Associated Press
ST. PAUL — Coaches and leaders of other school activities would be in for some extra scrutiny under a House bill that aims to protect children from sexual exploitation.
The Minnesota House voted 118-11 for a plan to make school districts run criminal background checks on coaches and people who lead other extracurricular activities.
Rep. Karla Bigham said news reports about coaches having inappropriate sexual contact with students prompted her proposal.
"If this prevents one incident, then this law has been successful," said Bigham, DFL-Cottage Grove.
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Objections came from Rep. Mark Buesgens, R-Jordan, who said the requirement would be another burden for strapped school districts and could make it harder to recruit coaches.
