A bill sponsored by Assemblyman Gary Schaer and called the “Secure Schools for All Children Act,” that would establish a state aid program for the provision of security services, equipment, or technology to help ensure a safe and secure school environment for students in nonpublic schools was released today by an Assembly panel.
“All students deserve to be safe regardless of where they go to school,” said Schaer (D-Bergen/Passaic). “The frequency of violent attacks in our schools has been a sobering wake-up call. We cannot predict when the next one will happen, but we can be proactive and give these schools the tools they need so they are better equipped to respond to a threat against students and staff.”
Under the provisions of the bill, the superintendent of schools of each school district where a nonpublic school is located would confer annually with the chief school administrator of the nonpublic school in order to agree upon the security services, equipment, or technology that will be provided to the students of the nonpublic school within the limits of available funds. If the two administrators are unable to agree on the security services, equipment, or technology, then the executive county superintendent would be tasked with making the final determination.
Beginning in the 2016-2017 school year, the maximum amount or state support limit that may be appropriated for the purposes of the bill is $144.42 per nonpublic school student. This amount reflects the average per pupil amount that is provided to public schools for school security. The amount will be increased each school year by the consumer price index. Each year the school district will forward to the Commissioner of Education an estimate of the cost of providing, during the next school year, the security services, equipment, or technology required pursuant to the bill and the number of students attending the nonpublic school located within the district as of the last school day of October of the current school year. The commissioner will provide state aid to the district in an amount equal to the number of nonpublic school students multiplied by the state support limit.
The State Board of Education would be required to promulgate rules to effectuate the bill’s provisions in a manner that comports with the provisions of the state and federal Constitutions. The rules would have to include a list of allowable expenditures for the security services, equipment, and technology to help ensure a safe and secure school environment for nonpublic school students.
The bill was released by the Assembly Education Committee.
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