BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1076
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 3, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Joan Buchanan, Chair
AB 1076 (Olsen) - As Amended: April 1, 2013
SUBJECT : School safety: panic buttons
SUMMARY : Specifies that if federal funding becomes available,
the governing board of each school district and each county
superintendent of schools shall equip the interior of each
classroom, cafeteria, theater, gym, and any other regularly used
space, except a parking lot, in a public school serving pupils
in kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, with a
panic button to be used to alert local law enforcement in the
event of a violent incident. Specifies that for purposes of
this bill, a panic button is a device that alerts local law
enforcement to arrive on scene, and that sends out a public
alarm throughout the school when pressed. Specifies that a
school district that complies with this bill and maintains the
functionality of the panic button shall be immune from liability
if the panic button fails to activate due to circumstances
beyond the school district's control.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires, under the School Facility Program, all new
construction projects to include an automatic fire detection,
alarm, and sprinkler system, and all modernization projects in
excess of $200,000 to include an automatic fire detection and
alarm system. (Education Code (EC) Sections 17074.50 and
17074.52)
2)Expresses the intent of the Legislature that if federal
funding becomes available, the governing board of each school
district and each county superintendent of schools equip
schools with two-way communication devices to be installed in
kindergarten through grade 12 classrooms. The communication
devices shall be for the use of teachers or other employees or
agents of the school in the event of a medical emergency or
violent crime in the classroom. Specifies that "two-way
communication devices" include, but are not limited to
telephones, intercoms, walkie-talkie, or portable radios. (EC
32225 and 32226)
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FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Since the December 14, 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook
Elementary in Newton, Connecticut where a gunman killed 20 first
graders and six adults before shooting himself, the President,
Congress, States, and school districts across the country have
renewed their attention on school safety. This bill requires
any regularly used space, including the interior of each
classroom, cafeteria, theater, and gym, in any kindergarten
through grade 12 school, or county school to be installed with
panic buttons, if federal funding becomes available for this
purpose. A panic button is defined as a device that alerts
local law enforcement and that sends out a public alarm
throughout the school when pressed. According to the National
Review Online, schools in Arizona, Connecticut, Florida,
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, and
Pennsylvania are considering the installation of panic buttons.
Schools in Marietta, Georgia have installed panic buttons, while
a bill in the state of Washington has been introduced to
provide, among others, $5 million for panic buttons.
In California, at least one school district, Glendale Unified
School District, has begun the installation of "silent alarms"
at all school sites. The local governing board had been
deliberating security measures even prior to the December
shooting. After the shooting and upon consultation with local
law enforcement, who raised concerns about false alarms, the
district decided to augment its existing building alarm system
rather than installing a new system linked to law enforcement.
A button will be installed in the main office area of each
school site that will be linked to an alarm monitoring company.
If triggered, the alarm monitoring company will immediately
contact law enforcement agencies. The district estimates the
cost at less than $1000 per site to add the additional alarm.
The cost would be higher if the district didn't already have
alarm systems at each school site.
In January, President Obama proposed a package of initiatives to
improve school safety, including $150 million for the
Comprehensive School Safety Program for school districts and law
enforcement agencies to hire school resource officers, school
psychologists, social workers, and counselors. The
Comprehensive School Safety Grants can also be used to purchase
school safety equipment, develop and update public safety plans,
conduct threat assessments, and train "crisis intervention
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teams" of law enforcement officers to work with the mental
health community to respond to and assist students in crisis.
This proposal has not yet been introduced in Congress. There
may be more information after the President releases his
proposed budget on April 10th.
This bill would potentially require school districts to use all
federal funds for panic buttons, even though federal funds
appear to provide flexibility for a variety of school safety
uses. The bill is also very specific about the type of panic
buttons to be used. In addition to buttons that are installed
on walls or desks, there are also panic buttons that are
portable and can be worn around the necks of principals and
school staff. In addition, other safety measures, such as
inside door locks, communication systems, or fences may be more
valuable to some schools. The needs of schools in various
geographical area will also vary. The Committee may wish to
consider whether districts should have flexibility in
determining how to use federal funds if they materialize. The
Committee may also wish to consider whether a school district
should have flexibility in determining an appropriate type of
panic button and where panic buttons should be placed. Staff
recommends changing the requirement to an authorization.
Arguments in Support . The author states, "Panic buttons are an
additional level of defense in making the school community aware
of an emergency situation. When a panic button is pressed, a
direct link would dispatch law enforcement and alarms would
sound, alerting others on the school campus of an emergency -
all in one quick step. AB 1076 will help create a safer
environment for students, teachers and administrators on
campuses. While violence can happen at any time, and it is
impossible to entirely prevent all acts of school violence,
teachers and administrators should be properly equipped with the
most functional and accessible equipment to alert authorities
and others in the event of an emergency."
Arguments in Opposition . CSAC Excess Insurance Authority, a
California Joint Powers Authority, states, "AB 1076, while we
believe is meant for the best, will unfortunately place
additional duties upon already financially struggling schools,
and we believe will deter from a school's mission to provide a
safe learning and working environment without fear. The
requirements to maintain, update, and train staff in the use of
panic button would be left to individual schools to bear the
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cost. Additionally, the increased liability exposure from
use/non-use of these devices would be left as a burden for
school districts to bear. We could also anticipate that the
number of false alarms resulting from these devices could take
already stretched police departments from their regular work
safeguarding communities."
Related legislation . A number of school safety bills have been
introduced this year: AB 202 (Donnelly), pending in this
Committee, establishes the School Marshal Plan and authorizes
school districts, county offices of education, and charter
schools to use general purpose funds to provide training for
school marshals.
AB 549 (Jones-Sawyer), pending in this Committee, requires the
comprehensive school safety plan to establish guidelines for the
roles and responsibilities of police officers on campus.
AB 514 (Bonta), pending in this Committee, requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to include on his Internet
Web site a list of statewide resources for youth that have been
affected by gangs, gun violence, and psychological trauma.
AB 699 (Donnelly), pending in this Committee, gives a parent or
guardian of a public elementary or secondary school pupil the
option to remove his or her child from an unsafe school and
enroll his or her child in another school within the same school
district or a school in another district if no safe school
exists in the district.
AB 1264 (Conway), also on today's agenda, requires school
districts and county offices of education to adopt a tactical
response plan in the school safety plan, publicly announce its
adoption or update of a tactical response plan, develop a
protocol for teachers to provide notification of pupils
identified as having a potential mental health issue, and
requires the annual audit of school district funds to include a
summary of the extent to which a local educational agency has
complied with the requirement to develop a comprehensive school
safety plan.
SB 49 (Lieu), pending in the Senate Education Committee, adds
procedures related to individuals with guns on school campuses
and at school-related functions as a requirement in the school
safety plan, requires charter schools to develop a school safety
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plan, requires the annual audit of school district funds to
include a summary of the extent to which a local educational
agency (LEA) has complied with the requirement to develop a
comprehensive school safety plan, and requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to withhold the next
principal apportionment from a LEA if the SPI receives an audit
report that finds that the LEA has not complied with the
requirement that each school develop a school safety plan, or
the SPI finds that a superintendent of a school district or
county office of education has failed to provide written
notification to the SPI identifying the schools that had not
complied.
SB 316 (Block), pending in the Senate Education Committee,
requires all modernization projects submitted to the Division of
State Architect, and the governing board of each school district
and each county superintendent of schools to, by January 1,
2015, equip the doors of every classroom and every room with an
occupancy of five or more persons with locks that allow the
doors to be locked from the inside.
SB 561 (Fuller), pending in the Senate Education Committee,
prohibits a student who has been expelled for specified actions
from enrolling in any other school or school district during the
period of expulsion unless he or she has undergone a mental
health evaluation conducted by a licensed clinical psychologist,
and the school at which he or she enrolls is a county community
school or a juvenile court school or a community day school.
SB 605 (Lara), pending in the Senate Rules Committee, expresses
the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would
establish criteria for, and provide for the identification of,
persistently dangerous schools.
SB 634 (Price), pending in the Senate Education Committee,
requires a comprehensive school safety plan to establish minimum
requirements and standards for schools to follow when conducting
school safety drills and reviewing school emergency and crisis
response plans, requires all school districts and county offices
of education to incorporate specified safety drills into their
school safety plan, and requires each school to conduct two
school evacuation drills and one law enforcement school lockdown
drill during each school year.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
AB 1076
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Support
None on file
Opposition
CSAC EIA
Analysis Prepared by : Sophia Kwong Kim / ED. / (916) 319-2087