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SF3107 (Legislative Session 94 (2025-2026))

Charitable bail organizations regulations provisions and cash bail and surety amounts equity requirement provision

AI Generated Summary

Purpose

The bill aims to regulate charitable bail organizations and ensure equity between cash bail and surety amounts in Minnesota. It seeks to create standards and requirements for organizations posting bail on behalf of defendants, particularly focusing on transparency and accountability.

Main Provisions

  1. Equity Between Cash Bail and Surety Bonds: Judges must set cash bail at amounts that are not less than surety bonds when ordering conditional or unconditional pretrial releases.

  2. Charitable Bail Organization Requirements:

    • Must be a nonprofit registered under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and located in Minnesota.
    • Required to comply fully with certain court rules and register with the state before posting bail.
    • Prohibited from posting bail for individuals charged with or previously convicted of violent offenses.

  3. Operational Guidelines:

    • Charitable bail organizations need to register with the state and submit reports including applications and detailed financial transactions related to bail activities.
    • Organizations are mandated to submit an annual report detailing the number of defendants aided, total bail posted, and bail returned.

  4. Data Collection and Reporting:

    • Sheriffs and court administrators collect data from these organizations, ensuring it's public and reported to the state court administrator.
    • The state court administrator aggregates this data for annual reporting to legislative committees responsible for public safety oversight.

  5. Compliance and Enforcement:

    • Non-compliant organizations face administrative sanctions and penalties.
    • A process for complaints and investigations into organizations is outlined to manage violations of relevant court rules or policies.

  6. Prohibition Clause:

    • District courts and sheriffs cannot accept bail from organizations not complying with outlined statutes.

Significant Changes

  • New requirements are imposed on charitable bail organizations to operate legally within Minnesota.
  • Enhanced transparency and consistent reporting for organizations posting bail.
  • Explicit prohibition of bail support for defendants linked to violent offenses or with past convictions involving violence.

Relevant Terms

charitable bail organization, nonprofit, cash bail, surety bond, violent offense, reporting requirements, public safety, compliance, administrative sanctions, public data.

Bill text versions

Actions

DateChamberWhereTypeNameCommittee Name
March 31, 2025SenateFloorActionIntroduction and first reading
March 31, 2025SenateFloorActionReferred toJudiciary and Public Safety

Citations

 
[
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Clarification on prior violent offenses as a disqualification for charitable bail posting."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Defines a violent offense in relation to charitable bail organizations and their ability to post bail for individuals with previous convictions.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "243.166",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 1b"
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Identification of violations classifying as violent offenses."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Lists violations that categorize a crime as a violent offense, impacting eligibility for charitable bail organizations' posting.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "518B.01",
    "subdivision": ""
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Inclusion of violation specifics related to violent offenses."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Used to define characteristics of violent offenses that charitable bail organizations can't post bail for.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "609.2242",
    "subdivision": ""
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Specific mention of violation as a violent offense."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Defines conditions under which a crime is considered a violent offense, restricting bail posting by organizations.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "609.749",
    "subdivision": ""
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Clarification of crime of violence in context of bail postings."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Provides a comprehensive definition of a crime of violence for restricting charitable bail organizations from posting bail.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "624.712",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 5"
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Explicit inclusion as a condition affecting charitable bail posting."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Defines certain violations that will classify as violent offenses, affecting eligibility for charitable bail.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "629.75",
    "subdivision": ""
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Clarity on data classification as public concerning charitable bail."
      ],
      "removed": [
        ""
      ],
      "summary": "Specifies the classification of public data when it comes to information about charitable bail organizations.",
      "modified": [
        ""
      ]
    },
    "citation": "13.02",
    "subdivision": "subdivisions 14 and 15"
  }
]

Sponsors