After hours of floor debate Friday night, April 29, the Minnesota House passed the DFL-backed $340 million public safety bill 68-61 on party lines. House public safety committee chair Carlos Mariani, the bill’s sponsor, said the House DFL public safety package looks to new, innovative solutions to crime rather than relying on cracking down on offenders. Republicans have been pushing for a tough-on-crime approach that would stiffen penalties for certain offenses and provide police officer recruitment incentives across the state.