BILL NUMBER: S7875

SPONSOR: GOLDEN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to the comprehensive
school security grant program

 
PURPOSE:

This bill would authorize the State Commissioner of Education to provide
grants to every preschool, elementary, middle and high school in the
State, whether public or private, to install quick capacity threat
detection and 360-degree security hardware equipment and concomitant
software.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one of the bill would, subject to appropriation, allow the
administration of every school in the State to install comprehensive
security to interdict or at worst, intercede as quickly as possible, any
              

possession of a firearm or explosive device in or around any school in
New York State.

Section two provides for an immediate effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Unfortunately, our schools, and the State's most precious asset, its
children, are now the easiest soft target for those that would wish to
perform the most egregious and terror producing acts. It is the respon-
sibility of the State of New York to do every reasonable act in its
power to protect these students and their teachers.

This bill authorizes the Commissioner of the State Education Department
to provide full funding for high capacity weapons detection and compre-
hensive security communications to make it as difficult as possible to
conduct terror operations against our children. Each of the 6,500
schools in the State could take advantage of these advanced security
systems if so desired by the administration of public school boards or
the board of directors of private and charter schools.

Funding for the program could come from the existing Smart School Bond
Act of 2014 funds or additional capital appropriations as needed

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

This is a new bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Every school in the State can be hardened for no more than a billion
dollars.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.