Senate Bill S402

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S402

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the education law, in relation to
school resource officers

 PURPOSE :

This bill establishes a shared School Resource Officers Program that
allows at least three school districts to combine state vouchers for
the sole purpose of hiring a joint school resource officer.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 states the legislative intent of this bill.

Section 2 states that every school district in the state shall be
allocated a $30,000 voucher for the sole purpose of hiring a shared
school resource officer. The voucher must be combined with the voucher
of at least two other school districts and used to hire a police
officer to serve as a shared school resource officer. Such officer
must divide his or her time between schools based on a randomized,
rotating schedule determined by the school districts.

Section 3 sets the effective date of this bill.

 JUSTIFICATION :
              

One of the most important obligations as public officials is to
provide for the safety of children in New York State. In light of
tragedies such as Sandy Hook and Columbine, the safety of our children
in schools is especially important. One very effective way to make
children safer in schools is to provide for school resource officer
(SRO) programs.

SRO programs foster collaboration between law enforcement officers,
school staff, students, and parents to provide safe learning
environments and safe communities for our State's children. In
addition to providing the obvious benefit of deterring tragedies, SRO
programs provide valuable services to resolve problems affecting our
youth before manageable problems escalate into serious issues. By
addressing these problems in their early stages, SRO programs keep our
youth from going down bad paths and help them reach their fullest
potential.

Unfortunately, SRO programs are not cheap. Typically they will require
$100,000 or more to fund. This is cost prohibitive to many school
districts throughout New York State. In Erie County, a shared SRO
program for rural school districts provides a model for a statewide
initiative. Using a $100,000 grant, five school districts have hired
an Erie County Sheriff Deputy to serve as a shared SRO. Sharing an SRO
allows multiple schools to receive the benefit of this valuable
resource at a reduced cost.

Building on this successful model, this bill creates a shared SRO
Program that allocates a $30,000 voucher to every school district in
New York State to be used for the sole purpose of hiring a joint SRO.
This voucher can only be utilized by combining it with at least two
other vouchers to employ a police officer as a shared SRO. This
proposal would allow school districts throughout New York State to
have access to the valuable services of an SRO program.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2013-14: S.6783-A Referred to Education

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
To be determined.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
Immediately, provided that the commissioner of education shall have
the authority to promulgate any rules or regulations necessary for the
implementation of this act.