Bill Text: FL S1356 | 2024 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: School Safety
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-03-04 - Laid on Table, refer to CS/CS/HB 1473 [S1356 Detail]
Download: Florida-2024-S1356-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2024 CS for SB 1356 By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senator Calatayud 591-02975-24 20241356c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to school safety; amending s. 30.15, 3 F.S.; providing that sheriffs are responsible for 4 screening-related costs for school guardian programs; 5 authorizing sheriffs to waive training and screening 6 related costs for a private school for a school 7 guardian program; providing conditions for an 8 individual to be certified as a school guardian; 9 revising specified training requirements for school 10 guardians; defining the term “employer”; requiring 11 sheriffs and employers of school guardians to report 12 certain information to the Department of Law 13 Enforcement by specified dates; requiring the 14 Department of Law Enforcement to maintain a list of 15 school guardians and provide the list to any School 16 Safety Specialist upon request; providing requirements 17 for the list; requiring each sheriff to report on a 18 quarterly basis to the Department of Law Enforcement 19 the schedule for school guardian trainings; requiring 20 the Department of Law Enforcement to publish a list of 21 the upcoming trainings on its website; requiring the 22 Department of Law Enforcement to notify the Department 23 of Education by specified dates of any employer of a 24 school guardian who has not complied with certain 25 requirements; prohibiting an employer who is not in 26 compliance from operating a school guardian program; 27 prohibiting a sheriff who is not in compliance with 28 certain reporting requirements from receiving certain 29 reimbursements; making technical changes; authorizing 30 the Department of Law Enforcement to adopt rules; 31 amending s. 330.41, F.S.; prohibiting the operation of 32 a drone over public and private schools and recording 33 video of such schools; providing criminal penalties; 34 providing exemptions; amending s. 943.082, F.S.; 35 requiring each district school board and charter 36 school governing board to ensure that instruction on 37 the mobile suspicious activity reporting tool is 38 provided to students; providing requirements for the 39 instruction; amending s. 943.687, F.S.; requiring the 40 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety 41 Commission to research best practices in school safety 42 and make additional legislative recommendations if 43 necessary; amending s. 985.04, F.S.; requiring 44 superintendents or their designees to notify, within a 45 specified timeframe, the chief of police or the public 46 safety director of a postsecondary institution in 47 which a student is dual enrolled if such student 48 commits certain offenses; amending s. 1001.212, F.S.; 49 requiring the Office of Safe Schools by a specified 50 date to develop and adopt a Florida school safety 51 compliance inspection report to document compliance or 52 noncompliance with school safety requirements; 53 requiring the office to provide a blank copy of the 54 report to each district school superintendent and 55 charter school administrator; requiring the office to 56 provide school safety specialists with trainings on 57 the report; authorizing the office to conduct 58 inspections of public schools and charter schools; 59 requiring the office to conduct inspections of every 60 public school within a specified timeframe; requiring 61 the office to provide a copy of the inspection report 62 to specified entities within a specified timeframe 63 after an inspection; requiring a school safety 64 specialist to provide the office with written notice 65 of the manner in which noncompliance has been 66 remediated within a specified timeframe; requiring the 67 office to reinspect schools with documented 68 deficiencies within a specified timeframe; requiring 69 the office to provide a bonus to a school principal or 70 charter school administrator of a school that complies 71 with all school safety requirements; requiring the 72 office to identify any instructional personnel and 73 administrative personnel who knowingly violate school 74 safety requirements for disciplinary action; requiring 75 a district school superintendent or charter school 76 administrator to notify the office of the outcome of 77 the disciplinary proceedings within a specified 78 timeframe; requiring the office to maintain a record 79 of any administrative personnel or instructional 80 personnel who violate school safety requirements; 81 requiring the office to evaluate the methodology for 82 the Safe Schools Allocation by a specified date; 83 amending s. 1006.07, F.S.; requiring public schools, 84 including charter schools, to maintain a record that 85 is accessible to the Office of Safe Schools of 86 specified drills conducted; requiring the school 87 safety specialist to report to the district school 88 board in a public meeting the number of schools 89 inspected during the preceding calendar year; 90 requiring each district school board and charter 91 school governing board to adopt a progressive 92 discipline policy for addressing any instructional 93 personnel or administrative personnel who knowingly 94 violate school safety requirements; amending s. 95 1006.12, F.S.; requiring that agreements between a 96 district school board and a law enforcement agency 97 include a certain provision; deleting a requirement 98 for certain safe-school officers to receive specified 99 training; amending s. 1006.1493, F.S.; specifying 100 physical security measures that must be addressed by 101 the Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool; subject to 102 legislative appropriation, requiring the Department of 103 Law Enforcement to provide grants to sheriffs’ offices 104 and law enforcement agencies to conduct physical site 105 security assessments for and provide reports to 106 private schools; requiring sheriffs’ offices and law 107 enforcement agencies to provide private schools with 108 recommendations on improving infrastructure safety and 109 security; requiring sheriffs’ offices and law 110 enforcement agencies to assist private schools in 111 developing active assailant responses; requiring the 112 Department of Law Enforcement to develop a site 113 security assessment form for use by sheriffs’ offices 114 and law enforcement agencies; requiring the Department 115 of Law Enforcement to provide such form to private 116 schools; authorizing the use of grants for specified 117 purposes; requiring the Department of Law Enforcement 118 to establish requirements for awarding such grants; 119 requiring that grants be awarded by a specified date; 120 providing an effective date. 121 122 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 123 124 Section 1. Paragraph (k) of subsection (1) of section 125 30.15, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 126 30.15 Powers, duties, and obligations.— 127 (1) Sheriffs, in their respective counties, in person or by 128 deputy, shall: 129 (k) Assist district school boards and charter school 130 governing boards in complying with, or private schools in 131 exercising options in, s. 1006.12. A sheriff must, at a minimum, 132 provide access to a Chris Hixon, Coach Aaron Feis, and Coach 133 Scott Beigel Guardian Program to aid in the prevention or 134 abatement of active assailant incidents on school premises, as 135 required under this paragraph. Persons certified as school 136 guardians pursuant to this paragraph have no authority to act in 137 any law enforcement capacity except to the extent necessary to 138 prevent or abate an active assailant incident. 139 1.a. If a local school board has voted by a majority to 140 implement a guardian program, the sheriff in that county must 141shallestablish a guardian program to provide training, pursuant 142 to subparagraph 2., to school district, charter school, or 143 private school employees, either directly or through a contract 144 with another sheriff’s office that has established a guardian 145 program. 146 b. A charter school governing board in a school district 147 that has not voted, or has declined, to implement a guardian 148 program may request the sheriff in the county to establish a 149 guardian program for the purpose of training the charter school 150 employees. If the county sheriff denies the request, the charter 151 school governing board may contract with a sheriff that has 152 established a guardian program to provide such training. The 153 charter school governing board shallmustnotify the 154 superintendent and the sheriff in the charter school’s county of 155 the contract beforeprior toits execution. 156 c. A private school in a school district that has not 157 voted, or has declined, to implement a guardian program may 158 request that the sheriff in the county of the private school 159 establish a guardian program for the purpose of training private 160 school employees. If the county sheriff denies the request, the 161 private school may contract with a sheriff from another county 162 who has established a guardian program to provide such training. 163 The private school shallmustnotify the sheriff in the private 164 school’s county of the contract with a sheriff from another 165 county before its execution. The private school is responsible 166 for all training and screening-related costs for a school 167 guardian program. The sheriff providing such training shallmust168 ensure that any moneys paid by a private school are not 169 commingled with any funds provided by the state to the sheriff 170 as reimbursement for screening-related and training-related 171 costs of any school district or charter school employee. 172 d. The training program required in sub-subparagraph 2.b. 173 is a standardized statewide curriculum, and each sheriff 174 providing such training shall adhere to the course of 175 instruction specified in that sub-subparagraph. This 176 subparagraph does not prohibit a sheriff from providing 177 additional training. A school guardian who has completed the 178 training program required in sub-subparagraph 2.b. ismaynotbe179 required to attend another sheriff’s training program pursuant 180 to that sub-subparagraph unless there has been at least a 1-year 181 break in his or her appointmentemploymentas a guardian. 182 e. The sheriff conducting the training pursuant to 183 subparagraph 2. for school district and charter school employees 184 mustwillbe reimbursed for screening-related and training 185 related costs and for providing a one-time stipend of $500 to 186 each school guardian who participates in the school guardian 187 program. 188 f. The sheriff may waive the training and screening-related 189 costs for a private school for a school guardian program. Funds 190 provided pursuant to sub-subparagraph e. may not be used to 191 subsidize any costs that have been waived by the sheriff. 192 g. A person who is certified by and in good standing under 193 the Florida Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission, 194 who meets the qualifications established in s. 943.13, and who 195 is otherwise qualified for the position of a school guardian may 196 be certified as a school guardian by the sheriff without 197 completing the training requirements of sub-subparagraph 2.b. 198 However, a person certified as a school guardian under this sub 199 subparagraph must meet the requirements of sub-subparagraphs 200 2.c., d., and e. 201 2. A sheriff who establishes a program shall consult with 202 the Department of Law Enforcement on programmatic guiding 203 principles, practices, and resources, and shall certify as 204 school guardians, without the power of arrest, school employees, 205 as specified in s. 1006.12(3), who: 206 a. Hold a valid license issued under s. 790.06. 207 b. Complete a 144-hour training program, consisting of 12 208 hours of training to improve the school guardian’s knowledge and 209 skills necessary to respond to and de-escalate incidents on 210 school premisescertified nationally recognized diversity211trainingand 132 total hours of comprehensive firearm safety and 212 proficiency training conducted by Criminal Justice Standards and 213 Training Commission-certified instructors, which must include: 214 (I) Eighty hours of firearms instruction based on the 215 Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission’s Law 216 Enforcement Academy training model, which must include at least 217 10 percent but no more than 20 percent more rounds fired than 218 associated with academy training. Program participants must 219 achieve an 85 percent pass rate on the firearms training. 220 (II) Sixteen hours of instruction in precision pistol. 221 (III) Eight hours of discretionary shooting instruction 222 using state-of-the-art simulator exercises. 223 (IV) Sixteen hours of instruction in active shooter or 224 assailant scenarios. 225 (V) Eight hours of instruction in defensive tactics. 226 (VI) Four hours of instruction in legal issues. 227 c. Pass a psychological evaluation administered by a 228 psychologist licensed under chapter 490 and designated by the 229 Department of Law Enforcement and submit the results of the 230 evaluation to the sheriff’s office. The Department of Law 231 Enforcement is authorized to provide the sheriff’s office with 232 mental health and substance abuse data for compliance with this 233 paragraph. 234 d. Submit to and pass an initial drug test and subsequent 235 random drug tests in accordance with the requirements of s. 236 112.0455 and the sheriff’s office. 237 e. Successfully complete ongoing training, weapon 238 inspection, and firearm qualification on at least an annual 239 basis. 240 3.a. As used in this subparagraph, the term “employer” 241 means the person who employs a certified school guardian to 242 serve as a school guardian and may refer to a district school 243 board, a charter school governing board, a security agency as 244 defined in s. 493.6101(18) which provides school guardian 245 services, or a private school as defined in s. 1002.01(3). 246 b. By September 1, 2024, and thereafter within 30 days 247 after certification by the sheriff, each sheriff shall report to 248 the Department of Law Enforcement the name, date of birth, and 249 certification date of each school guardian certified by the 250 sheriff. 251 c. By February 1 and September 1 of each year, each 252 employer of an appointed school guardian shall report to the 253 Department of Law Enforcement the name, date of birth, and 254 initial and end-of-appointment dates, as applicable, of each 255 appointed or separated school guardian which has not been 256 reported. 257 d. The Department of Law Enforcement shall maintain a list 258 of each person appointed as a school guardian in this state and 259 shall provide the list to any school safety specialist upon 260 request. The list must include the name, certification date, and 261 any appointment or end-of-appointment date of each school 262 guardian, including the name of the employer or last employer of 263 the school guardian. The Department of Law Enforcement shall 264 remove from the list any person whose training has expired 265 pursuant to sub-subparagraph 1.d. 266 e. Each sheriff shall report on a quarterly basis to the 267 Department of Law Enforcement the schedule for upcoming school 268 guardian trainings, including the dates of the training, the 269 training locations, a contact person to register for the 270 training, and the class capacity. The Department of Law 271 Enforcement shall publish on its website a list of the upcoming 272 school guardian trainings. The Department of Law Enforcement 273 shall update such list quarterly. 274 f. By March 1 and October 1 of each year, the Department of 275 Law Enforcement shall notify the Department of Education of any 276 employer of a school guardian which has not complied with the 277 reporting requirements of this subparagraph. 278 g. An employer that is out of compliance with the reporting 279 requirements of this subparagraph may not operate a school 280 guardian program until the employer comes into compliance by 281 reporting the information for all school guardians the employer 282 has appointed. 283 h. A sheriff who is out of compliance with the reporting 284 requirements of this subparagraph may not receive reimbursement 285 from the Department of Education for school guardian trainings 286 until the sheriff comes into compliance by reporting the 287 information for all school guardians whom the sheriff has 288 certified. 289 i. The Department of Law Enforcement may adopt rules to 290 implement the requirements of this subparagraph, including 291 additional required reporting information only as necessary to 292 uniquely identify each school guardian reported. 293 294 The sheriff who conducts the guardian training or waives the 295 training requirements for a person under sub-subparagraph 1.g. 296 shall issue a school guardian certificate to personsindividuals297 who meet the requirements of this section to the satisfaction of 298 the sheriff, and shall maintain documentation of weapon and 299 equipment inspections, as well as the training, certification, 300 inspection, and qualification records of each school guardian 301 certified by the sheriff. An individualwho iscertified under 302 this paragraph may serve as a school guardian under s. 303 1006.12(3) only if he or she is appointed by the applicable 304 school district superintendent, charter school principal, or 305 private school head of school. 306 Section 2. Present subsection (5) of section 330.41, 307 Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (6), and a new 308 subsection (5) is added to that section, to read: 309 330.41 Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act.— 310 (5) PROTECTION OF SCHOOLS.— 311 (a) A person may not knowingly or willfully: 312 1. Operate a drone over a public or private school serving 313 students in any grade from voluntary prekindergarten through 314 grade 12; or 315 2. Allow a drone to make contact with a school, including 316 any person or object on the premises of or within the school 317 facility. 318 (b) A person who violates paragraph (a) commits a 319 misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 320 775.082 or s. 775.083. A person who commits a second or 321 subsequent violation commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, 322 punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 323 (c) A person who violates paragraph (a) and records video 324 of the school, including any person or object on the premises of 325 or within the school facility, commits a misdemeanor of the 326 first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 327 775.083. A person who commits a second or subsequent violation 328 commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in 329 s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 330 (d) This subsection does not apply to actions identified in 331 paragraph (a) which are committed by: 332 1. A person acting under the prior written consent of the 333 school principal, district school board, superintendent, or 334 school governing board. 335 2. A law enforcement agency that is in compliance with s. 336 934.50, or a person under contract with or otherwise acting 337 under the direction of such law enforcement agency. 338 Section 3. Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section 339 943.082, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 340 943.082 School Safety Awareness Program.— 341 (4) 342 (b) The district school board shall promote the use of the 343 mobile suspicious activity reporting tool by advertising it on 344 the school district website, in newsletters, on school campuses, 345 and in school publications, by installing it on all mobile 346 devices issued to students, and by bookmarking the website on 347 all computer devices issued to students. Within the first 5 days 348 of each school year, each district school board and charter 349 school governing board must ensure that instruction on the use 350 of the mobile suspicious activity reporting tool known as 351 FortifyFL is provided to students. The instruction must be age 352 and developmentally appropriate and include the consequences for 353 making a threat or false report as defined by ss. 790.162 and 354 790.163, respectively, involving school or school personnel’s 355 property, school transportation, or a school-sponsored activity. 356 Section 4. Paragraph (h) is added to subsection (3) of 357 section 943.687, Florida Statutes, to read: 358 943.687 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety 359 Commission.— 360 (3) The commission shall monitor implementation of school 361 safety legislation by: 362 (h) Researching best practices in school safety and making 363 additional legislative recommendations if necessary. 364 Section 5. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section 365 985.04, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 366 985.04 Oaths; records; confidential information.— 367 (4)(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, 368 when a child of any age is taken into custody by a law 369 enforcement officer for an offense that would have been a felony 370 if committed by an adult, or a crime of violence, the law 371 enforcement agency must notify the superintendent of schools 372 that the child is alleged to have committed the delinquent act. 373 If the child is a dual enrolled student at a postsecondary 374 institution, the superintendent of schools, or his or her 375 designee, must notify the chief of police or the public safety 376 director of the postsecondary institution at which the student 377 is dual enrolled within 1 business day after receiving the 378 initial notification. 379 Section 6. Subsection (14) of section 1001.212, Florida 380 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (17) is added to that 381 section, to read: 382 1001.212 Office of Safe Schools.—There is created in the 383 Department of Education the Office of Safe Schools. The office 384 is fully accountable to the Commissioner of Education. The 385 office shall serve as a central repository for best practices, 386 training standards, and compliance oversight in all matters 387 regarding school safety and security, including prevention 388 efforts, intervention efforts, and emergency preparedness 389 planning. The office shall: 390 (14)(a) By August 1, 2024, develop and adopt a Florida 391 school safety compliance inspection report to document 392 compliance or noncompliance with school safety requirements 393 mandated by law or rule and adherence to established school 394 safety best practices to evaluate the safety, security, and 395 emergency response of the school. Upon the adoption of the 396 report and upon any revisions to the report, the office shall 397 provide a blank copy of the report to each district school 398 superintendent and charter school administrator. The office 399 shall annually provide school safety specialists with training 400 on the report, and any revisions thereof, and the expectations 401 associated with the inspections required under this paragraph. 402 (b) Monitor compliance with requirements relating to school 403 safety by school districts and public schools, including charter 404 schools. The office shall report incidents of noncompliance to 405 the commissioner pursuant to s. 1001.11(9) and the state board 406 pursuant to s. 1008.32 and other requirements of law, as 407 appropriate. The office may conduct inspections, which may 408 include unannounced inspections, of all public schools, 409 including charter schools. The office shall inspect every public 410 school in this state during 3-year inspection cycles. Within 3 411 school days after the inspection, the office shall provide a 412 copy of the completed Florida school safety compliance 413 inspection report, including any photographs or other evidence 414 of noncompliance, to the superintendent, the school safety 415 specialist, and the school principal or charter school 416 administrator. The school safety specialist shall provide the 417 office with written notice of the manner in which any 418 noncompliance has been remediated within 5 school days after 419 receipt of the report. The office shall reinspect any school 420 with documented deficiencies within 6 months. 421 (c) Provide a bonus in an amount determined in the General 422 Appropriations Act, at the conclusion of the initial inspection 423 conducted during the school year, to the school principal or 424 charter school administrator of each school that complies with 425 all school safety requirements. 426 (d)1. Identify any instructional personnel as defined in s. 427 1012.01(2) and any administrative personnel as defined in s. 428 1012.01(3) who knowingly violate school safety requirements of 429 law or rule adopted by the State Board of Education to the 430 district school superintendent or charter school administrator, 431 as applicable, for disciplinary action if such action has not 432 already been commenced by the district school superintendent or 433 charter school administrator upon receipt of the Florida school 434 safety compliance inspection report. The district school 435 superintendent or charter school administrator shall notify the 436 office of the outcome of the disciplinary proceedings within 3 437 school days after the conclusion of the proceedings. 438 2. Maintain a record of any administrative personnel or 439 instructional personnel who violated school safety requirements, 440 and may use such information when making any subsequent 441 determinations of an alleged violation by the same person. 442 (17) By December 1, 2024, evaluate the methodology for the 443 Safe Schools Allocation in s. 1011.62(12) and, if necessary, 444 make recommendations for an alternate methodology to distribute 445 the remaining balance of the Safe Schools Allocation as 446 indicated in s. 1011.62(12) to address school safety personnel, 447 technology, and facility cost needs and each school district’s 448 proportionate share of the state’s total unweighted full-time 449 equivalent student enrollment. 450 Section 7. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) and paragraph 451 (a) of subsection (6) of section 1006.07, Florida Statutes, are 452 amended, and paragraph (f) is added to subsection (6) of that 453 section, to read: 454 1006.07 District school board duties relating to student 455 discipline and school safety.—The district school board shall 456 provide for the proper accounting for all students, for the 457 attendance and control of students at school, and for proper 458 attention to health, safety, and other matters relating to the 459 welfare of students, including: 460 (4) EMERGENCY DRILLS; EMERGENCY PROCEDURES.— 461 (a) Formulate and prescribe policies and procedures, in 462 consultation with the appropriate public safety agencies, for 463 emergency drills and for actual emergencies, including, but not 464 limited to, fires, natural disasters, active assailant and 465 hostage situations, and bomb threats, for all students and 466 faculty at all public schools of the district composed of grades 467 K-12, pursuant to State Board of Education rules. Drills for 468 active assailant and hostage situations must be conducted in 469 accordance with developmentally appropriate and age-appropriate 470 procedures, as specified in State Board of Education rules. Law 471 enforcement officers responsible for responding to the school in 472 the event of an active assailant emergency, as determined 473 necessary by the sheriff in coordination with the district’s 474 school safety specialist, must be physically present on campus 475 and directly involved in the execution of active assailant 476 emergency drills. School districts must notify law enforcement 477 officers at least 24 hours before conducting an active assailant 478 emergency drill at which such law enforcement officers are 479 expected to attend. Each public school, including charter 480 schools, shall maintain a record that is accessible on each 481 campus or by request of the Office of Safe Schools of all 482 current and prior school year drills conducted pursuant to this 483 subsection, including the names of law enforcement personnel 484 present on campus for each active assailant emergency drill. 485 District school board policies must include commonly used alarm 486 system responses for specific types of emergencies and 487 verification by each school that drills have been provided as 488 required by law, State Board of Education rules, and fire 489 protection codes and may provide accommodations for drills 490 conducted by exceptional student education centers. District 491 school boards shall establish emergency response and emergency 492 preparedness policies and procedures that include, but are not 493 limited to, identifying the individuals responsible for 494 contacting the primary emergency response agency and the 495 emergency response agency responsible for notifying the school 496 district for each type of emergency. The State Board of 497 Education shall refer to recommendations provided in reports 498 published pursuant to s. 943.687 for guidance and, by August 1, 499 2023, consult with state and local constituencies to adopt rules 500 applicable to the requirements of this subsection which, at a 501 minimum, define the terms “emergency drill,” “active threat,” 502 and “after-action report” and establish minimum emergency drill 503 policies and procedures related to the timing, frequency, 504 participation, training, notification, accommodations, and 505 responses to threat situations by incident type, school level, 506 school type, and student and school characteristics. The rules 507 must require all types of emergency drills to be conducted no 508 less frequently than on an annual school year basis. 509 (6) SAFETY AND SECURITY BEST PRACTICES.—Each district 510 school superintendent shall establish policies and procedures 511 for the prevention of violence on school grounds, including the 512 assessment of and intervention with individuals whose behavior 513 poses a threat to the safety of the school community. 514 (a) School safety specialist.—Each district school 515 superintendent shall designate a school safety specialist for 516 the district. The school safety specialist must be a school 517 administrator employed by the school district or a law 518 enforcement officer employed by the sheriff’s office located in 519 the school district. Any school safety specialist designated 520 from the sheriff’s office must first be authorized and approved 521 by the sheriff employing the law enforcement officer. Any school 522 safety specialist designated from the sheriff’s office remains 523 the employee of the office for purposes of compensation, 524 insurance, workers’ compensation, and other benefits authorized 525 by law for a law enforcement officer employed by the sheriff’s 526 office. The sheriff and the school superintendent may determine 527 by agreement the reimbursement for such costs, or may share the 528 costs, associated with employment of the law enforcement officer 529 as a school safety specialist. The school safety specialist must 530 earn a certificate of completion of the school safety specialist 531 training provided by the Office of Safe Schools within 1 year 532 after appointment and is responsible for the supervision and 533 oversight for all school safety and security personnel, 534 policies, and procedures in the school district. The school 535 safety specialist shall: 536 1. In conjunction with the district school superintendent, 537 annually review school district policies and procedures for 538 compliance with state law and rules, including the district’s 539 timely and accurate submission of school environmental safety 540 incident reports to the department pursuant to s. 1001.212(8). 541 Annually, during the first quarter of every school year, the 542 school safety specialist shall report to the district school 543 board in a public meeting the number of schools inspected during 544 the preceding calendar year and the number and percentage of 545 schools in compliance during the initial inspection and 546 reinspection. 547 2. Provide the necessary training and resources to students 548 and school district staff in matters relating to youth mental 549 health awareness and assistance; emergency procedures, including 550 active shooter training; and school safety and security. 551 3. Serve as the school district liaison with local public 552 safety agencies and national, state, and community agencies and 553 organizations in matters of school safety and security. 554 4. In collaboration with the appropriate public safety 555 agencies, as that term is defined in s. 365.171, by October 1 of 556 each year, conduct a school security risk assessment at each 557 public school using the Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool 558 developed by the Office of Safe Schools pursuant to s. 559 1006.1493. Based on the assessment findings, the district’s 560 school safety specialist shall provide recommendations to the 561 district school superintendent and the district school board 562 which identify strategies and activities that the district 563 school board should implement in order to address the findings 564 and improve school safety and security. Each district school 565 board must receive such findings and the school safety 566 specialist’s recommendations at a publicly noticed district 567 school board meeting to provide the public an opportunity to 568 hear the district school board members discuss and take action 569 on the findings and recommendations. Each school safety 570 specialist, through the district school superintendent, shall 571 report such findings and school board action to the Office of 572 Safe Schools within 30 days after the district school board 573 meeting. 574 (f) Progressive discipline policy.—Each district school 575 board and charter school governing board shall adopt a 576 progressive discipline policy for addressing any instructional 577 personnel as defined in s. 1012.01(2) and any administrative 578 personnel as defined in s. 1012.01(3) who knowingly violate 579 school safety requirements. 580 Section 8. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) and subsections 581 (3) and (6) of section 1006.12, Florida Statutes, are amended to 582 read: 583 1006.12 Safe-school officers at each public school.—For the 584 protection and safety of school personnel, property, students, 585 and visitors, each district school board and school district 586 superintendent shall partner with law enforcement agencies or 587 security agencies to establish or assign one or more safe-school 588 officers at each school facility within the district, including 589 charter schools. A district school board must collaborate with 590 charter school governing boards to facilitate charter school 591 access to all safe-school officer options available under this 592 section. The school district may implement any combination of 593 the options in subsections (1)-(4) to best meet the needs of the 594 school district and charter schools. 595 (1) SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER.—A school district may 596 establish school resource officer programs through a cooperative 597 agreement with law enforcement agencies. 598 (b) School resource officers shall abide by district school 599 board policies and shall consult with and coordinate activities 600 through the school principal, but shall be responsible to the 601 law enforcement agency in all matters relating to employment, 602 subject to agreements between a district school board and a law 603 enforcement agency. The agreements must identify the entity 604 responsible for maintaining records related to training. 605 Activities conducted by the school resource officer which are 606 part of the regular instructional program of the school shall be 607 under the direction of the school principal. 608 (3) SCHOOL GUARDIAN.— 609 (a) At the school district’s or the charter school 610 governing board’s discretion, as applicable, pursuant to s. 611 30.15, a school district or charter school governing board may 612 participate in the Chris Hixon, Coach Aaron Feis, and Coach 613 Scott Beigel Guardian Program to meet the requirement of 614 establishing a safe-school officer. The following individuals 615 may serve as a school guardian, in support of school-sanctioned 616 activities for purposes of s. 790.115, upon satisfactory 617 completion of the requirements under s. 30.15(1)(k) and 618 certification by a sheriff: 619 1.(a)A school district employee or personnel, as defined 620 under s. 1012.01, or a charter school employee, as provided 621 under s. 1002.33(12)(a), who volunteers to serve as a school 622 guardian in addition to his or her official job duties; or 623 2.(b)An employee of a school district or a charter school 624 who is hired for the specific purpose of serving as a school 625 guardian. 626 (6) CRISIS INTERVENTION TRAINING.— 627(a)Each safe-school officer who is also a sworn law 628 enforcement officer shall complete mental health crisis 629 intervention training using a curriculum developed by a national 630 organization with expertise in mental health crisis 631 intervention. The training must improve the officer’s knowledge 632 and skills as a first responder to incidents involving students 633 with emotional disturbance or mental illness, including de 634 escalation skills to ensure student and officer safety. 635(b) Each safe-school officer who is not a sworn law636enforcement officer shall receive training to improve the637officer’s knowledge and skills necessary to respond to and de638escalate incidents on school premises.639 640 If a district school board, through its adopted policies, 641 procedures, or actions, denies a charter school access to any 642 safe-school officer options pursuant to this section, the school 643 district must assign a school resource officer or school safety 644 officer to the charter school. Under such circumstances, the 645 charter school’s share of the costs of the school resource 646 officer or school safety officer may not exceed the safe school 647 allocation funds provided to the charter school pursuant to s. 648 1011.62(12) and shall be retained by the school district. 649 Section 9. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 650 1006.1493, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 651 1006.1493 Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool.— 652 (2) The FSSAT must help school officials identify threats, 653 vulnerabilities, and appropriate safety controls for the schools 654 that they supervise, pursuant to the security risk assessment 655 requirements of s. 1006.07(6). 656 (a) At a minimum, the FSSAT must address all of the 657 following components: 658 1. School emergency and crisis preparedness planning; 659 2. Security, crime, and violence prevention policies and 660 procedures; 661 3. Physical security measures, which include, but are not 662 limited to, security for gates or other access points that 663 restrict ingress to or egress from a school campus, a school 664 facility, and rooms and areas within the facility, and the 665 identification and demarcation of safe spaces; 666 4. Professional development training needs; 667 5. An examination of support service roles in school 668 safety, security, and emergency planning; 669 6. School security and school police staffing, operational 670 practices, and related services; 671 7. School and community collaboration on school safety; 672 8. Policies and procedures for school officials to prepare 673 for and respond to natural and manmade disasters, including 674 family reunification plans to reunite students and employees 675 with their families after a school is closed or unexpectedly 676 evacuated due to such disasters; and 677 9. A return on investment analysis of the recommended 678 physical security controls. 679 Section 10. For the 2024-2025 fiscal year and subject to 680 legislative appropriation, the Department of Law Enforcement 681 shall provide grants to sheriffs’ offices and law enforcement 682 agencies to conduct physical site security assessments for and 683 provide reports to private schools with recommendations on 684 improving such schools’ infrastructure safety and security; to 685 assist private schools in developing active assailant response 686 protocols and develop and implement training relating to active 687 assailant responses, including active assailant response drills 688 for students and school personnel; and to consult with or 689 provide guidance to private schools in implementing a threat 690 management program similar to the process required under s. 691 1001.212(12), Florida Statutes, for public schools. The 692 Department of Law Enforcement shall develop a site security 693 assessment form for use by sheriffs’ offices and law enforcement 694 agencies and make the form available, including any subsequent 695 revisions, to private schools. Grants awarded under this section 696 may be used for personnel costs and to purchase software and 697 other items necessary to assist private schools. The Department 698 of Law Enforcement may establish criteria and set specific time 699 periods for the acceptance of applications and for the selection 700 process for awarding grant funds under this section. Grants must 701 be awarded no later than October 1, 2024. 702 Section 11. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.