Bill Text: NH HB1125 | 2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relative to school emergency plans.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2022-06-22 - Signed by Governor Sununu 06/17/2022; Chapter 187; 06/17/2022 House Journal 14 [HB1125 Detail]
Download: New_Hampshire-2022-HB1125-Amended.html
HB 1125 - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
16Feb2022... 0141h
04/21/2022 1511s
2022 SESSION
22-2715
10/08
HOUSE BILL 1125
AN ACT relative to school emergency plans.
SPONSORS: Rep. Cordelli, Carr. 4; Rep. Cornell, Hills. 18; Rep. Porter, Hills. 1
COMMITTEE: Education
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ANALYSIS
This bill provides for the submission of school emergency response plans to the director of homeland security and emergency management of the department of safety, rather than to the department of education.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
16Feb2022... 0141h
04/21/2022 1511s 22-2715
10/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two
AN ACT relative to school emergency plans.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Schools; Emergency Operations Plans. Amend the subdivision heading preceding RSA 189:64 to read as follows:
Emergency [Response] Operations Plans
2 Schools; Emergency Operations Plans. RSA 189:64 is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
189:64 Emergency Operations Plans.
I. Every public, chartered public, and nonpublic school shall develop a site-specific school emergency operations plan which is based on and conforms to the Incident Command System and the National Incident Management System and submit such plan to the director of homeland security and emergency management, department of safety by October 15 of each year. Access to all plans shall be provided to the department of education.
II.(a) The plan shall address hazards including but not limited to acts of violence, biological incidents, civil unrest, cyber incidents, drought, earthquakes, extreme temperatures, floods, hurricane/severe storm, internal and external hazardous materials releases, medical emergencies, structural fire, threats, tornadoes, wildfire, winter storm, or any other hazard deemed necessary by school officials and local emergency authorities.
(b) Schools that are located within the emergency planning zone shall address radiological emergencies within the emergency operations plan, as required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in NUREG 0654.
III. The plan shall provide that at least 4 of the currently required number of fire evacuation drills shall be emergency, all-hazard response drills of which at least one shall test emergency response to an armed assailant. The armed assailant drill may be discussion based. The types of all-hazard drills and exercises and the manner and time in which these activities take place shall be determined by the school in collaboration with local public safety, emergency management, and public health officials. The school may include students and first responders in all-hazard response drills or activities, as appropriate. The first emergency operations plan drill shall be conducted within one year of the completion of the plan.
IV. If the school has a building schematic floor plan diagram, the school may, with the approval of the local school board, submit the diagram to the division of homeland security and emergency management, department of safety, in a commonly used digital format. Submission of the diagram will enable the state to better prepare, respond, and mitigate potentially dangerous conditions should the need arise.
V. Each school shall provide the plan to, and coordinate the plan with, local emergency authorities and with the emergency operations plan in the municipality in which the school is located. Each school shall review its plan at least annually and update the plan, as necessary, and shall submit the updated plan to the director of homeland security and emergency management, department of safety by October 15. If after review, the plan is unchanged, the school shall notify the department of safety by October 15 that the plan is unchanged.
VI.(a) The director of homeland security and emergency management, department of safety shall assist schools in conducting training for and providing support to schools districts in the development, implementation, and review of an emergency operations plan, upon request.
(b) For just cause, the director of homeland security and emergency management, department of safety may grant a school district, city, chartered public school, public academy, or nonpublic school up to a 30-day extension to the reporting deadline. The director may further extend the deadline when unusual or unforeseen circumstances prevent a school district, city, chartered public school, public academy, or nonpublic school from submitting the required reports under paragraph V before the expiration of such extension.
(c) If a school district, city, chartered public school, public academy, or nonpublic school fails to submit its emergency operations plan by the established deadline for 2 consecutive years the director of homeland security and emergency management, department of safety shall notify the department of education.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
