[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2491 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2491

 To establish a grant program to improve school security, including by 
  training and hiring veterans and former law enforcement officers as 
            school safety officers, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 6, 2023

 Mr. Fleischmann introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
 the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the 
Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined 
 by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as 
        fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish a grant program to improve school security, including by 
  training and hiring veterans and former law enforcement officers as 
            school safety officers, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Securing Aid For Every School Act'' 
or the ``SAFE School Act''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVING SCHOOL SECURITY.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) ESEA terms.--The terms ``elementary school'', ``local 
        educational agency'', and ``secondary school'' have the 
        meanings given the terms in section 8001 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (2) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the 50 States, 
        the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
    (b) Establishment of Program.--The Attorney General shall establish 
within the Office of Justice Programs a grant program under which the 
Attorney General shall make grants to States and local educational 
agencies to carry out eligible activities described in subsection (c).
    (c) Eligible Activities.--The eligible activities described in this 
subsection are the following:
            (1) Establish, if necessary, and implement a State 
        certification or licensure program, or other training program 
        required by the State, that--
                    (A) is designed to train individuals who are 
                veterans or former law enforcement officers to serve as 
                school safety officers; and
                    (B) may include firearm or de-escalation training.
            (2) Hire veterans or former law enforcement officers who 
        have completed the State certification or licensure program 
        described in paragraph (1), or off-duty law enforcement 
        officers, to serve as school safety officers in elementary 
        schools and secondary schools in the State.
            (3) Improve the security of elementary schools and 
        secondary schools in the State by installing infrastructure and 
        implementing technology and other measures that strengthen 
        security on school premises, including--
                    (A) controlling access to school facilities through 
                the installation of metal detectors, x-ray machines, 
                fencing or gating, and surveillance cameras or systems;
                    (B) securing doors through the installation of 
                external door passcodes, internal door locks, peepholes 
                for classroom doors, bulletproof glass or ballistic 
                film, automatic door locking mechanisms, and access 
                control doors; and
                    (C) enhancing emergency responsiveness through the 
                installation of increased lighting on school grounds, 
                emergency call boxes, emergency alerts, and emergency 
                generators.
    (d) No Federal Interference.--In awarding grants pursuant to 
subsection (b), Attorney General may not--
            (1) prevent or discourage any State or local educational 
        agency from using any grant funds for a school security 
        activity described in subsection (b);
            (2) impose any requirements relating to the content or 
        structure of the State certification, licensure, or other 
        training program described in subsection (c)(1); or
            (3) enforce any requirement relating to grant funds that 
        would prevent a State or local educational agency from carrying 
        out an eligible activity described in subsection (c).
    (e) Nondiscrimination.--The Attorney General shall award grants 
pursuant to subsection (b) without respect to whether a recipient or 
subrecipient--
            (1) is a public or private school;
            (2) is religiously affiliated; or
            (3) receives any Federal or State funding for school 
        resource officers.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $900,000,000.
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