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State Representative Tony Cornish
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4240
For more information contact: Jason Wenisch 651-296-2317
NEWS RELEASE
REP. CORNISH’S PUBLIC SAFETY FINANCE BILL APPROVED BY MINNESOTA HOUSE
ST. PAUL – A bill that will fund judiciary and public safety priorities over the next two years has been approved in the Minnesota House. The legislation was authored by State Representative Tony Cornish (R-Good Thunder).
“When you’re facing a $5.1 billion budget deficit, you’re forced to make funding decisions that can be unpopular,” Cornish said. “But it’s important to know that this funding proposal will not force a reduction in criminal investigations. It will keep people who should be in jail or prison behind bars, and it will help keep the public safe.”
Cornish said the plan funds public safety at $1.2 billion over the next budget cycle, which is $58 million less than current spending. He noted that it makes core court services a top priority, as they are the basis of our justice system.
Cornish said he fought successfully to limit reductions to battered women’s programs across the state. While California eliminated funding altogether, and Rhode Island and New York cut similar programs by 60 percent and 50 percent respectively, Minnesota’s programs would only face an eleven percent reduction. He added that the Department of Human Rights will also receive a $4.3 million reduction and a new requirement to use its funding for enforcement, not advertising.
In addition, a number of public safety bills Cornish is chief-authoring this year made the Omnibus Public Safety Finance proposal, including provisions that increase prison sentences for predatory sex offenders rather than move them to the expensive Sex Offender "Treatment" Program; give jurisdiction for prisoners with a 60 day or less sentence to be incarcerated at the local jail rather than at a state prison; and raise co-pays for prisoners who need to visit a doctor.
“It’s a core function of government to keep its citizens safe, and this bill does exactly that,” Cornish said.
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