Safe Schools Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2592 To allow States and local educational agencies to use any remaining COVID– 19 elementary and secondary school emergency relief funds for school security measures. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 13, 2023 Mr. MIKE GARCIA of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce A BILL To allow States and local educational agencies to use any remaining COVID–19 elementary and secondary school emergency relief funds for school security measures. 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 ‘‘Safe Schools Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR SCHOOL SECURITY. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi- 6 sion of an ESSERF program or any other law, a State 7 or local educational agency that has received funds under 8 an ESSERF program may, in lieu of the original re- 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:07 Apr 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2592.IH H2592 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2592 IH quested or authorized use for such funds, use a portion 1 of, or all, of the unexpended funds to carry out 1 or more 2 school security measures. 3 (b) NO FEDERAL INTERFERENCE.—The Secretary of 4 Education shall not— 5 (1) prevent or discourage any State or local 6 educational agency from using any ESSERF pro- 7 gram funds for school security measures; 8 (2) require the use of funds under subsection 9 (a) to be in response to, or in any way connected 10 with, the coronavirus; or 11 (3) enforce any requirement of an ESSERF 12 program if such requirement would prevent a State 13 or local educational agency from carrying out a 14 school security measure authorized under subsection 15 (a). 16 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 17 (1) ESSERF PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘ESSERF 18 program’’ means a program carried out under— 19 (A) section 18003 of the CARES Act (20 20 U.S.C. 3401 note; Public Law 116–136); 21 (B) section 313 of division M of the Con- 22 solidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 23 116–260; 134 Stat. 1929); or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:07 Apr 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2592.IH H2592 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2592 IH (C) section 2001 of the American Rescue 1 Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2; 135 Stat. 2 19). 3 (2) SCHOOL SECURITY MEASURE.—The term 4 ‘‘school security measure’’ means any of the fol- 5 lowing: 6 (A) An evidence-based strategy or program 7 to prevent violence, which may include the use 8 of appropriate technologies, including the place- 9 ment and use of metal detectors and other de- 10 terrent measures and emergency notification 11 and response technologies. 12 (B) Training to prevent student violence 13 against others and self, including training for 14 local law enforcement officers, school personnel, 15 and students. 16 (C) The development and operation of an 17 anonymous reporting system for threats of 18 school violence, including a mobile telephone ap- 19 plication, hotline, or internet website. 20 (D) The development and operation of— 21 (i) a school threat assessment and 22 intervention team that may include coordi- 23 nation with law enforcement agencies and 24 school personnel; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:07 Apr 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2592.IH H2592 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2592 IH (ii) specialized training for school offi- 1 cials in responding to mental health crises. 2 (E) Coordination with local law enforce- 3 ment agencies. 4 (F) A security assessment. 5 (G) Security training of personnel and stu- 6 dents. 7 (H) Acquisition and installation of tech- 8 nology for expedited notification of local law en- 9 forcement during an emergency. 10 (I) Reinforcing or replacing classroom 11 doors, locks, or window panels. 12 (J) Constructing fencing, bollards, plant- 13 ers, curbs, walls, or any other entry control 14 measure to create a single point of entry to the 15 campus. 16 (K) Clearing exterior spaces of foliage or 17 structures to eliminate spaces that could con- 18 ceal illicit activity, provide access to the build- 19 ing above the first floor, or otherwise aid an in- 20 truder. 21 (L) Installing a system to monitor hall- 22 ways, stairwells, and utility rooms, such as 23 physical inspection or surveillance cameras. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:07 Apr 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2592.IH H2592 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2592 IH (M) Hiring and paying the salaries of 1 qualified individuals, such as retired law en- 2 forcement officers or military veterans, to serve 3 as armed school resource officers. 4 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:07 Apr 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2592.IH H2592 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS