURCHASE OF CERTAIN EQUIPMENT.

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(a)
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The board of a district may issue general obligation certificates of indebtedness or

capital notes subject to the district debt limits to:

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(a)
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(1)
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purchase vehicles, computers, telephone systems, cable equipment, photocopy

and office equipment, technological equipment for instruction,
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public announcement systems,

emergency communications devices, other equipment related to violence prevention and

facility security,
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and other capital equipment having an expected useful life at least as long

as the terms of the certificates or notes;

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(b)
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(2)
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purchase computer hardware and software, without regard to its expected useful

life, whether bundled with machinery or equipment or unbundled, together with application

development services and training related to the use of the computer; and

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(c)
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(3)
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prepay special assessments.

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(b)
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The certificates or notes must be payable in not more than 20 years and must be

issued on the terms and in the manner determined by the board. The certificates or notes

may be issued by resolution and without the requirement for an election. The certificates

or notes are general obligation bonds for purposes of section
126C.55
.

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(c)
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A tax levy must be made for the payment of the principal and interest on the

certificates or notes, in accordance with section
475.61
, as in the case of bonds. The sum

of the tax levies under this section and section
123B.62
for each year must not exceed the

lesser
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of the sum
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of the amount of the district's total operating capital revenue
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and safe

schools revenue
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or the sum of the district's levy in the general and community service funds

excluding the adjustments under this section for the year preceding the year the initial debt

service levies are certified.

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(d)
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The district's general fund levy for each year must be reduced by the sum of
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:
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(1) the amount of the tax levies for debt service certified for each year for payment of

the principal and interest on the certificates or notes issued under this section as required

by section
475.61
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,
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;
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(2) the amount of the tax levies for debt service certified for each year for payment of

the principal and interest on bonds issued under section
123B.62
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,
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;
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and

(3) any excess amount in the debt redemption fund used to retire bonds, certificates, or

notes issued under this section or section
123B.62
after April 1, 1997, other than amounts

used to pay capitalized interest.

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(e)
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If the district's general fund levy is less than the amount of the reduction, the balance

shall be deducted first from the district's community service fund levy, and next from the

district's general fund or community service fund levies for the following year.

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(f)
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A district using an excess amount in the debt redemption fund to retire the certificates

or notes shall report the amount used for this purpose to the commissioner by July 15 of the

following fiscal year. A district having an outstanding capital loan under section
126C.69

must not use an excess amount in the debt redemption fund to retire the certificates or notes.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective July 1, 2025.

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Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 126C.44, is amended to read:

126C.44 SAFE SCHOOLS REVENUE.

Subdivision 1.

Safe schools revenue for school districts.

A school district's safe schools

revenue equals
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the sum of the district's safe schools aid and
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its safe schools levy.

Subd. 2.

School district safe schools levy.

A school district's safe schools levy equals
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the sum of
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$36 times the district's adjusted pupil units for the school year
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and its intermediate

school district safe schools levy under subdivision 3
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.

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Subd. 2b.

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Safe schools aid.

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(a) For fiscal year 2026 and later, the safe schools aid for a

district equals $36 times the district's adjusted pupil units for the school year.

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(b) For fiscal year 2026 and later, the cooperative safe schools aid for a school district

that is a member of a cooperative unit that enrolls students equals $15 times the district's

adjusted pupil units for the school year.

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Subd. 2c.

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Safe schools revenue allocated to cooperative units.

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Revenue raised under

this section for cooperative units must be transferred to the intermediate school district or

other cooperative unit of which the district is a member and used only for costs associated

with safe schools activities authorized under subdivision 4, paragraph (a), clauses (1) to

(11). If the district is a member of more than one cooperative unit that enrolls students, the

district must designate one cooperative unit to receive cooperative safe schools revenue and

report that information to the Department of Education in the form and manner specified

by the commissioner.

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Subd. 2d.

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Safe schools revenue for a charter school.

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(a) For fiscal year 2026 and later,

safe schools revenue for a charter school equals $36 times the adjusted pupil units for the

school year.

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(b) The revenue must be reserved and used only for costs associated with safe schools

activities authorized under subdivision 4, paragraph (a), clauses (1) to (11), or for building

lease expenses not funded by charter school building lease aid that are attributable to facility

security enhancements made by the landlord after February 1, 2025.

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Subd. 2e.

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Safe schools revenue for a nonpublic school.

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For fiscal year 2026 and later,

safe schools revenue for a nonpublic school equals $36 times the school's enrollment for

the previous school year. The aid must be allotted according to section 123B.442.

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Subd. 3.

Safe schools revenue for intermediate school districts.

A school district that

is a member of an intermediate school district may include in its levy authority under this

section the costs associated with safe schools activities authorized under this section for

intermediate school district programs. This authority must not exceed the product of $15

and the adjusted pupil units of the member districts. This authority is in addition to any

other authority authorized under this section. Revenue raised under this subdivision must

be transferred to the intermediate school district.

Subd. 4.

Use of safe schools revenue.

(a) Safe schools revenue must be reserved and

used for directly funding the following purposes or for reimbursing the cities and counties

who contract with the district for the following purposes:

(1) to pay the costs incurred for the salaries, benefits, and transportation costs of peace

officers and sheriffs for liaison in services in the district's schools;

(2) to pay the costs for a drug abuse prevention program as defined in section
609.101,

subdivision 3
, paragraph (e), in the elementary schools;

(3) to pay the costs for a gang resistance education training curriculum in the district's

schools;

(4) to pay the costs for security in the district's schools and on school property;

(5) to pay the costs for other crime prevention, drug abuse, student and staff safety,

voluntary opt-in suicide prevention tools, and violence prevention measures taken by the

school district;

(6) to pay costs for licensed school counselors, licensed school nurses, licensed school

social workers, licensed school psychologists, and licensed alcohol and substance use

disorder counselors to help provide early responses to problems;

(7) to pay for facility security enhancements including laminated glass, public

announcement systems, emergency communications devices, and equipment and facility

modifications related to violence prevention and facility security;

(8) to pay for costs associated with improving the school climate;

(9) to pay costs for colocating and collaborating with mental health professionals who

are not district employees or contractors
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or for school-linked behavioral health services

delivered by telemedicine
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;
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or
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(10) to pay for the costs of cybersecurity measures, including updating computer hardware

and software, other systems upgrades, and cybersecurity insurance costs
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.
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; or
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(11) by board resolution, to transfer money into the debt redemption fund to pay, when

due, the amounts needed to meet principal and interest payments on obligations issued under

sections 123B.61 and 123B.62 for purposes in clause (8).

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(b) For expenditures under paragraph (a), clause (1), the district must initially attempt

to contract for services to be provided by peace officers or sheriffs with the police department

of each city or the sheriff's department of the county within the district containing the school

receiving the services. If a local police department or a county sheriff's department does

not wish to provide the necessary services, the district may contract for these services with

any other police or sheriff's department located entirely or partially within the school district's

boundaries.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective for state aid for fiscal year 2026 and

later.

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Sec. 5.
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APPROPRIATION; SAFE SCHOOLS REVENUE.
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Subdivision 1.

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Department of Education.

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The sums indicated in this section are

appropriated from the general fund to the Department of Education in the fiscal years

designated.

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Subd. 2.

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Safe schools aid.

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For safe schools aid under Minnesota Statutes, section

126C.44:

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$

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.......

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.....

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2026

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$

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.......

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.....

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2027

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