1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to education policy; allowing for the use of seclusion as a restrictive
1.3 procedure; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 125A.0942, subdivisions
1.4 4, 6.
1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.6 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 125A.0942, subdivision 4, is amended to
1.7read:
1.8 Subd. 4.Prohibitions.The following actions or procedures are prohibited:
1.9 (1) engaging in conduct prohibited under section 121A.58;
1.10 (2) requiring a child to assume and maintain a specified physical position, activity, or
1.11posture that induces physical pain;
1.12 (3) totally or partially restricting a child's senses as punishment;
1.13 (4) presenting an intense sound, light, or other sensory stimuli using smell, taste,
1.14substance, or spray as punishment;
1.15 (5) denying or restricting a child's access to equipment and devices such as walkers,
1.16wheelchairs, hearing aids, and communication boards that facilitate the child's functioning,
1.17except when temporarily removing the equipment or device is needed to prevent injury to
1.18the child or others or serious damage to the equipment or device, in which case the equipment
1.19or device shall be returned to the child as soon as possible;
1.20 (6) interacting with a child in a manner that constitutes sexual abuse, neglect, or physical
1.21abuse under chapter 260E;
1Section 1.
25-02707 as introduced01/23/25 REVISOR CR/CH
SENATE
STATE OF MINNESOTA
S.F. No. 1830NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
(SENATE AUTHORS: SEEBERGER and Farnsworth)
OFFICIAL STATUSD-PGDATE
Introduction and first reading02/24/2025
Referred to Education Policy 2.1 (7) withholding regularly scheduled meals or water;
2.2 (8) denying access to bathroom facilities;
2.3 (9) physical holding that restricts or impairs a child's ability to breathe, restricts or impairs
2.4a child's ability to communicate distress, places pressure or weight on a child's head, throat,
2.5neck, chest, lungs, sternum, diaphragm, back, or abdomen, or results in straddling a child's
2.6torso; and
2.7 (10) prone restraint; and.
2.8 (11) the use of seclusion on children from birth through grade 3 by September 1, 2024.
2.9 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 125A.0942, subdivision 6, is amended to read:
2.10 Subd. 6.Behavior supports; reasonable force.(a) School districts are encouraged to
2.11establish effective schoolwide systems of positive behavior interventions and supports.
2.12 (b) Nothing in this section or section 125A.0941 precludes the use of reasonable force
2.13under sections 121A.582; 609.06, subdivision 1; and 609.379. Any reasonable force used
2.14under sections 121A.582; 609.06, subdivision 1; and 609.379 which intends to hold a child
2.15immobile or limit a child's movement where body contact is the only source of physical
2.16restraint or confines a child alone in a room from which egress is barred shall be reported
2.17to the Department of Education as a restrictive procedure, including physical holding or
2.18seclusion used by an unauthorized or untrained staff person.
2.19 (c) By February 1, 2024, the commissioner, in cooperation with stakeholders, must make
2.20recommendations to the legislature for urgently ending seclusion in Minnesota schools. The
2.21commissioner must consult with interested stakeholders, including parents of students who
2.22have been secluded or restrained; advocacy organizations; legal services providers; special
2.23education directors; teachers; paraprofessionals; intermediate school districts and cooperative
2.24units as defined under section 123A.24, subdivision 2; school boards; day treatment
2.25providers; county social services; state human services department staff; mental health
2.26professionals; autism experts; and representatives of groups disproportionately affected by
2.27restrictive procedures, including People of Color and people with disabilities. The
2.28recommendations must include specific dates for ending seclusion by grade or facility. The
2.29recommendations must identify existing resources and the new resources necessary for staff
2.30capacity, staff training, children's supports, child mental health services, and schoolwide
2.31collaborative efforts.
2Sec. 2.
25-02707 as introduced01/23/25 REVISOR CR/CH