Revised school safety bill removes requirement that every campus have armed security

HB 3, the House’s priority school safety bill, was heard during the Senate Education Committee’s Thursday meeting. Several changes have been made in the Senate’s version, including removal of the requirement that every campus have armed security.

HB 11, one of the House’s priority education bills, was also on the agenda. The bill includes recommendations from the Teacher Vacancy Task Force, including expansion of the Teacher Incentive Allotment and creation of a teacher residency program. TCTA and others have suggested that given the limited education funding that has been approved at this point in the session, the best use of funds would be to increase the basic allotment to benefit the most districts and allow for larger pay raises, rather than directing money to specialized programs.

HB 900, the House’s effort to regulate library books, was heard, with a mix of some parents supporting the bill and school librarians, book vendors, and other parents in opposition. HB 900 distinguishes between “sexually explicit” materials (patently offensive content), which would be prohibited, and “sexually relevant” materials, which may reference sexual conduct but not in an offensive manner.

The committee also heard a bill that TCTA has opposed, HB 2729, which would reduce educational requirements for pre-K teachers in private provider settings that are partnering with public schools.

All of the bills were left pending.