Keeping All Students Safe Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8782 To prohibit and prevent seclusion, mechanical restraint, chemical restraint, and dangerous restraints that restrict breathing, and to prevent and reduce the use of physical restraint in schools, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOVEMBER 19, 2020 Mr. BEYER (for himself, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. CON- NOLLY, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. NORTON, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. LARSON of Con- necticut, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mr. TONKO, Ms. PINGREE, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. MOORE, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. DESAULNIER, Ms. WILSON of Flor- ida, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. HIMES, Mr. TAKANO, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. COHEN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. SERRANO, Mrs. BUSTOS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. SABLAN, Ms. DEAN, Ms. WILD, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. HAALAND, Ms. MENG, Mr. CASTEN of Illinois, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Mr. TRONE, Ms. WEXTON, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. HASTINGS, Ms. PORTER, Mr. SUOZZI, and Ms. FUDGE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speak- er, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the ju- risdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To prohibit and prevent seclusion, mechanical restraint, chemical restraint, and dangerous restraints that restrict VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8782 IH breathing, and to prevent and reduce the use of physical restraint 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Keeping All Students Safe Act’’. 5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 6 this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Definitions. TITLE I—PROHIBITIONS ON RESTRAINT AND SECLUSION AND ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS Sec. 101. Prohibition, additional requirements. TITLE II—STATE PLAN, REPORTING REQUIREMENTS, AND GRANTS FOR STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES Sec. 201. Definitions. Sec. 202. State plan; reporting requirements. Sec. 203. Grants for State educational agencies. TITLE III—GENERAL PROVISIONS Sec. 301. National assessment. Sec. 302. Protection and advocacy systems. Sec. 303. Schools operated or funded by the Department of the Interior or the Department of Defense. Sec. 304. Rule of construction. Sec. 305. Applicability to private schools and home schools. Sec. 306. Severability. Sec. 307. Authorization of appropriations. SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 8 In this Act: 9 (1) CHEMICAL RESTRAINT.—The term ‘‘chem- 10 ical restraint’’ means a drug or medication used on 11 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8782 IH a student to control behavior or restrict freedom of 1 movement that is not— 2 (A) prescribed by a licensed physician, or 3 other qualified health professional acting under 4 the scope of the professional’s authority under 5 State law, for the standard treatment of a stu- 6 dent’s medical or psychiatric condition; and 7 (B) administered as prescribed by the li- 8 censed physician or other qualified health pro- 9 fessional acting under the scope of the profes- 10 sional’s authority under State law. 11 (2) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘early childhood 12 education program’’, ‘‘educational service agency’’, 13 ‘‘elementary school’’, ‘‘local educational agency’’, 14 ‘‘other staff’’, ‘‘paraprofessional’’, ‘‘parent’’, ‘‘school 15 leader’’, ‘‘secondary school’’, ‘‘specialized instruc- 16 tional support personnel’’, ‘‘State’’, and ‘‘State edu- 17 cational agency’’ have the meanings given the terms 18 in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 19 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 20 (3) MECHANICAL RESTRAINT.—The term ‘‘me- 21 chanical restraint’’ means the use of devices as a 22 means of restricting a student’s freedom of move- 23 ment. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8782 IH (4) PHYSICAL ESCORT.—The term ‘‘physical es- 1 cort’’ means the temporary touching or holding of 2 the hand, wrist, arm, shoulder, or back for the pur- 3 pose of inducing a student who is acting out to walk 4 to a safe location. 5 (5) PHYSICAL RESTRAINT.—The term ‘‘physical 6 restraint’’ means a personal restriction that immo- 7 bilizes or reduces the ability of an individual to move 8 the individual’s arms, legs, torso, or head freely, ex- 9 cept that such term does not include a physical es- 10 cort, mechanical restraint, or chemical restraint. 11 (6) POSITIVE BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS 12 AND SUPPORTS.—The term ‘‘positive behavioral 13 interventions and supports’’— 14 (A) means a schoolwide, systematic ap- 15 proach that embeds evidence-based practices 16 and data-driven decision making to improve 17 school climate and culture in order to achieve 18 improved academic and social outcomes and in- 19 crease learning for all students (including stu- 20 dents with the most complex and intensive be- 21 havioral needs); and 22 (B) encompasses a range of systemic and 23 individualized positive strategies to teach and 24 reinforce school-expected behaviors, while dis- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8782 IH couraging and diminishing undesirable behav- 1 iors. 2 (7) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means— 3 (A) all of the operations of a local edu- 4 cational agency, system of vocational education, 5 or other school system; 6 (B) a program that serves children who re- 7 ceive services for which financial assistance is 8 provided in accordance with the Head Start Act 9 (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.); or 10 (C) an elementary school or secondary 11 school that is not a public school that enrolls a 12 student who receives special education and re- 13 lated services under the Individuals with Dis- 14 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 15 seq.). 16 (8) PROGRAM PERSONNEL.— 17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara- 18 graph (B), the term ‘‘program personnel’’ 19 means any agent of a program, including an in- 20 dividual who is employed by a program, or who 21 performs services for a program on a contrac- 22 tual basis, including— 23 (i) school leaders; 24 (ii) teachers; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8782 IH (iii) specialized instructional support 1 personnel; 2 (iv) paraprofessionals; or 3 (v) other staff. 4 (B) EXCLUSION.—Notwithstanding sub- 5 paragraph (A), program personnel shall not in- 6 clude a school resource officer or a school secu- 7 rity guard. 8 (9) PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEM.—The 9 term ‘‘protection and advocacy system’’ means a 10 protection and advocacy system established under 11 section 143 of the Developmental Disabilities Assist- 12 ance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 13 15043). 14 (10) SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER.—The term 15 ‘‘school resource officer’’ means a sworn law enforce- 16 ment officer who is— 17 (A) assigned by the employing police de- 18 partment to a program; 19 (B) contracting with a program; or 20 (C) employed by a program. 21 (11) SCHOOL SECURITY GUARD.—The term 22 ‘‘school security guard’’ means an individual who is 23 not a sworn law enforcement officer and who is re- 24 sponsible for addressing one or more of the following 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8782 IH safety and crime prevention activities in and around 1 a program: 2 (A) Assisting program personnel in safety 3 incidents. 4 (B) Educating students in crime and ille- 5 gal drug use prevention and safety. 6 (C) Developing or expanding community 7 justice initiatives for students. 8 (D) Training students in conflict resolution 9 and supporting restorative justice programs. 10 (E) Serving as a liaison between the pro- 11 gram and outside agencies, including other law 12 enforcement agencies. 13 (F) Screening students or visitors to the 14 program for prohibited items. 15 (12) SECLUSION.—The term ‘‘seclusion’’ means 16 the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a 17 room or area from which the student is physically 18 prevented from leaving, except that such term does 19 not include a time out. 20 (13) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 21 means the Secretary of Education. 22 (14) SPECIAL EDUCATION SCHOOL.—The term 23 ‘‘special education school’’ means a school that fo- 24 cuses primarily on serving the needs of students 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8782 IH with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabil- 1 ities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) or sec- 2 tion 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 3 U.S.C. 794). 4 (15) STATE-APPROVED CRISIS INTERVENTION 5 TRAINING PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘State-approved 6 crisis intervention training program’’ means a train- 7 ing program approved by a State and the Secretary 8 that, at a minimum, provides— 9 (A) training in evidence-based techniques 10 shown to be effective in the prevention of phys- 11 ical restraint; 12 (B) evidence-based skills training related 13 to positive behavioral interventions and sup- 14 ports, safe physical escort, conflict prevention, 15 understanding antecedents, de-escalation, and 16 conflict management; 17 (C) training in evidence-based techniques 18 shown to be effective in keeping both school 19 personnel and students safe when imposing 20 physical restraint; 21 (D) training in first aid and 22 cardiopulmonary resuscitation; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8782 IH (E) information describing State policies 1 and procedures to ensure compliance with sec- 2 tion 101; and 3 (F) certification for school personnel, 4 school resource officers, and school security 5 guards in the techniques and skills described in 6 subparagraphs (A) through (D), which shall be 7 required to be renewed on a periodic basis. 8 (16) STUDENT.—The term ‘‘student’’ means— 9 (A) for purposes of title I, a student en- 10 rolled in a program; and 11 (B) for purposes of title II, a student en- 12 rolled in an elementary school or secondary 13 school. 14 (17) TIME OUT.— 15 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘time out’’ 16 means a behavior management technique that 17 may involve the separation of the student from 18 the group or classroom in a non-locked setting. 19 (B) CLARIFICATION.—The term ‘‘time 20 out’’ does not include— 21 (i) seclusion; or 22 (ii) a separation of the student de- 23 scribed in subparagraph (A) from which 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8782 IH such student is physically or otherwise pro- 1 hibited from leaving. 2 TITLE I—PROHIBITIONS ON RE- 3 STRAINT AND SECLUSION 4 AND ADDITIONAL REQUIRE- 5 MENTS 6 SEC. 101. PROHIBITION, ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS. 7 (a) PROHIBITION.—No student shall be subjected to 8 unlawful seclusion or restraint by program personnel, a 9 school resource officer, or a school security guard, while 10 attending any program that receives Federal financial as- 11 sistance. 12 (b) UNLAWFUL SECLUSION OR RESTRAINT DE- 13 FINED.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 15 ‘‘unlawful seclusion or restraint’’ means— 16 (A) seclusion; 17 (B) mechanical restraint; 18 (C) chemical restraint; 19 (D) physical restraint or physical escort 20 that is life threatening, that restricts breathing, 21 or that restricts blood flow to the brain, includ- 22 ing prone and supine restraint; 23 (E) physical restraint that is contra- 24 indicated based on the student’s disability, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 8782 IH health care needs, or medical or psychiatric con- 1 dition, as documented in— 2 (i) a health care directive or medical 3 management plan; 4 (ii) a behavior intervention plan; 5 (iii) an individualized education pro- 6 gram or an individualized family service 7 plan (as defined in section 602 of the Indi- 8 viduals with Disabilities Education Act (20 9 U.S.C. 1401)); 10 (iv) a plan developed pursuant to sec- 11 tion 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 12 (29 U.S.C. 794) or title II of the Ameri- 13 cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 14 U.S.C. 12131 et seq.); or 15 (v) another relevant record made 16 available to the State or program involved; 17 or 18 (F) physical restraint that is not in compli- 19 ance with subsection (e)(1). 20 (2) NOT INCLUDED.—The term ‘‘unlawful se- 21 clusion or restraint’’ shall not include— 22 (A) a time out; or 23 (B) a device implemented by trained school 24 personnel, or utilized by a student, for the spe- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:12 Dec 23, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8782.IH H8782 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 8782 IH cific and approved therapeutic or safety pur- 1 poses for which such devices were designed and, 2 if applicable, prescribed, provided that such de- 3 vices are not used to purposefully cause a stu- 4 dent pain as a means of behavioral modifica- 5 tion, including— 6 (i) restraints for medical immobiliza- 7 tion; 8 (ii) adaptive devices or mechanical 9 supports used to achieve proper body posi- 10 tion, balance, or alignment to allow greater 11 freedom of mobility than would be possible 12 without the use of such devices or mechan- 13 ical supports; or 14 (iii) vehicle safety restraints when 15 used as intended during the transport of a 16 student in a moving vehicle. 17 (c) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 18 (1) IN GENERAL.—A student who has been sub- [Text truncated for display. 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