Senate hears bill to create Office of Gun Violence Prevention; committee lays it over

Sen. Mann presented Senate File 5‑13 to establish a Minnesota Office of Gun Violence Prevention within the Department of Health, framing gun violence as a public‑health crisis requiring coordination of research, data collection, prevention campaigns and victim services.

Physician witnesses supported the bill. Dr. Kate Shrek, legislative chair of the Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians, described weekly clinical encounters with the effects of gun violence and urged data collection, research and coordinated prevention to reduce injuries and deaths. Dr. Beth Elfstrand, a retired OB‑GYN, highlighted maternal mortality trends that increasingly involve firearm injury and said a centralized office could align domestic‑violence, suicide prevention and maternal health efforts.

Opponents included Anna Lemie of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, who said Minnesota already has agencies that collect crime and mortality data and warned the bill would create a permanent taxpayer‑funded office with broad authority and insufficient guardrails. Senators debated prevention versus prosecution, the scope of data collection and whether establishing a new office is the best use of state resources. After testimony and questions, the committee laid the bill over.