SF5210

Purpose

• Strengthen school safety by updating crisis management requirements, creating an evidence-based framework for school safety plans, and centralizing oversight and support through a dedicated School Safety Center. The bill aims to standardize planning, drills, and coordination among schools, law enforcement, and safety agencies.

Key Provisions

• Crisis Management Policy (Section 1)

  • Each school district and charter school must adopt a crisis management policy to address potential violent crisis situations.
  • The policy must be developed cooperatively with a broad set of stakeholders, including administrators, teachers, employees, students, parents, community members, law enforcement, emergency management, and social service agencies.
  • The policy must require at least:
  • Five lockdown drills per year
  • Five fire drills per year
  • One tornado drill per year
  • The policy should incorporate a model crisis management approach alongside the model safety plan and may include a model cardiac emergency response plan.
  • School boards or charter schools may adopt the model cardiac emergency response plan and, to the extent practical, integrate the crisis management policy with the school safety plan.

• School Safety Plans (Section 2)

  • School Safety Center responsibilities:
  • Develop an evidence-based model school safety plan for preventing human-caused safety incidents and post it for districts to use.
  • Develop criteria to determine whether a plan is evidence-based.
  • Prepare a report identifying districts and charter schools that have adopted an evidence-based plan and post it publicly; submit the report to the relevant legislative committees by December 1, 2028, and every two years thereafter.
  • Provide consulting services to K–12 schools to help develop, improve, or implement an evidence-based safety plan.
  • May consult with the comprehensive school mental health services lead at the Department of Education regarding safety plans.
  • Model plan development and accessibility:
  • In consultation with the Department of Education, the Center must maintain and make available an evidence-based model school safety plan to prevent human-caused safety incidents.
  • The model plan must be posted on the Center’s website no later than September 1, 2026.
  • The Center may make evidence-based plans developed by third parties available to school boards.
  • Evidence-based criteria:
  • Defines evidence-based approaches as those with strong, moderate, or promising evidence from well-designed studies or robust rationales based on high-quality research, with ongoing evaluation to monitor impact.
  • Local school safety plan requirements:
  • Each school board or charter school must adopt an evidence-based school safety plan to prevent human-caused safety incidents.
  • The local plan should, to the extent practical, integrate with the crisis management policy.
  • Beginning August 1, 2028, districts/charter schools that have not adopted an evidence-based plan must submit their plan to the School Safety Center annually.
  • Nonpublic schools are encouraged to develop an evidence-based safety plan and may consult with the School Safety Center for evidence-based approaches.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Mandated adoption and integration:
  • Requires school districts and charter schools to adopt a formal crisis management policy with specified drills and stakeholder involvement.
  • Requires adoption of an evidence-based school safety plan and integration with crisis management policies.
• State-level guidance and oversight:
  • Establishes the School Safety Center within the Department of Public Safety to develop, evaluate, and promote evidence-based safety plans and to provide consulting to schools.
• Evidence-based standard:
  • Introduces a formal, evidence-based standard for school safety plans, including criteria and ongoing evaluation.
• Reporting and accountability:
  • Requires regular reporting to the School Safety Center and, by extension, to legislative committees, with initial reporting by 2028 and ongoing every two years.
• Timeline commitments:
  • Sets deadlines for posting a model safety plan (by 2026) and for districts to submit plans if not yet adopted (by 2028), with ongoing requirements thereafter.

Implementation Timeline (Highlights)

• By September 1, 2026: The School Safety Center must post an evidence-based model school safety plan online.
• December 1, 2028, and every two years thereafter: The Center must report which districts/charter schools have adopted evidence-based plans to legislative committees.
• August 1, 2028: Districts/charter schools that have not yet adopted an evidence-based plan must begin submitting their plans to the School Safety Center (if not already in place).
• Ongoing: Districts and charter schools are expected to adopt and integrate evidence-based safety plans and coordinate with the crisis management policy.

Who is Affected

• School districts and charter schools (public and nonpublic schools are encouraged to engage with the process).
• Students, families, school staff, law enforcement, and emergency management partners (through the cooperative policy development and drills).

Relevant Terms

• crisis management policy
• model crisis management policy
• school safety plan
• evidence-based
• School Safety Center
• lockdown drills
• fire drills
• tornado drill
• human-caused safety incidents
• Department of Public Safety
• Department of Education
• comprehensive school mental health services lead
• school district
• charter school
• nonpublic school
• legislative committees

Relevant Terms (plain list for search and indexing) - crisis management policy - model crisis management policy - school safety plan - evidence-based - School Safety Center - lockdown drills - fire drills - tornado drill - human-caused safety incidents - Department of Public Safety - Department of Education - comprehensive school mental health services lead - school district - charter school - nonpublic school - legislative committees