HF 547

as introduced - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 01/19/2023 02:56pm

A bill for an act
relating to public safety; requiring legislative approval of proposed changes to the
Sentencing Guidelines; amending Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 244.09,
subdivision 11.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 244.09, subdivision 11, is amended to read:

Subd. 11.

Modification.

The commission shall meet as necessary for the purpose of
modifying and improving the guidelines. Any modification which amends the Sentencing
Guidelines grid, including severity levels and criminal history scores, or which would result
in the reduction of any sentence or in the early release of any inmate, with the exception of
a modification mandated or authorized by the legislature or relating to a crime created or
amended by the legislature in the preceding session, shall be submitted to the legislature by
January 15 of any year in which the commission wishes to make the change and shall be
effective on August 1 of that year deleted text begin , unless deleted text end new text begin if new text end the legislature by law deleted text begin provides otherwise deleted text end new text begin adopts
or amends the modification new text end . All other modifications shall take effect according to the
procedural rules of the commission. On or before January 15 of each year, the commission
shall submit a written report to the committees of the senate and the house of representatives
with jurisdiction over criminal justice policy that new text begin describes the commission's activities over
the previous year and new text end identifies and explains all modifications made during the preceding
12 months and all proposed modifications that are being submitted to the legislature that
year.