Senate Bill S2229

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2229
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 23, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to preventing and report-
   ing acts of harassment at schools
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 13 of the education law is amended
 by adding four new paragraphs m, n, o and p to read as follows:
   M. INCLUDE PENALTIES OR DISCIPLINARY MEASURES FOR INDIVIDUALS FOUND TO
 HAVE  VIOLATED  THE  POLICIES  AND  GUIDELINES  CREATED PURSUANT TO THIS
 SECTION;
   N. SPECIFY THAT HARASSMENT IS A BASIS FOR GRANTING TO  A  STUDENT  WHO
 HAS BEEN HARASSED A TRANSFER TO ANOTHER SCHOOL, COMMONLY CALLED A "SAFE-
 TY TRANSFER";
   O. SPECIFY THAT HARASSMENT IS A BASIS FOR DISCIPLINING ANY STUDENT WHO
 ENGAGES OR HAS ENGAGED IN THE HARASSMENT OF OTHERS;
   P.  REQUIRE  EACH SCHOOL TO POST COPIES OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT'S POLI-
 CIES AND GUIDELINES CREATED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION IN PROMINENT PLACES
 WITHIN EACH SCHOOL AND REQUIRE SUCH COPIES TO  BE  TRANSLATED  AND  MADE
 AVAILABLE IN THE TEN MOST COMMON LANGUAGES SPOKEN IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT
 AND IN ANY OTHER LANGUAGE SPOKEN BY MORE THAN TEN PERCENT OF THE PARENTS
 OR GUARDIANS OF CHILDREN ATTENDING ANY INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL;
   §  2.  The  opening  paragraph  of  subdivision 2 of section 13 of the
 education law, as amended by chapter 102 of the laws of 2012, is amended
 and three new subdivisions 6, 7 and 8 are added to read as follows:
   Guidelines to be used  in  school  training  programs,  SUCH  TRAINING
 PROGRAMS  TO  BE  GIVEN  ON A REGULAR BASIS TO ALL PEDAGOGICAL STAFF AND
 SCHOOL SAFETY OFFICERS, to discourage  the  development  of  harassment,
 bullying  and  discrimination, and to make school employees aware of the
 effects of harassment, bullying,  cyberbullying  and  discrimination  on
 students and that are designed:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD08159-01-9

 S. 2229                             2
 
   6.  GUIDELINES  TO  BE  USED  IN PRESENTATIONS TO BE GIVEN TO STUDENTS
 ABOUT CONDUCT AND HARASSMENT ISSUES; SUCH GUIDELINES SHALL  BE  DESIGNED
 TO DISCOURAGE THE DEVELOPMENT OF HARASSMENT BY:
   A. RAISING THE AWARENESS AND SENSITIVITY OF PUPILS REGARDING POTENTIAL
 HARASSMENT, AND
   B. FOSTERING EMPATHY AND EMPATHETIC CONDUCT AMONG STUDENTS.
   7.  THE  PRINCIPAL  OF EACH SCHOOL SHALL BE THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR
 ENSURING THE DISSEMINATION OF THE ANTI-HARASSMENT  POLICIES  AND  GUIDE-
 LINES  TO  ALL  STAFF  OF  EACH  SCHOOL, ALL SCHOOL SAFETY OFFICERS, ALL
 MEMBERS OF THE SCHOOL SAFETY COMMITTEE, AND TO ALL  STUDENTS  AND  THEIR
 PARENTS  OR  GUARDIANS,  AND FOR PROVIDING TRAINING TO PEDAGOGICAL STAFF
 AND SCHOOL SAFETY OFFICERS. SUCH PRINCIPAL SHALL ALSO  ENSURE  THAT  THE
 NAME AND CONTACT INFORMATION OF A SCHOOL EMPLOYEE WHO CAN PROVIDE COPIES
 OF  SUCH  POLICIES  AND  GUIDELINES  IS  MADE AVAILABLE TO ALL STUDENTS,
 PARENTS, GUARDIANS, STAFF AND TO THE SCHOOL SAFETY COMMITTEE. SUCH PRIN-
 CIPAL  MAY  DESIGNATE  A  SUBORDINATE  TO  ASSUME  THE  RESPONSIBILITIES
 REQUIRED BY THIS SUBDIVISION.
   8.  THE POLICIES AND GUIDELINES CREATED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL
 BE INCLUDED IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT'S CODE OF CONDUCT ADOPTED PURSUANT TO
 SECTION TWENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED ONE OF THIS CHAPTER.
   § 3. Section 15 of the education law, as amended by chapter 102 of the
 laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
   § 15. Reporting [by commissioner].  1. THE PRINCIPAL  OF  EACH  SCHOOL
 SHALL  BE  THE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING THE ENFORCE-
 MENT OF THE ANTI-HARASSMENT POLICIES AND GUIDELINES ESTABLISHED PURSUANT
 TO SECTION THIRTEEN OF THIS ARTICLE AND TO WHOM REPORTS OF INCIDENTS  OF
 HARASSMENT ON SCHOOL PREMISES OR AT A SCHOOL FUNCTION MAY BE MADE.  EACH
 SUCH  PRINCIPAL MAY DESIGNATE A SUBORDINATE TO ASSUME THESE RESPONSIBIL-
 ITIES. THE SUPERINTENDENT OF EACH DISTRICT WITHIN HIS OR  HER  JURISDIC-
 TION,  OR  THE  DESIGNEE  OF SUCH SUPERINTENDENT, SHALL BE THE PERSON TO
 WHOM REPORTS OF INCIDENTS OF HARASSMENT  ON  SCHOOL  PREMISES  OR  AT  A
 SCHOOL  FUNCTION  MAY BE MADE WHEN SUCH REPORT CONCERNS THE PRINCIPAL OR
 OTHER PERSON APPOINTED OR DESIGNATED AS THE  ENFORCEMENT  OFFICER  OF  A
 SCHOOL.
   2.  THE  COMMISSIONER SHALL CREATE PROCEDURES UNDER WHICH INCIDENTS OF
 HARASSMENT ON  SCHOOL  PREMISES  OR  AT  SCHOOL  FUNCTIONS  ARE  TRACKED
 CENTRALLY  FOR  RECORD KEEPING PURPOSES, AND PROCEDURES UNDER WHICH SUCH
 INCIDENTS OF HARASSMENT ARE REPORTED PROMPTLY TO THE PRINCIPAL OR HIS OR
 HER DESIGNEE, OR THE SUPERINTENDENT OR HIS OR  HER  DESIGNEE,  WHO  MUST
 COMPLETE, FOR EACH SUCH INCIDENT, AN INCIDENT REPORT INDICATING INFORMA-
 TION ABOUT THE INCIDENT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE PARTIES, THE
 LOCATION WHERE SUCH INCIDENT TOOK PLACE, THE DATE AND TIME SUCH INCIDENT
 OCCURRED AND TYPE OF HARASSMENT INVOLVED.
   3.  The  commissioner  shall  create  a procedure under which material
 incidents of harassment, bullying and discrimination on  school  grounds
 or  at  a  school function are reported to the department at least on an
 annual basis. Such procedure shall  provide  that  such  reports  shall,
 wherever  possible, also delineate the specific nature of such incidents
 of harassment, bullying and discrimination, provided  that  the  commis-
 sioner  may  comply with the requirements of this section through use of
 the existing uniform violent incident reporting system. In addition  the
 department  may  conduct  research  or  undertake  studies  to determine
 compliance throughout the state with the provisions of this article.
   4. BY NO LATER THAN JULY THIRTIETH OF EACH YEAR, THE DEPARTMENT  SHALL
 PUBLISH  A  STATISTICAL  SUMMARY  OF  ALL  INCIDENTS  OF HARASSMENT THAT
 OCCURRED ON SCHOOL PREMISES OR AT A SCHOOL FUNCTION DURING THE PRECEDING

 S. 2229                             3
 
 SCHOOL YEAR. SUCH SUMMARY REPORT  SHALL  INDICATE,  AT  A  MINIMUM,  THE
 NUMBER  AND  NATURE  OF  INCIDENTS  OF HARASSMENT BROKEN DOWN BY SCHOOL,
 SCHOOL DISTRICT, REGION, BOROUGH AND GRADE LEVEL, AND SHALL BE PUBLISHED
 ON  THE  DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE AND BY SUCH OTHER MEANS AS, IN THE COMMIS-
 SIONER'S DISCRETION, ARE REASONABLY DETERMINED TO BEST DISSEMINATE  SUCH
 INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC.
   5.  THE  DEPARTMENT SHALL ALSO INCLUDE, ON EACH SCHOOL'S ANNUAL REPORT
 CARD OR ANY SIMILAR DOCUMENT THAT THE DEPARTMENT CREATES, SUMMARY INFOR-
 MATION ABOUT INCIDENTS OF HARASSMENT AT SUCH SCHOOL,  WHICH  INFORMATION
 SHALL INCLUDE:
   A. A COMPARISON OF ALL INCIDENTS OF HARASSMENT AT SUCH SCHOOL WITH ALL
 INCIDENTS  OF  HARASSMENT  IN  ALL SIMILAR SCHOOLS, AS DETERMINED BY THE
 DEPARTMENT; AND
   B. THE NUMBER OF SAFETY TRANSFERS THAT WERE GRANTED FROM  SUCH  SCHOOL
 TO ANOTHER SCHOOL DURING THE PRECEDING SCHOOL YEAR.
   § 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.  Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
 tation  of  this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
 completed on or before such effective date.