[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6362 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6362

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to improve 
                             school safety.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 29, 2010

  Mrs. McCarthy of New York introduced the following bill; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to improve 
                             school safety.

    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 Against Violence in 
Education Act'' or the ``SAVE Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Secretary of Education reports that from 2003 to 
        2009 there have never been more than 47 schools in the entire 
        Nation reported annually as persistently dangerous.
            (2) The Office of the New York State Comptroller's May 2006 
        report found that at schools sampled for this report more than 
        80 percent of the documented incidents were not reported to the 
        State, and in a number of instances the most serious types of 
        incidents, such as sexual offenses and incidents involving the 
        use of a weapon, were unreported.
            (3) In December 2009, the National Center for Education 
        Statistics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics released a 
        joint report that contains the most recent data, based on self-
        reported information and surveys, available on crime and 
        student safety, titled ``Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 
        2009'' (the ``Indicators'' report).
            (4) According to the ``Indicators'' report, in the 2007-
        2008 school year, there were an estimated 55,700,000 students 
        in pre-kindergarten through grade 12. The report shows that 
        among youth ages 5 to 18, there were 43 school-associated 
        violent deaths from July 1, 2007, through June 30, 2008. In 
        2007, among students ages 12 to 18, there were about 1.5 
        million victims of nonfatal crimes at school, including 826,800 
        thefts and 684,100 violent crimes (simple assault and serious 
        violent crime).
            (5) In 2007, 10 percent of male students in grade 9 through 
        grade 12 reported being threatened or injured with a weapon on 
        school property in the past year, compared to 5 percent of 
        female students.
            (6) The ``Indicators'' report states that in 2007, 5 
        percent of students ages 12 to 18 reported that they had been 
        afraid of attack at school.
            (7) The ``Indicators'' report states in 2007, 32 percent of 
        students ages 12 to 18 reported having been bullied in schools 
        during the school year.
            (8) The National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) 
        was developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as part of 
        the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. NIBRS currently 
        collects data on all reported incidents of crime, including 
        crime occurring at school.
            (9) Accurate data is important to meet the educational goal 
        of safe climate for academic achievement. Accurate data enables 
        administrators to assess the impact of programs that have been 
        implemented to promote school safety and to assess whether 
        additional efforts are needed.
            (10) Students involved in bullying are at a significant 
        risk of experiencing a wide spectrum of psychosomatic symptoms, 
        running away from home, alcohol and drug abuse, absenteeism 
        and, above all, self-inflicted, accidental or perpetrated 
        injuries.
            (11) Unlike traditional forms of bullying, youth who are 
        the targets of cyberbullying at school are at greater risk for 
        depression than are the youth who bully them, according to a 
        survey conducted by researchers at the National Institutes of 
        Health.

SEC. 4. SCHOOL SAFETY CHOICE OPTION.

    (a) In General.--Section 9532 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7912) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 9532. SAFE SCHOOL CLIMATE.

    ``(a) State Policies and Report.--
            ``(1) In general.--As a condition of receiving funds under 
        part A of title I, a State shall--
                    ``(A) establish and implement--
                            ``(i) a statewide policy requiring that--
                                    ``(I) a student described in 
                                paragraph (2) be allowed to attend a 
                                public elementary school or secondary 
                                school (including a public charter 
                                school) within a local educational 
                                agency under the jurisdiction of the 
                                State that has a safe climate for 
                                academic achievement; and
                                    ``(II) determinations with respect 
                                to which public elementary schools and 
                                secondary schools in the State do not 
                                have a safe climate for academic 
                                achievement are made in accordance with 
                                subsection (b); and
                            ``(ii) a statewide policy with respect to 
                        offenders described in paragraph (3); and
                    ``(B) report to the Secretary, on an annual basis--
                            ``(i) the number of schools determined by 
                        the State to not have a safe climate for 
                        academic achievement;
                            ``(ii) the number of students who have 
                        transferred from such schools; and
                            ``(iii) the number of offenders who have 
                        been removed from school pursuant to this 
                        section.
            ``(2) Description of student.--A student described in this 
        paragraph is a student--
                    ``(A) who is attending a public elementary school 
                or secondary school that does not have a safe climate 
                for academic achievement, as determined by the State in 
                accordance with subsection (b); or
                    ``(B) who becomes a victim of a violent criminal 
                offense, as determined by State law--
                            ``(i) while in or on the grounds of a 
                        public elementary school or secondary school 
                        that the student attends;
                            ``(ii) at a school event or activity under 
                        the control and supervision of such school; or
                            ``(iii) on a school bus under the control 
                        and supervision of such school.
            ``(3) Policies with respect to offenders.--A State policy 
        with respect to offenders shall--
                    ``(A) permit a public elementary or secondary 
                school in which a violent criminal offense described in 
                paragraph (2)(B) occurs or, in a case in which such 
                offense did not occur in or on school grounds, a public 
                elementary school or secondary school that had control 
                and supervision over the event or activity or on the 
                school bus where such offense occurred, to provide 
                appropriate counseling and educational services to the 
                offender of the offense in an alternative setting if 
                removal of the offender from the school is determined 
                to be appropriate by the school; and
                    ``(B) require that a school described in 
                subparagraph (A) that knows that an offender of a 
                violent criminal offense described in paragraph (2)(B) 
                is returning to the school notify, as soon as 
                practicable prior to the offender's return to the 
                school, the parents of each victim of the offense 
                committed by the offender that the offender is 
                returning to the school.
    ``(b) Determinations of Safe Climate.--
            ``(1) In general.--A State policy with respect to 
        determining which public elementary schools and secondary 
        schools in the State do not have a safe climate for academic 
        achievement shall require that--
                    ``(A) a State make such determinations--
                            ``(i) by consulting with--
                                    ``(I) a representative sample of 
                                local educational agencies, parent 
                                groups, and local law enforcement 
                                agencies; or
                                    ``(II) other experts in the area of 
                                school safety;
                            ``(ii) based, at a minimum, on school crime 
                        statistics and data--
                                    ``(I) collected by the State 
                                pursuant to section 4141 and under 
                                subsection (c) of this section; and
                                    ``(II) made available by the 
                                Federal Bureau of Investigation 
                                pursuant to subsection (d); and
                            ``(iii) in time to permit a local 
                        educational agency to allow a student enrolled 
                        in a school that does not have a safe climate 
                        for academic achievement to instead enroll, at 
                        least 45 days before the start of the school 
                        year, at a school with a safe climate for 
                        academic achievement;
                    ``(B) after making determinations in accordance 
                with subparagraph (A), the State shall--
                            ``(i) notify each local educational agency 
                        in the State serving schools that are 
                        determined to not have a safe climate for 
                        academic achievement of such schools; and
                            ``(ii) require that within a week of 
                        receiving notice under clause (i), a local 
                        educational agency shall provide to the parent 
                        of each student enrolled in each such school, a 
                        notice of the determination with respect to the 
                        school that meets the requirements of paragraph 
                        (2); and
                    ``(C) a school determined under this paragraph to 
                not have a safe climate for academic achievement 
                develop, in consultation with parents, students, school 
                employees, local law enforcement, representatives of 
                local public health and mental health agencies, and 
                experts in school safety, an intervention plan to 
                create a safer school environment that is based on an 
                analysis of the data and school crime statistics with 
                respect to such school--
                            ``(i) collected by the State under section 
                        4141 and subsection (c) of this section; and
                            ``(ii) made available by the Federal Bureau 
                        of Investigation pursuant to subsection (d).
            ``(2) Form of notice.--A notice to a parent under paragraph 
        (1)(B)(ii) shall--
                    ``(A) describe the determination with respect to 
                the school in which the child of the parent is enrolled 
                and explain that, by reason of the determination and 
                pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(A)(i), the child may 
                attend a school that has a safe climate for academic 
                achievement within the local educational agency; and
                    ``(B) be written in an understandable and uniform 
                format and, to the extent practicable, in a language 
                that the parent can understand.
    ``(c) Collection of Relevant Information and School Crime 
Statistics.--
            ``(1) In general.--As a condition of receiving funds under 
        part A of title I, a State shall--
                    ``(A) collect the data described in paragraph (2) 
                for use in determinations of whether a school has a 
                safe climate for academic achievement for purposes of 
                subsection (a)(1)(A)(i); and
                    ``(B) not later than 1 year after the first time 
                information is collected under subparagraph (A) and 
                annually thereafter--
                            ``(i) prepare, publish, and distribute, in 
                        a timely manner and through appropriate 
                        publications, mailings, or the Internet, to all 
                        students enrolled in a public elementary school 
                        or secondary school in the State, the families 
                        of such students, and school staff, an annual 
                        report containing, at a minimum, the school 
                        crime statistics collected under paragraph 
                        (2)(G); and
                            ``(ii) submit to the Secretary such 
                        statistics.
            ``(2) Description of data.--The data described in this 
        paragraph include--
                    ``(A) truancy rates with respect to each public 
                elementary school and secondary school in the State;
                    ``(B) the frequency, seriousness, and incidence of 
                bullying, cyberbullying, violence, and drug-related 
                offenses, at--
                            ``(i) any event or activity under the 
                        control and supervision of an public elementary 
                        school or secondary school in the State; or
                            ``(ii) on school buses under the control 
                        and supervision of any such school or the 
                        State;
                    ``(C) suspension rates for 1 day or more, including 
                in-school suspensions, and expulsion rates, 
                desegregated by the categories described in section 
                1111(b)(3)(C)(viii), with respect to each elementary 
                school and secondary school in the State;
                    ``(D) the types of violence prevention curricula, 
                programs, and services provided by the chief executive 
                officer, the State educational agency, and local 
                educational agencies, in the State;
                    ``(E) the incidence and prevalence, age of onset, 
                perception of health risk, and perception of social 
                disapproval of drug use and violence by youth in each 
                public elementary school and secondary school in the 
                State and community served by each such school;
                    ``(F) the existence and implementation of emergency 
                preparedness plans in each elementary school and 
                secondary school in the State; and
                    ``(G) the school crime statistics described in 
                paragraph (3) with respect to each public elementary 
                school and secondary school in the State.
            ``(3) School crime statistics.--The school crime statistics 
        described in this paragraph include statistics concerning the 
        occurrence of any criminal offenses reported to local police 
        agencies that have occurred at a school, on school grounds, or 
        at school-sponsored activities during the most recent calendar 
        year and the 2 preceding calendar years, including--
                    ``(A) murder;
                    ``(B) sex offenses, forcible or nonforcible;
                    ``(C) robbery;
                    ``(D) aggravated assault;
                    ``(E) burglary;
                    ``(F) manslaughter;
                    ``(G) arson; and
                    ``(H) crimes for which a person has been arrested 
                or referred for disciplinary action, including for 
                liquor law violations, drug-related violations, or 
                weapons possession.
            ``(4) Data collection requirements.--Data collected by a 
        State under paragraph (1) shall be based on information that--
                    ``(A) is verifiable and reported--
                            ``(i) in a consistent and uniform manner; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) in a manner consistent with the 
                        guidance provided under subsection (g); and
                    ``(B) allows for State-by-State comparison and the 
                evaluation described in subsection (i).
            ``(5) Secretarial duties.--The Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) review the school crime statistics submitted 
                under paragraph (1)(B)(ii);
                    ``(B) report to Congress on the school crime 
                statistics; and
                    ``(C) make such information publicly available.
            ``(6) Identification of individuals.--The school crime 
        statistics collected and published under paragraph (1) may not 
        identify victims of crimes or persons accused of crimes.
            ``(7) Inadmissibility of evidence.--Notwithstanding any 
        other provision of law, evidence regarding compliance or 
        noncompliance with this subsection shall not be admissible as 
        evidence in any proceeding of any court, agency, board, or 
        other entity, except with respect to an action to enforce this 
        subsection.
    ``(d) FBI Information.--
            ``(1) Report on indicators of school crime and safety.--The 
        Secretary shall request the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation to make available for inclusion in the annual 
        report on Indicators of School Crime and Safety, produced 
        jointly by the National Center for Education Statistics and the 
        Bureau of Justice Statistics of the Department of Justice, any 
        data or other information the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
        has available through the Uniform Crime Reporting System or 
        National Incident-Based Reporting System on the occurrence and 
        incidence of school-related crime in elementary schools and 
        secondary schools.
            ``(2) Availability to states.--The Secretary shall make 
        available any data or other information it receives from the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation under paragraph (1) to the 
        States for consideration when determining which schools do not 
        have a safe climate for academic achievement for purposes of 
        subsection (a).
    ``(e) Evaluations by States.--As a condition of receiving funds 
under part A of title I, each State shall, on an ongoing basis, using 
verifiable documentation, monitor and evaluate the extent to which 
local educational agencies are in compliance with this section.
    ``(f) Certification.--As a condition of receiving funds under part 
A of title I, a State shall certify in writing to the Secretary that 
the data and crime statistics used are verifiable and that the State is 
in compliance with this section.
    ``(g) Best Practices.--The Secretary shall provide to States 
guidance on best practices for implementing and monitoring the policies 
required by this section.
    ``(h) Handbook for School Crime, Offense, and Incident Reporting.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 6 months after the date 
        of enactment of the SAVE Act, the Secretary shall publish a 
        handbook for school crime, offense, and incident reporting, 
        modeled after the Handbook for Campus Crime Reporting published 
        by the Office of Postsecondary Education of the Department of 
        Education, to--
                    ``(A) provide clear guidance to States and local 
                educational agencies on specifically which crimes, 
                offenses, and incidents must be reported to meet the 
                reporting and crime disclosure requirements of this 
                section;
                    ``(B) provide assistance to States and local 
                educational agencies and explanations in a step-by-step 
                and readable manner with respect to the reporting 
                requirements;
                    ``(C) provide contact information at the Department 
                of Education if further assistance is necessary; and
                    ``(D) recommendations of the Secretary on using 
                consistent national definitions for the crimes, 
                offenses, and incidents which are required to be 
                reported pursuant to this section.
    ``(i) Periodic Evaluation.--The Inspector General of the Department 
of Education shall conduct an independent annual evaluation of the 
extent to which States are in compliance with this section. Each annual 
evaluation shall cover a sample of States selected on a rotating basis.
    ``(j) Rules of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to--
            ``(1) authorize the Secretary to require particular 
        policies, procedures, or practices by schools and local 
        educational agencies with respect to crimes committed at 
        school, on school grounds, or at school-sponsored activities;
            ``(2) confer a private right of action upon any person to 
        enforce this section;
            ``(3) require the reporting or disclosure of privileged 
        information;
            ``(4) create a cause of action against any school or any 
        employee of a school for any civil liability or establish any 
        standard of care; or
            ``(5) permit a school, or an officer, employee, or agent of 
        a school, participating in any program under this Act to 
        retaliate, intimidate, threaten, coerce, or otherwise 
        discriminate against any individual with respect to the 
        implementation of any provision of this section.
    ``(k) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Bullying.--The term `bullying' means conduct that--
                    ``(A) adversely affects the ability of one or more 
                students to participate in or benefit from a 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).
            ``(2) Cyberbullying.--The term `cyberbulling' means using 
        the Internet, a cell phone (such as by text messaging), a video 
        game system, or other technology to send or post text or images 
        intended to hurt or embarrass another individual.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents at the beginning 
of such Act is amended by striking the item relating to section 9532 
and inserting the following:

``Sec. 9532. Safe School Climate.''.

SEC. 5. GUN-FREE REQUIREMENTS.

    Section 4141 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 7151) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ``; and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph 
                        (A), by inserting ``or any modifications 
                        allowed under subsection (b) that result in 
                        removals or long-term suspensions rather than 
                        expulsions,'' after ``subsection (b),'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``, 
                        removed, or suspended for a long term'' after 
                        ``expelled''; and
                            (iii) in subparagraph (C), by striking the 
                        period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) a description of the circumstances surrounding every 
        incident in which any person, including a student or non-
        student, who is not legally permitted to possess a firearm is 
        determined to have brought a firearm to, or to have possessed a 
        firearm at, a school served by such local education agency, an 
        event or activity under the control and supervision of the 
        school or local educational agency, or on a school bus under 
        the control and supervision of the school or local educational 
        agency, including--
                    ``(A) the name of the school concerned;
                    ``(B) the number of persons, including students and 
                non-students, involved; and
                    ``(C) the type of firearms concerned; and
            ``(4) a certification that the information in the 
        application is accurate and complete.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(i) Evaluations by States.--Each State receiving Federal funds 
under any title of this Act shall, on an ongoing basis, evaluate the 
extent to which local educational agencies are in compliance with this 
section. The evaluation shall include an assessment of the accuracy of 
the information provided under subsection (d). A local educational 
agency that intentionally fails to report complete and accurate 
information under subsection (d) shall be determined to be noncompliant 
with this section and shall not, during any period of noncompliance, 
receive any funds made available to the State under any title of this 
Act.
    ``(j) Periodic Evaluation.--The Inspector General of the Department 
of Education shall conduct an independent annual evaluation of the 
extent to which States are in compliance with this section. Each annual 
evaluation shall cover a sample of States selected on a rotating 
basis.''.

SEC. 6. NATIONAL PROGRAMS.

    (a) School Climate Survey.--Section 4121(a) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 7131) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by inserting ``bullying and cyberbullying and'' 
                after ``prevent''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``, including emergency 
                preparedness,'' after ``safety'';
            (2) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by inserting ``students,'' after ``parents,''; 
                and
                    (B) by inserting ``, bullying and cyberbullying 
                prevention, and emergency preparedness'' after 
                ``violence prevention'';
            (3) in paragraph (8) by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (4) by redesignating paragraph (9) as paragraph (10); and
            (5) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following:
            ``(9) the administration of a schoolwide climate survey of 
        students, parents, and school personnel that--
                    ``(A) should be used as a pre- or post- 
                intervention measure to--
                            ``(i) promote student participation and the 
                        recognition of the student voice;
                            ``(ii) build authentic school-home-
                        community partnerships;
                            ``(iii) promote an authentic learning 
                        community;
                            ``(iv) prevent bullying and cyberbullying, 
                        and
                            ``(iv) create a collaborative plan for 
                        school improvement; and
                    ``(B) should measure--
                            ``(i) the degree to which collaborative 
                        leadership and a professional learning 
                        community exist, including--
                                    ``(I) the degree to which school 
                                administrators are effective in 
                                communicating with different role 
                                groups and in setting high performance 
                                expectations for teachers and students;
                                    ``(II) the establishment of an 
                                effective school leadership team; and
                                    ``(III) the amount and quality of 
                                involvement of parents and community 
                                members in the school;
                            ``(ii) the personalization of the school 
                        environment, including--
                                    ``(I) the quality of the 
                                interpersonal and professional 
                                relationships between teachers and 
                                students;
                                    ``(II) student self-discipline and 
                                tolerance for others, including 
                                incidents of bullying and 
                                cyberbullying; and
                                    ``(III) students' care and respect 
                                for one another and their mutual 
                                cooperation; and
                            ``(iii) the strength of the curriculum, 
                        instruction, and assessment, including--
                                    ``(I) student attention to task and 
                                concern for achievement at school;
                                    ``(II) the identification of a set 
                                of essential knowledge and skills in 
                                core academic areas in which students 
                                must demonstrate achievement in order 
                                to advance to the next level; and
                                    ``(III) the promotion of service 
                                programs and student activities as 
                                integral to an education, providing 
                                opportunities that support and extend 
                                academic learning for all students; 
                                and''.
    (b) Funding Priority; Definitions.--Section 4121 of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 7131) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Priority.--In determining which entities are to receive 
grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall consider the extent to which the proposed grant, 
contract, or cooperative agreement will benefit schools determined 
under section 9532(b) to not have a safe climate for academic 
achievement and shall give extra weight to proposals that will benefit 
such schools.
    ``(d) Definitions.--In this section, the terms `bullying' and 
`cyberbullying' have the meanings given such terms in section 
9532(k).''.

SEC. 7. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that the amount authorized and 
appropriated for part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) should be increased by 
such sums as may be necessary for States to carry out the requirements 
of section 9532 of such Act.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act, and the amendments made by this Act, shall take effect 
not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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