Why Minnesota’s Bail Professionals Just Formed a Statewide Association

A change is working its way through Minnesota’s courts that few residents have heard about. We formed to make sure they do.

Minnesota’s bail professionals have launched a new statewide nonprofit, the Minnesota Bail Association (MBA), to defend secured bail and to give the profession one credible voice with lawmakers, the courts, and the public. We formed for a simple reason: the state is steadily moving away from the use of bail, and most Minnesotans have no idea it’s happening or what it will cost them.

What secured bail actually does

When a defendant is released on secured bail, a licensed agent assumes financial responsibility for ensuring the defendant returns to court. If they don't appear for court, the agent pays. The money is only part of it, though. Good bail agents connect their clients with resources most defendants can't find on their own: sobriety programs, mental health treatment, help navigating a court system that confuses even the people who work in it. And if a defendant fails to appear, the agent has legal authority to help them navigate this issue and, when necessary, to apprehend and return them to custody. The result is real, continuous accountability paired with genuine opportunities for intervention and rehabilitation, outcomes that reduce recidivism and cost taxpayers nothing. Replacing it with a government-run supervision system doesn't make accountability free. It just moves the bill to the taxpayer.

What’s at stake

Eliminating cash bail would, in the Association’s view, weaken public safety, sideline crime victims, and hand taxpayers the cost of a larger government system, one that has a weaker track record of getting people back to court and fails to provide meaningful intervention.

We invite every licensed bail agent and agency owner in Minnesota to stand with us — and we invite every Minnesotan to read on and see what’s being decided for them.

Join the fight.  The Minnesota Bail Association is calling on every licensed bail agent and agency owner in the state to join. Learn more and get involved at minnesotabailassociation.com.