Budget Amendment ID: FY2019-S4-190.1-R2
2nd Redraft Further EDU 190.1
School Safety
Ms. O'Connor Ives moved that the amendment be amended “SECTION 16A. Chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 37R the following section:
Section 37S. (a) There shall be a safety technical assistance team to provide assistance to school districts, upon request, on school safety and emergency management. The safety technical assistance team shall consist of the secretary of public safety and security, or a designee, the secretary of education, or a designee, the secretary of health and human services, or a designee, the chief executive officer of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, or a designee and 3 persons to be appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be a member of the Massachusetts Police Chiefs Association, 1 of whom shall be a member of the Fire Chiefs Association of Massachusetts and 1 of whom shall be a member of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents. The executive office of public safety and security shall serve as the lead agency in the development and implementation of the safety technical assistance team.
There shall be established a security infrastructure grant program to allow housing authorities, school districts and regional school districts to enhance safety and security at their school facilities through projects including, but not limited to, retrofitting buildings with security features including, but not limited to, classroom door locks, security cameras, active shooter detection and real-time threat alert systems to be provided through the School and Youth Safety Trust Fund. The school safety technical assistance team shall advise grant awardees and provide technical assistance to grant awardees. Grants under this program shall be contingent on 1 to 1 matching funds provided from the applying housing authority, school district or regional school district.
(b) There shall be a youth safety technical assistance team to provide assistance to housing authorities, school districts and regional school districts, at their request, on all aspects of youth gun violence prevention and management. The youth safety technical assistance team shall consist of the following member or their designees: a designee of the National Association of Social Workers, Inc.; a designee of the Massachusetts School Counselors Association, Inc.; a designee of the Secretary of Health and Human Services who represents a lead service providing organization through the Safe and Successful Youth Initiative; and a designee of the Secretary of Public Safety and Security who represents a research partner of the Charles E. Shannon Community Safety Initiative.
There shall be a youth safety grant program to provide grants to housing authorities, school districts and regional school districts and local housing authorities to enhance youth safety by supporting measures including, but not limited to, youth programming, and wrap around services targeted to prevent violence to be provided through the School and Youth Safety Trust Fund. The youth safety technical assistance team shall advise and provide technical assistance to grant awardees. Grants under this program shall be contingent on 1 to 1 matching funds provided from the applying housing authority, school district and regional school district.
(c) There shall be a School and Youth Safety Trust Fund to be jointly administered by the secretary of public safety and security and the secretary of health and human services to support the school security infrastructure grant program and youth safety grant program. The fund shall be used to provide grants to housing authorities, school districts and regional school districts to enhance safety and security. The fund shall consist of amounts credited to the fund from: (i) appropriations from the General Fund; (ii) money credited to the fund under section 10E of chapter 269; provided, however, that these funds shall be prioritized for grants based in the same region in which the fines were collected; (iii) any interest earned on money in the fund; and (iv) gifts, grants, settlements and donations received by the commonwealth and specifically designated to be credited to the fund. Funds received shall be apportioned in a manner determined by the executive office of public safety and security; provided, however, that the funds shall be split equally between the school security infrastructure grant program and youth safety grant program. Amounts credited to the fund shall not be subject to further appropriation. Money remaining in the fund at the close of a fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund and shall be available for expenditure in subsequent fiscal years. No expenditure made from the fund shall cause the fund to become deficient at any point during a fiscal year.
Annually, not later than March 1, the secretary of public safety and security and secretary of health and human services shall report on the activities of the fund to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives and the chairs of the joint committee on public safety and homeland security, the joint committee on education and the senate and house committees on ways and means. The report shall include: (i) an accounting of expenditures made from the fund; (ii) an accounting of the amounts credited to the fund; (iii) any unexpended balance remaining in the fund and (iv) a description of the grants provided through the fund.
(c) The secretary of public safety and security and the secretary of health and human services, in consultation with the school safety technical assistance team and the youth safety technical assistance team, shall establish regulations to implement this section.”
SECTION 16B. The third sentence of the first paragraph of subsection (c) section 37S of chapter 71, as appearing in section 16A, is hereby amended by striking out clause (ii) and inserting in place thereof the following clause:- (ii) money credited to the fund under section 131 of chapter 140 and section 10E of chapter 269; provided, however, that these funds shall be prioritized for grants based in the same region in which the fines were collected”; and
by inserting after section 25 the following 2 sections:-
“SECTION 25A. Section 131 of chapter 140 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out, in line 429, as so appearing, the figure “$50” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- $10 shall be deposited into the School and Youth Safety Trust Fund established in section 37S of chapter 71; $40.
SECTION 25B. Said section 131 of said chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 475, as so appearing, the figure “$50” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- $10 shall be deposited into the School and Youth Safety Trust Fund established in section 37S of chapter 71; $40.”; and
by inserting after section 29 the following section:-
SECTION 29A. Section 10E of chapter 269 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after the first paragraph the following paragraph:-
In addition to the penalties provided in the first paragraph, there shall be an additional fine of $1,000 per firearm, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, or any combination thereof, that shall be credited to the School Security Infrastructure Trust Fund established in section 37S of chapter 71.”; and
by inserting after section 56 the following 2 sections:-
“SECTION 56A. The school safety technical assistance team and the youth safety technical assistance team shall jointly submit a report outlining appropriations necessary to operate the grant programs pursuant to section 37S of chapter 71 of the General Laws to the joint committee on education, the joint committee on public safety and homeland security and the house and senate committees on ways and means not later than March 1, 2019.”; and
by inserting after section 61 the following section:
“SECTION 61A. Sections 16B, 25A and 25B shall take effect July 1, 2019.”