[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2262 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2262
To amend the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to include
bullying and harassment prevention programs.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 5, 2009
Ms. Linda T. Sanchez of California (for herself, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mrs.
McCarthy of New York, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Berman, Mr. Bishop of New York,
Ms. Bordallo, Mrs. Capps, Mr. Capuano, Mr. Carnahan, Ms. Clarke, Mr.
Davis of Illinois, Mr. Delahunt, Ms. DeLauro, Mr. Doyle, Mr. Etheridge,
Mr. Farr, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Gordon of Tennessee, Mr. Al
Green of Texas, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. Holt, Mr. Kildee, Mr.
Kirk, Mr. Lance, Ms. Matsui, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Meeks of New York, Mr.
Moran of Virginia, Mr. Payne, Mr. Reyes, Ms. Loretta Sanchez of
California, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Sires, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Stark, Ms.
Sutton, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Weiner, and Mr. Wexler) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to include
bullying and harassment prevention programs.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Safe Schools Improvement Act of
2009''.
SEC. 2. BULLYING AND HARASSMENT PREVENTION POLICIES, PROGRAMS, AND
STATISTICS.
(a) State Reporting Requirements.--Section 4112(c)(3)(B)(iv) of the
Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (20 U.S.C.
7112(c)(3)(B)(iv)) is amended by inserting ``, including bullying and
harassment,'' after ``violence''.
(b) State Application.--Section 4113(a) of such Act (20 U.S.C.
7113(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (9)--
(A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'' at the
end; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(E) the incidence and prevalence of reported
incidents of bullying and harassment; and
``(F) the perception of students regarding their
school environment, including with respect to the
prevalence and seriousness of incidents of bullying and
harassment and the responsiveness of the school to
those incidents;'';
(2) in paragraph (18), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(3) in paragraph (19), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(20) provides an assurance that the State educational
agency will provide assistance to districts and schools in
their efforts to prevent and appropriately respond to incidents
of bullying and harassment and describes how the agency will
meet this requirement.''.
(c) Local Educational Agency Program Application.--Section 4114(d)
of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7114(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2)(B)(i)--
(A) in subclause (I), by striking ``and'' at the
end; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(III) performance indicators for
bullying and harassment prevention
programs and activities; and''; and
(2) in paragraph (7)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, including
bullying and harassment'' after ``disorderly conduct'';
(B) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the
end; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(F) annual notice to parents and students
describing the full range of prohibited conduct
contained in the discipline policies described in
subparagraph (A); and
``(G) grievance procedures for students or parents
that seek to register complaints regarding the
prohibited conduct contained in the discipline policies
described in subparagraph (A), including--
``(i) the name of the school district
officials who are designated as responsible for
receiving such complaints; and
``(ii) timelines that the school district
will follow in the resolution of such
complaints;''.
(d) Authorized Activities.--Section 4115(b)(2) of such Act (20
U.S.C. 7115(b)(2)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A)--
(A) in clause (vi), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) in clause (vii), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(viii) teach students about the
consequences of bullying and harassment.''; and
(2) in subparagraph (E), by adding at the end the
following:
``(xxiii) Programs that address the causes
of bullying and harassment and that train
teachers, administrators, pupil services
personnel, and other school personnel regarding
strategies to prevent bullying and harassment
and to effectively intervene when such
incidents occur.''.
(e) Reporting.--Section 4116(a)(2)(B) of such Act (20 U.S.C.
7116(a)(2)(B)) is amended by inserting ``, including bullying and
harassment,'' after ``drug use and violence''.
(f) Impact Evaluation.--Section 4122 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7132)
is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ``and school
violence'' and inserting ``school violence, including bullying
and harassment,''; and
(2) in the first sentence of subsection (b), by inserting
``, including bullying and harassment,'' after ``drug use and
violence''.
(g) Definitions.--
(1) Drug and violence prevention.--Paragraph (3)(B) of
section 4151 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7151) is amended by
inserting ``, bullying, and other harassment'' after ``sexual
harassment and abuse''.
(2) Protective factor, buffer, or asset.--Paragraph (6) of
such section is amended by inserting ``, including bullying and
harassment'' after ``violent behavior''.
(3) Risk factor.--Paragraph (7) of such section is amended
by inserting ``, including bullying and harassment'' after
``violent behavior''.
(4) Bullying, harassment, and violence.--Such section is
further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(12) Bullying.--The term `bullying' means conduct that--
``(A) adversely affects the ability of one or more
students to participate in or benefit from the school's
educational programs or activities by placing the
student (or students) in reasonable fear of physical
harm; and
``(B) includes conduct that is based on--
``(i) a student's actual or perceived--
``(I) race;
``(II) color;
``(III) national origin;
``(IV) sex;
``(V) disability;
``(VI) sexual orientation;
``(VII) gender identity; or
``(VIII) religion;
``(ii) any other distinguishing
characteristics that may be defined by a State
or local educational agency; or
``(iii) association with a person or group
with one or more of the actual or perceived
characteristics listed in clause (i) or (ii).
``(13) Harassment.--The term `harassment' means conduct
that--
``(A) adversely affects the ability of one or more
students to participate in or benefit from the school's
educational programs or activities because the conduct,
as reasonably perceived by the student (or students),
is so severe, persistent, or pervasive; and
``(B) includes conduct that is based on--
``(i) a student's actual or perceived--
``(I) race;
``(II) color;
``(III) national origin;
``(IV) sex;
``(V) disability;
``(VI) sexual orientation;
``(VII) gender identity; or
``(VIII) religion;
``(ii) any other distinguishing
characteristics that may be defined by a State
or local educational agency; or
``(iii) association with a person or group
with one or more of the actual or perceived
characteristics listed in clause (i) or (ii).
``(14) Violence.--The term `violence' includes bullying and
harassment.''.
(h) Effect on Other Laws.--
(1) Amendment.--The Safe and Drug-Free Schools and
Communities Act (20 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``SEC. 4156. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.
``(a) Federal and State Nondiscrimination Laws.--Nothing in this
part shall be construed to invalidate or limit rights, remedies,
procedures, or legal standards available to victims of discrimination
under any other Federal law or law of a State or political subdivision
of a State, including title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42
U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20
U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 794), or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.
12101 et seq.). The obligations imposed by this part are in addition to
those imposed by title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20
U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42
U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
(42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.).
``(b) Free Speech and Expression Laws.--Nothing in this part shall
be construed to alter legal standards regarding, or affect the rights
available to individuals under, other Federal laws that establish
protections for freedom of speech and expression.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301
et seq.) is amended by adding after the item relating to
section 4155 the following:
``Sec. 4156. Effect on other laws.''.
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