Florida Senate - 2022                              CS for SB 802
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Appropriations; and Senators Gruters, Perry,
       Polsky, and Rodrigues
       
       
       
       
       576-03571-22                                           2022802c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to school safety; amending s. 943.687,
    3         F.S.; extending the sunset date of the Marjory
    4         Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission;
    5         amending s. 943.082, F.S.; requiring the FortifyFL
    6         reporting tool to notify reporting parties that
    7         submitting false information may subject them to
    8         criminal penalties; providing that certain reports
    9         will remain anonymous; amending s. 1001.11, F.S.;
   10         requiring the Commissioner of Education to oversee and
   11         enforce compliance with requirements relating to
   12         school safety and security; amending s. 1001.212,
   13         F.S.; revising the duties of the Office of Safe
   14         Schools; amending s. 1006.07, F.S.; requiring certain
   15         law enforcement officers to be physically present and
   16         directly involved in active assailant emergency
   17         drills; requiring school districts to notify such law
   18         enforcement officers of such drills within a specified
   19         time period; requiring the State Board of Education to
   20         adopt rules; specifying the requirements for the
   21         rules; requiring district school boards and charter
   22         school governing boards, in coordination with
   23         specified entities, to adopt family reunification
   24         plans; providing for the update and review of such
   25         plan; requiring all members of threat assessment teams
   26         to be involved in certain processes and decisions;
   27         requiring the Department of Education to annually
   28         publish on its website specified data in a certain
   29         format; requiring district school boards to adopt
   30         certain policies relating to suicide screening
   31         instruments; amending s. 1006.12, F.S.; making
   32         technical changes; authorizing school safety officers
   33         to make arrests on property owned or leased by a
   34         charter school under a charter contract; requiring
   35         district school superintendents or charter school
   36         administrators, instead of school districts, to notify
   37         county sheriffs and the Office of Safe Schools of
   38         certain safe-school officer-related incidents;
   39         specifying training requirements for safe-school
   40         officers; amending s. 1006.1493, F.S.; requiring the
   41         Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool to address
   42         policies and procedures to prepare for and respond to
   43         natural and manmade disasters; amending s. 1012.584,
   44         F.S.; requiring each school district to certify that a
   45         specified percentage of school personnel have received
   46         certain training by a specified date; providing
   47         effective dates.
   48          
   49  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   50  
   51         Section 1. Subsection (9) of section 943.687, Florida
   52  Statutes, is amended to read:
   53         943.687 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety
   54  Commission.—
   55         (9) The commission shall submit an initial report on its
   56  findings and recommendations to the Governor, President of the
   57  Senate, and Speaker of the House of Representatives by January
   58  1, 2019, and may issue reports annually thereafter. The
   59  commission shall sunset July 1, 2025 2023, and this section is
   60  repealed on that date.
   61         Section 2. Effective October 1, 2022, paragraph (c) is
   62  added to subsection (2) of section 943.082, Florida Statutes, to
   63  read:
   64         943.082 School Safety Awareness Program.—
   65         (2) The reporting tool must notify the reporting party of
   66  the following information:
   67         (c)That if, following an investigation, it is determined
   68  that a person knowingly submitted a false tip through FortifyFL,
   69  the Internet protocol (IP) address of the device on which the
   70  tip was submitted will be provided to law enforcement agencies
   71  for further investigation, and the reporting party may be
   72  subject to criminal penalties under s. 837.05. In all other
   73  circumstances, unless the reporting party has chosen to disclose
   74  his or her identity, the report will remain anonymous.
   75         Section 3. Subsection (9) of section 1001.11, Florida
   76  Statutes, is amended to read:
   77         1001.11 Commissioner of Education; other duties.—
   78         (9) The commissioner shall oversee and enforce compliance
   79  with the requirements relating to school safety and security
   80  requirements of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public
   81  Safety Act, chapter 2018-3, Laws of Florida, by school
   82  districts; district school superintendents; and public schools,
   83  including charter schools. The commissioner must facilitate
   84  compliance to the maximum extent provided under law, identify
   85  incidents of noncompliance, and impose or recommend to the State
   86  Board of Education, the Governor, or the Legislature enforcement
   87  and sanctioning actions pursuant to s. 1008.32 and other
   88  authority granted under law.
   89         Section 4. Present subsections (14) and (15) of section
   90  1001.212, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (15)
   91  and (16), respectively, a new subsection (14) and subsection
   92  (17) are added to that section, and subsections (2) and (6) of
   93  that section are amended, to read:
   94         1001.212 Office of Safe Schools.—There is created in the
   95  Department of Education the Office of Safe Schools. The office
   96  is fully accountable to the Commissioner of Education. The
   97  office shall serve as a central repository for best practices,
   98  training standards, and compliance oversight in all matters
   99  regarding school safety and security, including prevention
  100  efforts, intervention efforts, and emergency preparedness
  101  planning. The office shall:
  102         (2) Provide ongoing professional development opportunities
  103  to school district and charter school personnel.
  104         (6) Coordinate with the Department of Law Enforcement to
  105  provide a unified search tool, known as the Florida School
  106  Safety Portal, centralized integrated data repository and data
  107  analytics resources to improve access to timely, complete, and
  108  accurate information integrating data from, at a minimum, but
  109  not limited to, the following data sources by August 1, 2019:
  110         (a) Social media Internet posts;
  111         (b) The Department of Children and Families;
  112         (c) The Department of Law Enforcement;
  113         (d) The Department of Juvenile Justice;
  114         (e) The mobile suspicious activity reporting tool known as
  115  FortifyFL;
  116         (f) School environmental safety incident reports collected
  117  under subsection (8); and
  118         (g) Local law enforcement.
  119  
  120  Data that is exempt or confidential and exempt from public
  121  records requirements retains its exempt or confidential and
  122  exempt status when incorporated into the centralized integrated
  123  data repository. To maintain the confidentiality requirements
  124  attached to the information provided to the centralized
  125  integrated data repository by the various state and local
  126  agencies, data governance and security shall ensure compliance
  127  with all applicable state and federal data privacy requirements
  128  through the use of user authorization and role-based security,
  129  data anonymization and aggregation and auditing capabilities. To
  130  maintain the confidentiality requirements attached to the
  131  information provided to the centralized integrated data
  132  repository by the various state and local agencies, each source
  133  agency providing data to the repository shall be the sole
  134  custodian of the data for the purpose of any request for
  135  inspection or copies thereof under chapter 119. The department
  136  shall only allow access to data from the source agencies in
  137  accordance with rules adopted by the respective source agencies
  138  and the requirements of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
  139  Criminal Justice Information Services security policy, where
  140  applicable.
  141         (14)Develop, in coordination with the Division of
  142  Emergency Management; other federal, state, and local law
  143  enforcement agencies; fire and rescue agencies; and first
  144  responder agencies, a model family reunification plan for use by
  145  child care facilities, public K-12 schools, and public
  146  postsecondary educational institutions that are closed or
  147  unexpectedly evacuated due to a natural or manmade disaster.
  148  This model plan must consider: the integration of student
  149  information and notification systems to facilitate reunification
  150  after a natural or manmade disaster; the provision of accurate
  151  and real-time verification of reunification, including student
  152  identification through a connection to the student information
  153  system; parent or guardian custodial verification; a verifiable
  154  chain of custody; and the provision of real-time reporting and
  155  status of students and staff. This model plan must be reviewed
  156  annually and updated, as applicable.
  157         (17)Maintain a current directory of public and private
  158  school-based diversion programs and cooperate with each judicial
  159  circuit and the Department of Juvenile Justice to facilitate
  160  their efforts to monitor and enforce each governing body’s
  161  compliance with s. 985.12.
  162         Section 5. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4), paragraph (a)
  163  of subsection (7), and subsection (9) of section 1006.07,
  164  Florida Statutes, are amended, paragraph (d) is added to
  165  subsection (6), and subsection (11) is added to that section, to
  166  read:
  167         1006.07 District school board duties relating to student
  168  discipline and school safety.—The district school board shall
  169  provide for the proper accounting for all students, for the
  170  attendance and control of students at school, and for proper
  171  attention to health, safety, and other matters relating to the
  172  welfare of students, including:
  173         (4) EMERGENCY DRILLS; EMERGENCY PROCEDURES.—
  174         (a) Formulate and prescribe policies and procedures, in
  175  consultation with the appropriate public safety agencies, for
  176  emergency drills and for actual emergencies, including, but not
  177  limited to, fires, natural disasters, active assailant and
  178  hostage situations, and bomb threats, for all students and
  179  faculty at all public schools of the district composed comprised
  180  of grades K-12, pursuant to State Board of Education rules.
  181  Drills for active assailant and hostage situations must shall be
  182  conducted in accordance with developmentally appropriate and
  183  age-appropriate procedures, as specified in State Board of
  184  Education rules at least as often as other emergency drills. Law
  185  enforcement officers responsible for responding to the school in
  186  the event of an active assailant emergency, as determined
  187  necessary by the sheriff in coordination with the district’s
  188  school safety specialist, must be physically present on campus
  189  and directly involved in the execution of active assailant
  190  emergency drills. School districts must notify law enforcement
  191  officers at least 24 hours before conducting an active assailant
  192  emergency drill that such law enforcement officers are expected
  193  to attend. District school board policies must shall include
  194  commonly used alarm system responses for specific types of
  195  emergencies and verification by each school that drills have
  196  been provided as required by law, State Board of Education
  197  rules, and fire protection codes and may provide accommodations
  198  for drills conducted by exceptional student education centers.
  199  District school boards shall establish emergency response and
  200  emergency preparedness policies and procedures that include, but
  201  are not limited to, identifying the individuals responsible for
  202  contacting the primary emergency response agency and the
  203  emergency response agency that is responsible for notifying the
  204  school district for each type of emergency. The State Board of
  205  Education shall refer to recommendations provided in reports
  206  published pursuant to s. 943.687 for guidance and, by August 1,
  207  2023, consult with state and local constituencies to adopt rules
  208  applicable to the requirements of this subsection which, at a
  209  minimum, define the terms “emergency drill,” “active threat,”
  210  and “after-action report” and establish minimum emergency drill
  211  policies and procedures related to the timing, frequency,
  212  participation, training, notification, accommodations, and
  213  responses to threat situations by incident type, school level,
  214  school type, and student and school characteristics. The rules
  215  must require all types of emergency drills to be conducted no
  216  less frequently than on an annual school year basis.
  217         (6) SAFETY AND SECURITY BEST PRACTICES.—Each district
  218  school superintendent shall establish policies and procedures
  219  for the prevention of violence on school grounds, including the
  220  assessment of and intervention with individuals whose behavior
  221  poses a threat to the safety of the school community.
  222         (d)Each district school board and charter school governing
  223  board shall adopt, in coordination with local law enforcement
  224  agencies and local governments, a family reunification plan to
  225  reunite students and employees with their families in the event
  226  that a school is closed or unexpectedly evacuated due to a
  227  natural or manmade disaster. This reunification plan must be
  228  reviewed annually and updated, as applicable.
  229         (7) THREAT ASSESSMENT TEAMS.—Each district school board
  230  shall adopt policies for the establishment of threat assessment
  231  teams at each school whose duties include the coordination of
  232  resources and assessment and intervention with individuals whose
  233  behavior may pose a threat to the safety of school staff or
  234  students consistent with the model policies developed by the
  235  Office of Safe Schools. Such policies must include procedures
  236  for referrals to mental health services identified by the school
  237  district pursuant to s. 1012.584(4), when appropriate, and
  238  procedures for behavioral threat assessments in compliance with
  239  the instrument developed pursuant to s. 1001.212(12).
  240         (a) A threat assessment team shall include persons with
  241  expertise in counseling, instruction, school administration, and
  242  law enforcement. All members of the threat assessment team must
  243  be involved in the threat assessment process and final
  244  decisionmaking. The threat assessment teams shall identify
  245  members of the school community to whom threatening behavior
  246  should be reported and provide guidance to students, faculty,
  247  and staff regarding recognition of threatening or aberrant
  248  behavior that may represent a threat to the community, school,
  249  or self. Upon the availability of the behavioral threat
  250  assessment instrument developed pursuant to s. 1001.212(12), the
  251  threat assessment team shall use that instrument.
  252         (9) SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY INCIDENT REPORTING.—Each
  253  district school board shall adopt policies to ensure the
  254  accurate and timely reporting of incidents related to school
  255  safety and discipline. The district school superintendent is
  256  responsible for school environmental safety incident reporting.
  257  A district school superintendent who fails to comply with this
  258  subsection is subject to the penalties specified in law,
  259  including, but not limited to, s. 1001.42(13)(b) or s.
  260  1001.51(12)(b), as applicable. The State Board of Education
  261  shall adopt rules establishing the requirements for the school
  262  environmental safety incident report. Annually, the department
  263  shall publish on its website the most recently available school
  264  environmental safety incident data along with other school
  265  accountability and performance data in a uniform, statewide
  266  format that is easy to read and understand.
  267         (11)SUICIDE SCREENING INSTRUMENT.—Each district school
  268  board shall adopt policies to ensure that district schools and
  269  local mobile response teams use the same suicide screening
  270  instrument approved by the department pursuant to s. 1012.583.
  271         Section 6. Present subsection (6) of section 1006.12,
  272  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (8), a new
  273  subsection (6) and subsection (7) are added to that section, and
  274  paragraph (c) of subsection (1), paragraphs (a) and (b) of
  275  subsection (2), and subsection (5) of that section are amended,
  276  to read:
  277         1006.12 Safe-school officers at each public school.—For the
  278  protection and safety of school personnel, property, students,
  279  and visitors, each district school board and school district
  280  superintendent shall partner with law enforcement agencies or
  281  security agencies to establish or assign one or more safe-school
  282  officers at each school facility within the district, including
  283  charter schools. A district school board must collaborate with
  284  charter school governing boards to facilitate charter school
  285  access to all safe-school officer options available under this
  286  section. The school district may implement any combination of
  287  the options in subsections (1)-(4) to best meet the needs of the
  288  school district and charter schools.
  289         (1) SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER.—A school district may
  290  establish school resource officer programs through a cooperative
  291  agreement with law enforcement agencies.
  292         (c)Complete mental health crisis intervention training
  293  using a curriculum developed by a national organization with
  294  expertise in mental health crisis intervention. The training
  295  shall improve officers’ knowledge and skills as first responders
  296  to incidents involving students with emotional disturbance or
  297  mental illness, including de-escalation skills to ensure student
  298  and officer safety.
  299         (2) SCHOOL SAFETY OFFICER.—A school district may commission
  300  one or more school safety officers for the protection and safety
  301  of school personnel, property, and students within the school
  302  district. The district school superintendent may recommend, and
  303  the district school board may appoint, one or more school safety
  304  officers.
  305         (a) School safety officers shall undergo criminal
  306  background checks, drug testing, and a psychological evaluation
  307  and be law enforcement officers, as defined in s. 943.10(1),
  308  certified under the provisions of chapter 943 and employed by
  309  either a law enforcement agency or by the district school board.
  310  If the officer is employed by the district school board, the
  311  district school board is the employing agency for purposes of
  312  chapter 943, and must comply with the provisions of that
  313  chapter.
  314         (b) A school safety officer has and shall exercise the
  315  power to make arrests for violations of law on district school
  316  board property or on property owned or leased by a charter
  317  school under a charter contract, as applicable, and to arrest
  318  persons, whether on or off such property, who violate any law on
  319  such property under the same conditions that deputy sheriffs are
  320  authorized to make arrests. A school safety officer has the
  321  authority to carry weapons when performing his or her official
  322  duties.
  323         (5) NOTIFICATION.—The district school superintendent or
  324  charter school administrator, or a respective designee, school
  325  district shall notify the county sheriff and the Office of Safe
  326  Schools immediately after, but no later than 72 hours after:
  327         (a) A safe-school officer is dismissed for misconduct or is
  328  otherwise disciplined.
  329         (b) A safe-school officer discharges his or her firearm in
  330  the exercise of the safe-school officer’s duties, other than for
  331  training purposes.
  332         (6)CRISIS INTERVENTION TRAINING.—Each safe-school officer
  333  who is also a sworn law enforcement officer shall complete
  334  mental health crisis intervention training using a curriculum
  335  developed by a national organization with expertise in mental
  336  health crisis intervention. The training must improve the
  337  officer’s knowledge and skills as a first responder to incidents
  338  involving students with emotional disturbance or mental illness,
  339  including de-escalation skills to ensure student and officer
  340  safety.
  341         (7)LIMITATIONS.—An individual must satisfy the background
  342  screening, psychological evaluation, and drug test requirements
  343  and be approved by the sheriff before participating in any
  344  training required by s. 30.15(1)(k), which may be conducted only
  345  by a sheriff.
  346  
  347  If a district school board, through its adopted policies,
  348  procedures, or actions, denies a charter school access to any
  349  safe-school officer options pursuant to this section, the school
  350  district must assign a school resource officer or school safety
  351  officer to the charter school. Under such circumstances, the
  352  charter school’s share of the costs of the school resource
  353  officer or school safety officer may not exceed the safe school
  354  allocation funds provided to the charter school pursuant to s.
  355  1011.62(13) and shall be retained by the school district.
  356         Section 7. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section
  357  1006.1493, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  358         1006.1493 Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool.—
  359         (2) The FSSAT must help school officials identify threats,
  360  vulnerabilities, and appropriate safety controls for the schools
  361  that they supervise, pursuant to the security risk assessment
  362  requirements of s. 1006.07(6).
  363         (a) At a minimum, the FSSAT must address all of the
  364  following components:
  365         1. School emergency and crisis preparedness planning;
  366         2. Security, crime, and violence prevention policies and
  367  procedures;
  368         3. Physical security measures;
  369         4. Professional development training needs;
  370         5. An examination of support service roles in school
  371  safety, security, and emergency planning;
  372         6. School security and school police staffing, operational
  373  practices, and related services;
  374         7. School and community collaboration on school safety; and
  375         8. Policies and procedures for school officials to prepare
  376  for and respond to natural and manmade disasters, including
  377  family reunification plans to reunite students and employees
  378  with their families after a school is closed or unexpectedly
  379  evacuated due to such disasters; and
  380         9. A return on investment analysis of the recommended
  381  physical security controls.
  382         Section 8. Subsection (5) is added to section 1012.584,
  383  Florida Statutes, to read:
  384         1012.584 Continuing education and inservice training for
  385  youth mental health awareness and assistance.—
  386         (5)No later than July 1, 2023, and annually thereafter by
  387  July 1, each school district shall certify to the department, in
  388  a format determined by the department, that at least 80 percent
  389  of school personnel in elementary, middle, and high schools have
  390  received the training required under this section.
  391         Section 9. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  392  act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2022.