HF4799

Purpose

• Establish a voluntary school safety video analytics grant program to help schools use video analytics software with their current camera systems. The goal is to improve school safety through better threat detection, situational awareness, and quicker responses during safety incidents.

What the program would do

• Provide grants to school districts, charter schools, and nonpublic schools to cover the purchase, licensing, implementation, training, and ongoing maintenance of video analytics software.
• The software must operate on existing camera infrastructure and not require buying new cameras or hardware unless it is needed to integrate with current systems.

Eligible uses

• Funding can be used for:
  • Acquisition and licensing of software
  • Implementation and training
  • Ongoing maintenance
  • Tools to support early threat detection, situational awareness, monitoring of unauthorized entry or restricted areas, and real-time alerts to school staff and first responders
  • Features that reduce the need for constant manual monitoring

Participation and local control

• Participation in the program is voluntary.
• Schools that participate retain local control over how the software is implemented, configured, and how it is managed on a day-to-day basis.

Data privacy safeguards

• Schools must follow all applicable state and federal privacy laws, including Minnesota’s data privacy laws (Chapter 13) and the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
• Video analytics systems must include privacy-protective features, such as facial image masking by default, so monitoring does not identify individuals unless necessary for a defined security purpose.
• If facial recognition features are used, they must be limited to narrowly defined high-risk watch lists created by the school or district and governed by written local policy.
• Data collected through the program may only be used for school safety and operational purposes and cannot be used for general surveillance or for disciplining students not related to safety.

Grant awards and priorities

• When awarding grants, the commissioner should prioritize:
  • Using existing camera infrastructure where possible and enabling operation across multiple cameras and systems to reduce costs
  • Demonstrating a documented school safety need
  • Providing a plan for staff training and incident response
  • Allowing evaluation of outcomes over time, including how effective AI-based video analytics are at early threat detection, speeding up responses, and reducing the need for constant manual monitoring

Geographic distribution

• The program must ensure funding in specific geographic ways:
  • At least three grants to public schools and at least three grants to nonpublic schools located in the seven-county metropolitan area
  • At least three grants to public schools and at least three grants to nonpublic schools located outside the seven-county metropolitan area

Reporting requirements

• By January 15, 2027, and each year after, the commissioner must issue a report to the chairs and ranking minority members of the legislative committees with jurisdiction over K-12 education finance and policy.
• The report must include:
  • Grant recipients and award amounts
  • General categories of grant-funded activities
  • Observed safety or operational outcomes
  • Recommendations for any statutory changes

Significance and potential impact

• Creates a formal, government-funded pathway for schools to adopt video analytics with a focus on safety and rapid response.
• Establishes clear privacy protections and limits on how the data and technology can be used.
• Sets structured reporting to track effectiveness and guide future policy.

What this would change in law

• Adds a new Minnesota Statutes section (within chapter 123B) creating the School Safety Video Analytics Grant Program, including definitions of eligible uses, privacy safeguards, grant award criteria, and reporting requirements. It codifies voluntary participation, local control, and a data-use framework centered on safety and operations rather than broader surveillance or disciplinary purposes.

Relevant terms - school safety video analytics grant program - voluntary grant program - existing camera infrastructure - acquisition, licensing, implementation, training, maintenance - early threat detection - situational awareness - monitoring of unauthorized access - real-time alerting - automated notifications - privacy-protective features - facial image masking - facial recognition - high-risk watch lists - written local policy - data privacy laws - Chapter 13 - FERPA (US Code 20 U.S.C. § 1232g) - school safety and operational purposes - general surveillance - student discipline - grant awards - public schools - nonpublic schools - seven-county metropolitan area - reporting requirements - legislative committees (K-12 education finance and policy)