Kupec defends public safety budget, enhanced background checks, ‘red flag’ vote

Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – State Sen. Rob Kupec, DFL-Moorhead, praised the senate’s passage of a public safety budget out of the state’s upper chamber on early Saturday morning.

In a news release, Kupec said the public safety budget will keep Minnesotans safe by investing $880 million in law enforcement, crime prevention, mental health services, youth intervention programs, and bolstering the state’s court system.

The budget also included two attached gun safety measures. The first would expand the state’s background checks for private firearms sales, like sales that occur at gun shows. The second measure would implement a “red flag” law in Minnesota, which would allow family members to petition law enforcement to temporarily remove guns from an individual deemed a threat to themselves or others.

During debate on the senate floor, Kupec said: “Actually, I ran on a platform that included enhanced background checks,” said Kupec. “I hear lots of things about my district, and I get lots of emails about my district from people who aren’t in my district, but I ran in my district and I did actually run on this … so there are lots of people, even in Greater Minnesota, who want enhanced background checks.”

Kupec also said he’s met with numerous gun owners and gun safety advocacy groups since being elected, and, while he has opposed other gun safety legislation, he believes the two safety measures included in the budget could make an impact.

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” he said. “Do I think these two provisions are going to solve all of our problems? No. Do I think more funding for mental health, which we are doing a lot of this session, we are providing a lot of money to mental health … I think that’s going to help a lot.”

Kupec concluded his remarks by saying: “We have to do something. And of all the things that have been brought forward this session, I feel like these are definitely the least onerous of things we can do,” said Kupec. “If they can make a small incremental change, than I think they are worth trying.”

The last day of the Minnesota Legislative session is May 22.