1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to public safety; expanding fourth-degree assault crime related to transit 
1.3 	operators to include transportation network company drivers; amending Minnesota 
1.4 	Statutes 2023 Supplement, section 609.2231, subdivision 11.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2023 Supplement, section 609.2231, subdivision 11, is 
1.7 	amended to read:
1.8 		Subd. 11.Transit operators. (a) A person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor if (1) the 
1.9 	person assaults a transit operator, or intentionally throws or otherwise transfers bodily fluids 
1.10 	onto a transit operator; and (2) the transit operator is acting in the course of the operator's 
1.11 	duties and is operating a transit vehicle, aboard a transit vehicle, or otherwise responsible 
1.12 	for a transit vehicle. A person convicted under this paragraph may be sentenced to 
1.13 	imprisonment for not more than 364 days or to payment of a fine of not more than $3,000, 
1.14 	or both.
1.15 	(b) For the purposes of this subdivision, "transit operator" means a driver or operator of 
1.16 	a transit vehicle that is used to provide any of the following services:
1.17 	(1) public transit, as defined in section 174.22, subdivision 7;
1.18 	(2) light rail transit service;
1.19 	(3) special transportation service under section 473.386, whether provided by the 
1.20 	Metropolitan Council or by other providers under contract with the council; or
1.21 	(4) commuter rail service; or
2.1 	(5) transportation in a personal vehicle through a transportation network company under 
2.2 	section 65B.472, subdivision 1, paragraph (e).

2.3 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective August 1, 2024, and applies to crimes 
2.4 	committed on or after that date.