[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 506 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 506

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to address 
    and take action to prevent bullying and harassment of students.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 8, 2011

  Mr. Casey (for himself, Mr. Kirk, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. 
 Durbin, Mr. Lautenberg, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Sanders, Mrs. Murray, Mr. 
 Merkley, Mr. Wyden, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Whitehouse, Mrs. Boxer, Mrs. 
Gillibrand, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Blumenthal, and Ms. Mikulski) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
          Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to address 
    and take action to prevent bullying and harassment of students.

    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 
2011''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Bullying and harassment fosters a climate of fear and 
        disrespect that can seriously impair the physical and 
        psychological health of its victims and create conditions that 
        negatively affect learning, thereby undermining the ability of 
        students to achieve their full potential.
            (2) Bullying and harassment contribute to high dropout 
        rates, increased absenteeism, and academic underachievement.
            (3) Bullying and harassment include a range of behaviors 
        that negatively impact a student's ability to learn and 
        participate in educational opportunities and activities that 
        schools offer. Such behaviors can include hitting or punching, 
        name-calling, intimidation through gestures or social 
        exclusion, and sending insulting or offensive messages through 
        electronic communications such as internet sites, e-mail, 
        instant messaging, mobile phones and messaging, telephone, or 
        any other means.
            (4) Schools with enumerated anti-bullying and harassment 
        policies have an increased level of reporting and teacher 
        intervention in incidents of bullying and harassment, thereby 
        reducing the overall frequency and number of such incidents.
            (5) Students have been particularly singled out for 
        bullying and harassment on the basis of their actual or 
        perceived race, color, national origin, sex, disability status, 
        sexual orientation or gender identity, among other categories.
            (6) Some young people experience a form of bullying called 
        relational aggression or psychological bullying, which harms 
        individuals by damaging, threatening, or manipulating their 
        relationships with their peers, or by injuring their feelings 
        of social acceptance.
            (7) Interventions to address bullying and harassment and 
        create a positive and safe school climate, combined with 
        evidence-based discipline policies and practices, such as 
        Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and 
        restorative practices, can minimize suspensions, expulsions, 
        and other exclusionary discipline policies to ensure that 
        students are not ``pushed-out'' or diverted to the juvenile 
        justice system.
            (8) According to a recent poll, 85 percent of Americans 
        strongly support or somewhat support a Federal law to require 
        schools to enforce specific rules to prevent bullying.
            (9) Students, parents, educators, and policymakers have 
        come together to call for leadership and action to address the 
        national crisis of bullying and harassment.

SEC. 3. SAFE SCHOOLS IMPROVEMENT.

    (a) In General.--Title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following:

                   ``PART D--SAFE SCHOOLS IMPROVEMENT

``SEC. 4401. PURPOSE.

    ``The purpose of this part is to address the problem of bullying 
and harassment of students in public elementary schools and secondary 
schools.

``SEC. 4402. STATE REQUIREMENTS.

    ``(a) State Reporting, Needs Assessment, and Technical 
Assistance.--Each State that receives funds under this Act shall carry 
out the following:
            ``(1) Collection and report of information.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The State shall collect and 
                report information on the incidence, prevalence, age of 
                onset, perception of health risk, and perception of 
                social disapproval of bullying and harassment by youth 
                in elementary schools and secondary schools and 
                communities in the State.
                    ``(B) Source of information.--In collecting 
                information described in subparagraph (A), the State 
                shall include information collected from incident 
                reports by school officials, anonymous student surveys, 
                and anonymous teacher, administrator, specialized 
                instructional support personnel, and other school 
                personnel surveys reported to the State on a school-by-
                school basis but shall not identify victims of bullying 
                or harassment or persons accused of bullying or 
                harassment.
                    ``(C) Report.--The chief executive officer of the 
                State, in cooperation with the State educational 
                agency, shall--
                            ``(i) submit a biennial report on the 
                        information described in this paragraph to the 
                        Secretary; and
                            ``(ii) make such information readily 
                        available to the public.
            ``(2) Needs assessment.--The State shall conduct, and 
        publicly report the results of, a needs assessment for bullying 
        and harassment prevention programs, which shall be based on 
        ongoing State evaluation activities, including data on--
                    ``(A) the incidence and prevalence of reported 
                incidents of bullying and harassment; and
                    ``(B) the perception of students, parents, and 
                communities 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.
            ``(3) Technical assistance.--The State shall provide 
        technical assistance to local educational agencies and schools 
        in their efforts to prevent and appropriately respond to 
        incidents of bullying and harassment.
    ``(b) Available Funding for States.--To implement the requirements 
described in subsection (a), the State may use--
            ``(1) administrative funds consolidated under section 9201; 
        or
            ``(2) other funds available to the State under this Act, to 
        the extent consistent with the authorized uses of such funds.

``SEC. 4403. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY REQUIREMENTS.

    ``(a) Local Educational Agency Discipline Policies, Performance 
Indicators, and Grievance Procedures.--Each local educational agency 
that receives funds under this Act shall--
            ``(1) include within the agency's comprehensive discipline 
        policies clear prohibitions against bullying and harassment for 
        the protection of all students;
            ``(2) establish and monitor performance indicators for 
        incidents of bullying and harassment;
            ``(3) provide annual notice to parents, students, and 
        educational professionals--
                    ``(A) describing the full range of bullying and 
                harassment conduct prohibited by the agency's 
                discipline policies; and
                    ``(B) reporting on the numbers and nature of 
                bullying and harassment incidents for each school 
                served by the local educational agency; and
            ``(4) establish and provide annual notice to students, 
        parents, and educational professionals of grievance procedures 
        for students, parents, or educational professionals who seek to 
        register complaints regarding bullying and harassment 
        prohibited by the discipline policies, including--
                    ``(A) the name of the local educational agency 
                official who is designated as responsible for receiving 
                such complaints; and
                    ``(B) timelines that the local educational agency 
                will follow in the resolution of such complaints.
    ``(b) Available Funding for Local Educational Agencies.--To 
implement the requirements described in subsection (a), the local 
educational agency may use--
            ``(1) administrative funds consolidated under section 9203; 
        or
            ``(2) other funds available to the local educational agency 
        under this Act, to the extent consistent with the authorized 
        uses of such funds.

``SEC. 4404. EVALUATION.

    ``(a) Biennial Evaluation.--The Secretary shall conduct an 
independent biennial evaluation of programs to combat bullying and 
harassment in elementary schools and secondary schools, including 
implementation of the requirements described in sections 4402 and 4403, 
including whether such programs have appreciably reduced the level of 
bullying and harassment and have conducted effective parent involvement 
and training programs.
    ``(b) Data Collection.--The Commissioner for Education Statistics 
shall collect data, that are subject to independent review, to 
determine the incidence and prevalence of bullying and harassment in 
elementary schools and secondary schools in the United States. The 
collected data shall include incident reports by school officials, 
anonymous student surveys, anonymous parent surveys, and anonymous 
teacher, administrator, specialized instructional support personnel, 
and other school personnel surveys.
    ``(c) Biennial Report.--Not later than January 1, 2012, and every 2 
years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the President and 
Congress a report on the findings of the evaluation conducted under 
subsection (a) together with the data collected under subsection (b) 
and data submitted by the States under section 4402(a)(1)(C)(i).

``SEC. 4405. DEFINITIONS.

    ``In this part:
            ``(1) Bullying.--The term `bullying'--
                    ``(A) means conduct, including an electronic 
                communication, that adversely affects the ability of 1 
                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 1 or more of the actual or perceived 
                        characteristics listed in clause (i) or (ii).
            ``(2) Electronic communication.--The term `electronic 
        communication' means a communication transmitted by means of an 
        electronic device, such as a telephone, cellular phone, 
        computer, or pager.
            ``(3) Harassment.--The term `harassment'--
                    ``(A) means conduct, including an electronic 
                communication, that adversely affects the ability of 1 
                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 
                        characteristic that may be defined by a State 
                        or local educational agency; or
                            ``(iii) association with a person or group 
                        with 1 or more of the actual or perceived 
                        characteristics listed in clause (i) or (ii).

``SEC. 4406. 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 or 505 of the Rehabilitation Act of 
1973 (29 U.S.C. 794, 794a), 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 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), 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 
(including remedies and procedures) available to individuals under, 
other Federal laws that establish protections for freedom of speech or 
expression.

``SEC. 4407. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    ``Nothing in this part shall be construed to prohibit a State or 
local entity from enacting any law with respect to the prevention of 
bullying or harassment of students that is not inconsistent with this 
part.''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents in section 2 of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 4304 the following:

                   ``PART D--Safe Schools Improvement

``Sec. 4401. Purpose.
``Sec. 4402. State requirements.
``Sec. 4403. Local educational agency requirements.
``Sec. 4404. Evaluation.
``Sec. 4405. Definitions.
``Sec. 4406. Effect on other laws.
``Sec. 4407. Rule of construction.''.
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