Minneapolis – The Minnesota Business Partnership (MBP) today sent a letter to Governor Tim Walz and legislative leaders urging them to move quickly to reach a compromise agreement on policing reform (see letter). Lawmakers recently adjourned a Special Session without reconciling different police reform packages passed by the Minnesota House and Senate.
“The lack of tangible progress on police reforms in the recent special session was disappointing, but we believe that a compromise agreement remains within reach,” said Charlie Weaver, executive director of the Minnesota Business Partnership. “We respectfully, but urgently, request that lawmakers address police reforms now and then lean into the hard work of addressing economic, educational and other disparities that have existed for far too long.”
The MBP supports an array of policing reforms aimed at addressing police misconduct and increasing accountability and transparency, including:
- Enhanced models of community policing
- Required reporting of police use-of-force encounters and greater accountability for officer misconduct
- Enhanced training in de-escalation tactics with a focus on identifying and addressing individuals experiencing a mental health crisis, who have Autism Spectrum Disorder, or are under the influence of drugs or alcohol
- Improved background checks for both those wanting to go into law enforcement and routine officer evaluations to ensure the most qualified people are on the police force
- Additional mental health resources for officers that have witnessed critical incidents and improve the utilization of peer-to-peer mental health support systems
- Reform of the binding arbitration system for police officers disciplined for misconduct
- POST Board reform
- Requiring a duty to intervene and report for officers on the scene of an excessive force incident
Minneapolis – The Minnesota Business Partnership (MBP) today sent a letter to Governor Tim Walz and legislative leaders urging them to move quickly to reach a compromise agreement on policing reform (see letter). Lawmakers recently adjourned a Special Session without reconciling different police reform packages passed by the Minnesota House and Senate.
“The lack of tangible progress on police reforms in the recent special session was disappointing, but we believe that a compromise agreement remains within reach,” said Charlie Weaver, executive director of the Minnesota Business Partnership. “We respectfully, but urgently, request that lawmakers address police reforms now and then lean into the hard work of addressing economic, educational and other disparities that have existed for far too long.”
The MBP supports an array of policing reforms aimed at addressing police misconduct and increasing accountability and transparency, including: