Ending Corporal Punishment in Schools Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 727 To end the use of corporal punishment in schools, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 23, 2019 Mr. HASTINGS (for himself, Mr. COHEN, Mr. DESAULNIER, Ms. NORTON, Ms. PINGREE, and Mr. RYAN) introduced the following bill; which was re- ferred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To end the use of corporal punishment in schools, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ending Corporal Pun- 4 ishment in Schools Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) Behavioral interventions for children must 8 promote the right of all children to be treated with 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 727 IH dignity. All children have the right to be free from 1 any corporal punishment. 2 (2) Safe, effective, evidence-based strategies are 3 available to support children who display challenging 4 behaviors in school settings. 5 (3) School personnel have the right to work in 6 a safe environment and should be provided training 7 and support to prevent injury and trauma to them- 8 selves and others. 9 (4) According to the Department of Education’s 10 Technical Assistance Center on School-Wide Positive 11 Behavior Interventions and Support, outcomes asso- 12 ciated with school-wide positive behavior support are: 13 decreased office discipline referrals, increased in- 14 structional time, decreased administrator time spent 15 on discipline issues, efficient and effective use of 16 scarce resources, and increased perception of school 17 safety and sustainability through a team approach. 18 (5) Every 30 seconds during the school year, a 19 public school student is corporally punished. 20 (6) Nineteen States continue to permit corporal 21 punishment in public schools. 22 (7) According to Department of Education sta- 23 tistics, each year in the United States, hundreds of 24 thousands of school children are subjected to cor- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 727 IH poral punishment in public schools. School corporal 1 punishment is usually executed in the form of ‘‘pad- 2 dling’’, or striking students with a wooden paddle on 3 their buttocks or legs, which can result in abrasions, 4 bruising, severe muscle injury, hematomas, whiplash 5 damage, life-threatening hemorrhages, and other 6 medical complications that may require hospitaliza- 7 tion. 8 (8) Gross racial disparity exists in the execution 9 of corporal punishment of public school children, and 10 African-American schoolchildren are disproportion- 11 ately corporally punished. The most recent available 12 statistics show that African-American students make 13 up 18 percent of the national student population, 14 but comprise 40 percent of all students subjected to 15 physical punishment at school. Black children are 16 nearly two-and-a-half times more likely to be cor- 17 porally punished than White children, and nearly 18 eight times more likely to be corporally punished 19 than Hispanic children. 20 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 21 The purposes of this Act are to— 22 (1) eliminate the use of corporal punishment in 23 schools; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 727 IH (2) ensure the safety of all students and school 1 personnel in schools and promote a positive school 2 culture and climate; and 3 (3) assist States, local educational agencies, 4 and schools in identifying and implementing effective 5 evidence-based models to prevent and reduce— 6 (A) corporal punishment in schools; and 7 (B) aversive behavior interventions that 8 compromise health. 9 SEC. 4. PROHIBITION AGAINST CORPORAL PUNISHMENT. 10 Subpart 4 of part C of the General Education Provi- 11 sions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232f et seq.) is amended by adding 12 at the end the following: 13 ‘‘SEC. 448. PROHIBITION AGAINST CORPORAL PUNISH- 14 MENT. 15 ‘‘(a) GENERAL PROHIBITION.—No funds shall be 16 made available under any applicable program to any edu- 17 cational agency or institution, including a local edu- 18 cational agency or State educational agency, that has a 19 policy or practice which allows school personnel to inflict 20 corporal punishment upon a student— 21 ‘‘(1) as a form of punishment; or 22 ‘‘(2) for the purpose of modifying undesirable 23 behavior. 24 ‘‘(b) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 727 IH ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an applicable 1 program under which a local educational agency may 2 only receive funds through a State educational agen- 3 cy that is prohibited under subsection (a) from re- 4 ceiving funds under any applicable program, a local 5 educational agency that is not prohibited under sub- 6 section (a) from receiving such funds may apply di- 7 rectly to the Secretary to receive funds under the 8 program. 9 ‘‘(2) CERTIFICATION.—Each local educational 10 agency applying directly to the Secretary under 11 paragraph (1) shall certify in such application that 12 the agency is not prohibited under subsection (a) 13 from receiving funds under any applicable program. 14 ‘‘(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec- 15 tion shall be construed to preclude school personnel from 16 using, within the scope of employment, reasonable re- 17 straint to the lightest possible degree upon a student, if— 18 ‘‘(1) the student’s behavior poses an imminent 19 danger of physical injury to the student, school per- 20 sonnel, or others; 21 ‘‘(2) less restrictive interventions would be inef- 22 fective in stopping such imminent danger of physical 23 injury; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 727 IH ‘‘(3) the reasonable restraint ends immediately 1 upon the cessation of the conditions described in 2 paragraphs (1) and (2). 3 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 4 ‘‘(1) the term ‘corporal punishment’ has the 5 meaning given such term in section 12 of the End- 6 ing Corporal Punishment in Schools Act of 2019; 7 ‘‘(2) the term ‘educational agency or institution’ 8 means any public or private agency or institution 9 which is the recipient, or serves students who are re- 10 cipients of, funds under any applicable program; 11 ‘‘(3) the terms ‘local educational agency’ and 12 ‘State educational agency’ have the meanings given 13 such terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and 14 Secondary Education Act of 1965; 15 ‘‘(4) the term ‘school personnel’ has the mean- 16 ing given such term in section 12 of the Ending Cor- 17 poral Punishment in Schools Act of 2019; and 18 ‘‘(5) the term ‘student’ includes any person who 19 is in attendance at an educational agency or institu- 20 tion.’’. 21 SEC. 5. STATE PLAN AND ENFORCEMENT. 22 (a) STATE PLAN.—Not later than 18 months after 23 the date of enactment of this Act and every third year 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 727 IH thereafter, each State educational agency shall submit to 1 the Secretary a State plan that provides— 2 (1) assurances to the Secretary that the State 3 has in effect policies and procedures that eliminate 4 the use of corporal punishment in schools; 5 (2) a description of the State’s policies and pro- 6 cedures; and 7 (3) a description of the State plans to ensure 8 school personnel and parents, including private 9 school personnel and parents, are aware of the 10 State’s policies and procedures. 11 (b) ENFORCEMENT.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.— 13 (A) USE OF REMEDIES.—If a State edu- 14 cational agency fails to comply with subsection 15 (a), the Secretary shall— 16 (i) withhold, in whole or in part, fur- 17 ther payments under an applicable pro- 18 gram (as such term is defined in section 19 400(c) of the General Education Provi- 20 sions Act (20 U.S.C. 1221)) in accordance 21 with section 455 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 22 1234d); 23 (ii) enter into a compliance agreement 24 in accordance with section 457 of the Gen- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 727 IH eral Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1 1234f); or 2 (iii) issue a complaint to compel com- 3 pliance of the State educational agency 4 through a cease and desist order, in the 5 same manner the Secretary is authorized 6 to take such action under section 456 of 7 the General Education Provisions Act (20 8 U.S.C. 1234e). 9 (B) CESSATION OF WITHHOLDING OF 10 FUNDS.—Whenever the Secretary determines 11 (whether by certification or other appropriate 12 evidence) that a State educational agency that 13 is subject to the withholding of payments under 14 subparagraph (A)(i) has cured the failure pro- 15 viding the basis for the withholding of pay- 16 ments, the Secretary shall cease the withholding 17 of payments with respect to the State edu- 18 cational agency under such subparagraph. 19 (2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 20 subsection shall be construed to limit the Secretary’s 21 authority under the General Education Provisions 22 Act (20 U.S.C. 1221 et seq.). 23 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec- 24 tion shall be construed to preclude school personnel from 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 727 IH using, within the scope of employment, reasonable re- 1 straint to the lightest possible degree upon a student, if— 2 (1) the student’s behavior poses an imminent 3 danger of physical injury to the student, school per- 4 sonnel, or others; 5 (2) less restrictive interventions would be inef- 6 fective in stopping such imminent danger of physical 7 injury; and 8 (3) the reasonable restraint ends immediately 9 upon the cessation of the conditions described in 10 paragraphs (1) and (2). 11 SEC. 6. GRANT AUTHORITY. 12 (a) IN GENERAL.—From the amount appropriated 13 under section 11, the Secretary may award grants to State 14 educational agencies to assist the agencies in improving 15 school climate and culture by implementing school-wide 16 positive behavior support approaches. 17 (b) DURATION OF GRANT.—A grant under this sec- 18 tion shall be awarded to a State educational agency for 19 a 3-year period. 20 (c) APPLICATION.—Each State educational agency 21 desiring a grant under this section shall submit an appli- 22 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 23 accompanied by such information as the Secretary may 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 727 IH require, including information on how the State edu- 1 cational agency— 2 (1) will develop State training programs on 3 school-wide positive behavior support approaches, 4 such as training programs developed with the assist- 5 ance of the Secretary (acting through the Office of 6 Special Education Programs Technical Assistance 7 Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and 8 Supports of the Department of Education); and 9 (2) will target resources to schools and local 10 educational agencies in need of assistance related to 11 improving school culture and climate through posi- 12 tive behavior supports. 13 (d) AUTHORITY TO MAKE SUBGRANTS.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency 15 receiving a grant under this section may use such 16 grant funds to award subgrants, on a competitive 17 basis, to local educational agencies. 18 (2) APPLICATION.—A local educational agency 19 desiring to receive a subgrant under this section 20 shall submit an application to the applicable State 21 educational agency at such time, in such manner, 22 and containing such information as the State edu- 23 cational agency may require. 24 (e) PRIVATE SCHOOL PARTICIPATION.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 727 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency 1 receiving subgrant funds under this section shall, 2 after timely and meaningful consultation with appro- 3 priate private school officials, ensure that private 4 school personnel can participate, on an equitable 5 basis, in activities supported by funds under this 6 section. 7 (2) PUBLIC CONTROL OF FUNDS.—The control 8 of funds provided under this section, and title to ma- 9 terials, equipment, and property purchased with 10 such funds, shall be in a public agency, and a public 11 agency shall administer such funds, materials, equip- 12 ment, and property. 13 (f) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—A State educational 14 agency receiving a grant, or a local educational agency re- 15 ceiving a subgrant, under this section shall use such grant 16 or subgrant funds to carry out the following: 17 (1) Developing and implementing high-quality 18 professional development and training programs, 19 such as training programs developed with the assist- 20 ance of the Secretary (acting through the Office of 21 Special Education Programs Technical Assistance 22 Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and 23 Supports of the Department of Education), to imple- 24 ment evidence-based systematic approaches to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:05 Feb 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H727.IH H727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 727 IH school-wide positive behavior supports, including im- 1 proving coaching, facilitation, and training capacity 2 for principals and other administrators, teachers, 3 specialized instructional support personnel, and 4 other staff. 5 (2) Providing technical assistance to develop 6 and implement evidence-based systematic approaches 7 to school-wide positive behavior supports, including 8 technical assistance for data-driven decisionmaking 9 related to behavioral supports and interventions in 10 the classroom and throughout common areas. 11 (3) Researching, evaluating, and disseminating 12 high-quality evidence-based programs and activities [Text truncated for display. 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