Senate Finance Committee discusses school safety funding

The Senate Finance Committee met March 5 to discuss SB 260, a bill that would double the school safety allotment established in 2023. HB 3 established a number of requirements regarding campus safety initiatives and provided a significant amount of funding to schools to accomplish those goals, but with increasing inflation, the fixed amount of money in the original bill has not gone as far as intended. 

Under current law, schools receive $10 per student in average daily attendance and $15,000 per campus; SB 260 would double both amounts. School districts have some discretion in how to spend those funds, but despite this flexibility, meeting the minimums established in HB 3 has proved difficult.

Most schools spent their school safety allotment on physical hardening measures at campuses, with only a small amount directed to behavioral supports for students. Smaller districts hoping to hire officers to provide campus security did not receive enough funding to hire more than one officer, if that. Lawmakers hope that a fresh infusion of funds to the allotment will help realize HB 3 as intended.

A handful of stakeholders appeared to comment on the bill. Most urged the legislature to require more spending on mental health and behavior intervention, saying those avenues are more preventative than reactive school hardening measures. Others simply appeared to thank the committee for their continuing commitment to school safety.

The bill was unanimously voted out of the committee and will now move to the Senate floor for consideration.