SF 1674

as introduced - 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020) Posted on 02/13/2020 03:12pm

A bill for an act
relating to education; establishing requirements for school resource officers;
proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 121A.

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

Section 1.

new text begin [121A.275] SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Role within school setting. new text end

new text begin A school resource officer (SRO) supports
and facilitates the educational process in a school district by providing a safe and secure
environment, establishing meaningful relationships with students and staff, and proactively
interacting with the school community to ensure the enforcement of state and local laws.
An SRO is responsible for preserving public order, protecting life, and preventing, detecting,
or investigating crime. An SRO must work effectively with students, parents, school
personnel, and community agencies to support teaching and learning in schools. An SRO
must patrol district property to protect students, staff, and visitors from physical harm and
prevent loss to district property resulting from criminal activity. An SRO must not arrest
students for disciplinary issues that would be handled by a teacher or administrator if there
was not an SRO working in the school.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Memorandum of understanding. new text end

new text begin A school district that contracts for peace
officer services in the district's schools must maintain a memorandum of understanding
with the law enforcement agency regarding the role of the SRO. The memorandum of
understanding must establish an agreement between both parties about the role of the SRO,
including:
new text end

new text begin (1) the relationship of the SRO and the school site administrators;
new text end

new text begin (2) a method to report complaints about the SRO to the law enforcement agency and a
meaningful process for complaint resolution;
new text end

new text begin (3) documentation and reporting requirements requested by the school;
new text end

new text begin (4) information sharing, such as body-worn camera footage, in accordance with chapter
13;
new text end

new text begin (5) financial responsibility for SRO training;
new text end

new text begin (6) day-to-day duties of the SRO;
new text end

new text begin (7) expectations of attendance at extracurricular activities and compensation for
attendance; and
new text end

new text begin (8) additional SRO training requirements.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin SRO training. new text end

new text begin (a) An SRO must be trained on school-based policing, in addition
to other peace officer training requirements, before initial placement with the school district.
The SRO must receive at least 40 hours of initial training for a period not to exceed three
months. The law enforcement agency is responsible for ensuring that the SRO is appropriately
trained for school placement. Unless another agreement is established in the memorandum
of understanding under subdivision 2, the law enforcement agency and the school district
must split the expense of training the SRO.
new text end

new text begin (b) The SRO training may be in-person or online. SRO training topics must include
community policing in schools, legal issues, cultural fluency, problem solving, safe school
preparation, child development, mental health intervention, restorative justice practices,
teaching, and classroom management strategies. At the end of training, the SRO must
demonstrate mastery of skills taught during training. After the initial training, an SRO must
receive a lesser amount of additional training each year to continue working as an SRO.
Parties to the memorandum of understanding under subdivision 2 must determine the amount
of additional SRO training required after the initial training.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin School administrator training. new text end

new text begin A principal or other person with general
administrative control and supervision of a school building where an SRO is assigned must
complete one hour of training each year on the role of school administrators as it relates to
the role of the SRO. The school district is responsible to ensure that principals are trained.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Reporting. new text end

new text begin An SRO must report monthly to the school principal on school-based
arrests, referrals to law enforcement, and criminal complaint filings. A school board must
report this information along with other student disciplinary data to the commissioner
according to section 121A.53, subdivision 2.
new text end