School Safety and Security; Requiring a sheriff to establish a school guardian program under a certain condition; requiring school districts to promote a mobile suspicious activity reporting tool through specified mediums; requiring the Commissioner of Education to review recommendations from the School Hardening and Harm Mitigation Workgroup; revising the duties of the commissioner to include oversight of compliance with the safety and security requirements of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act by specified persons and entities, etc.
This bill has among many things, removing the prohibition against volunteer teachers to carry a concealed weapon after training and checks. It had already passed the Education committee and now and with a vote of 8-0, it made it through Infrastructure and Security. (Note: I have at this time, conflicting info on the votes. It did pass but I have one emails saying 8-0 and the Senate site is saying 5-3)
All the bad amendments that wanted to maintain teachers out and inform what teachers were carrying in class were defeated.
Next stop will be Appropriations
Corresponding House bill HB 7093 will be debated in the House Appropriations committee at 9 am tomorrow.
There are three amendments inserted in the bill that are problematic.
One makes school districts that implement the Guardian program liable for $1 million in damages if any Guardian shoots someone. The second prohibits teachers from participating, and the third requires any district with guardians send a notice home, notifying parents and allowing them to opt their child out of being in any class with a guardian.
all the amendments were defeated.
I am looking at the Senate version of the bill. see amendments 307398, 664610, and 420924. They are still there, but marked “unfavorable” as opposed to “withdrawn.”
Yes, the committee voted against them. Go to the last text version and you will see the prohibition against teachers is still removed.