Requires every school district to comply with enhanced safety and security standards

(Establishes Attendance Center, requires all districts to upgrade as an accredidation requirement, Department of Revenue (or DESE- need to double check) to promulgate the rules)

AN ACT To amend chapter 160, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to school safety and security standards.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows: Section A. Chapter 160, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be 2 known as section 160.672, to read as follows: 160.672. 1. As used in this section, the following terms mean: 2 (1) "Attendance center", a public school building, public school buildings, or 3 part of a public school building that offers education in a grade or grades not higher 4 than the twelfth grade and that constitutes one unit for accountability and reporting 5 purposes for the department of elementary and secondary education. The term 6 includes, but is not limited to, real property, an improvement to real property, or a 7 necessary fixture of an improvement to real property that is used predominantly for 8 providing instruction to pupils. The term shall not be construed to include real 9 property, improvements to real property, or necessary fixtures of an improvement to 10 real property that are part of a federal, state, or private correctional facility or facility of 11 an institution of higher education, medical provider, or other provider of professional or 12 social services over which a school district has no control; 13 (2) "Bullet-resistant security laminate", optically clear film that is resistant to 14 bullets, based on Underwriters Laboratories (UL) Standard 752 Bullet-Resisting 15 Equipment, and cannot be easily breached to allow an intruder to open or otherwise 16 proceed through; 17 (3) "Department", the department of elementary and secondary education; EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language. HB 1761 2 18 (4) "Main front entry", doors, adjacent windows, vestibule areas, and other 19 similar points of entry at the front of an attendance center; 20 (5) "Other entry", doors, adjacent windows, and other similar points of entry to 21 an attendance center that are not at the front of the attendance center; 22 (6) "Riot-resistant security laminate", optically clear film that is at least thirty- 23 five one-thousandths of an inch thick, also known as thirty-five mil, that is resistant to 24 shattering and cannot be easily breached to allow an intruder to open or otherwise 25 proceed through. 26 2. This section shall apply to all attendance centers owned, operated, or leased 27 by a school district, regardless of the date of construction or date of lease. 28 3. Each attendance center shall have access points that are: 29 (1) Secured by design; 30 (2) Maintained to operate as intended; and 31 (3) Appropriately monitored. 32 4. Each school district shall implement the following safety and security 33 standards compliance requirements for all attendance centers owned, operated, or 34 leased by the school district: 35 (1) Each attendance center shall display graphically represented alphanumerical 36 characters on both the interior and exterior of each exterior door location. The 37 characters may be installed on the door, or on at least one door at locations where more 38 than one door leads from the exterior to the same room inside the facility, or on the wall 39 immediately adjacent to or above the door location. Characters shall comply with 40 Section 505 of the 2021 International Fire Code or its successor. The primary entrance 41 of an attendance center shall always be the first in the entire sequence and shall be the 42 only door location that does not require numbering. The numbering sequence shall be 43 clockwise and may be sequenced for the entire campus or for each attendance center 44 individually. The door-numbering process shall comply with accessibility requirements 45 related to signage; 46 (2) Each primary entrance shall: 47 (a) Meet standards for exterior doors; 48 (b) Include a method to allow an individual located within the building to 49 visually identify an individual seeking to enter the primary entrance when the entrance 50 is closed and locked including, but not limited to, windows, camera systems, intercoms, 51 or a combination of such methods; 52 (c) Feature a physical barrier that prevents unassisted access to the facility by a 53 visitor; and 54 (d) Feature a location for a visitor check-in and check-out process; HB 1761 3 55 (3) Each exterior door shall: 56 (a) By default, be set to a closed, latched, and locked status, except that: 57 a. An exterior door may be unlocked if the door is actively monitored or within 58 an exterior secured area; and 59 b. Is a door designated in the school district's written emergency operations plan 60 or the equivalent as an exterior door that may be open for the purposes of ventilation 61 for specified periods of time if explicitly authorized by the state board of education in 62 the school facilities and safety criteria developed for the Missouri school improvement 63 program under section 160.660; 64 (b) Be constructed, both for the door and door frame and the components, of 65 materials and in a manner that makes it resistant to entry by intruders. Unless inside an 66 exterior secured area, doors constructed of glass or containing glass shall be constructed 67 or modified by means of installing security laminate to the existing glass with no 68 modifications to the door frame such that the glass is riot-resistant when the area is 69 deemed an other entry area and bullet-resistant when the area is deemed a main front 70 entry area; 71 (c) Contain a mechanism that: 72 a. Fully closes and engages locking hardware automatically after entry or egress 73 without manual intervention, regardless of air pressure within or outside of the facility; 74 and 75 b. Allows the door to be opened from the inside when locked to allow for 76 emergency egress while remaining locked; and 77 (d) If keyed for reentry, be capable of being unlocked with a single master key or 78 a small set of master keys, whether a physical key, punch code, or key fob or similar 79 electronic key device; 80 (4) Except when inside an exterior secured area, classrooms with exterior entry 81 doors shall include a method to allow an individual located in the classroom to visually 82 identify an individual seeking to enter the classroom when the door is closed and locked 83 including, but not limited to, windows, camera systems, intercoms, or a combination of 84 such methods; 85 (5) Except when inside an exterior secured area, all windows that are adjacent to 86 an exterior door and that are of a size and position that, if broken, would easily permit 87 an individual to walk through or reach in and open the door from the inside shall be 88 constructed of or modified with riot-resistant security laminate when the area is deemed 89 an other entry area and bullet-resistant security laminate when the area is deemed a 90 main front entry area so that such glass cannot be easily broken;  HB 1761 4 91 (6) Except when inside an exterior secured area, all ground-level windows within 92 seven feet of the foundation near exterior doors that are of a size and position that, if 93 broken, permit entry from the exterior shall be constructed of or modified with riot- 94 resistant security laminate when the area is deemed an other entry area and bullet- 95 resistant security laminate when the area is deemed a main front entry area so that such 96 glass cannot be easily broken to allow an intruder to enter through the window frame; 97 (7) For an interior door with a lock that allows access to an internal room where 98 gatherings occur including, but not limited to, a classroom, a teacher's lounge, or 99 another similar interior space, each window on or adjacent to such interior door that, if 100 broken, would easily permit an individual to walk through or reach in and open the 101 door from the inside shall be constructed of or modified with riot-resistant security 102 laminate; 103 (8) If designed to be opened, all ground-level windows shall have functional 104 locking mechanisms that allow for the windows to be locked from the inside and, if large 105 enough for an individual to enter when opened or if adjacent to a door, be closed and 106 locked when school district employees are not present; 107 (9) Each roof access door shall default to a locked, latched, and closed position 108 when not actively in use and be lockable from the interior; 109 (10) Each attendance center shall include one exterior secure master key box 110 designed to permit emergency access to both law enforcement agencies and emergency 111 responders from the exterior at a location designated by the local authorities with 112 applicable jurisdiction; 113 (11) Each attendance center shall implement a communications infrastructure as 114 required in this section; and 115 (12) Each school district shall implement the following as provided in this 116 section: 117 (a) A system of ongoing auditing of building access; 118 (b) An exterior door numbering site plan; and 119 (c) A security component maintenance plan. 120 5. The system of ongoing auditing of building access required under subdivision 121 (12) of subsection 4 of this section shall include, but not be limited to, the following 122 requirements: 123 (1) Conduct at least weekly inspections during school hours of all exterior doors 124 of each attendance center to certify that all doors are, by default, set to a closed, latched, 125 and locked status and cannot be opened from the outside without a key as required in 126 subdivision (3) of subsection 4 of this section;  HB 1761 5 127 (2) Report the findings of weekly inspections required in subdivision (1) of this 128 subsection to the school district and ensure the results are kept for review as part of 129 school facilities and safety criteria developed for the Missouri school improvement 130 program under section 160.660; 131 (3) Report the findings of weekly inspections required in subdivision (1) of this 132 subsection to the administration of the attendance center to ensure awareness of any 133 deficiencies identified and identify who must take action to reduce the likelihood of 134 similar deficiencies in the future; and 135 (4) A provision in the school district's applicable policy stating that nothing in a 136 school district's access control procedures shall be interpreted as discouraging parents, 137 once properly verified as authorized attendance center visitors, from visiting attendance 138 centers they are authorized to visit. 139 6. The exterior door numbering site plan required under subdivision (12) of 140 subsection 4 of this section shall include, but not be limited to, the following 141 requirements: 142 (1) The school district shall develop and maintain an accurate site layout and 143 exterior door designation document for each attendance center that identifies all 144 exterior doors in the attendance center and depicts all exterior doors on a floor plan 145 with an alphanumeric designation, in accordance with the door numbering 146 specifications established in subdivision (1) of subsection 4 of this section; 147 (2) Each attendance center main office shall maintain readily available copies of 148 the exterior door numbering site plan; and 149 (3) Each attendance center shall supply electronic copies of exterior door 150 numbering site plans to the entity providing 911 emergency telephone service so that the 151 site plans can be made available to emergency responders by 911 emergency medical 152 dispatchers. 153 7. The security component maintenance plan required under subdivision (12) of 154 subsection 4 of this section shall include, but not be limited to, the following 155 requirements: 156 (1) The school district shall perform at least twice-yearly maintenance checks to 157 ensure the attendance center security components function as required. The 158 maintenance checks shall ensure at least the following: 159 (a) Attendance center exterior doors function properly and meet the 160 requirements of this section; 161 (b) The locking mechanism for any ground-level windows that can be opened 162 function properly; 163 (c) All perimeter barriers and related gates function properly;  HB 1761 6 164 (d) All panic alert or similar emergency notification systems in classrooms and 165 attendance center central offices function properly, which includes at least verification 166 from multiple attendance center employees and classroom locations that a notification 167 can be issued and received by the appropriately designated employees, that the alert is 168 successfully broadcast to all attendance center employees and to appropriate law 169 enforcement agencies and emergency responders, and that a potential threat observed 170 on video triggers an alert from video surveillance monitoring systems; 171 (e) All telephones report location services properly when engaging 911 172 emergency telephone service systems; 173 (f) All exterior master key boxes function properly and the keys they contain 174 function properly; and 175 (g) Two-way radios used by school district school protection officers or school 176 resource officers properly communicate with local law enforcement agencies and 177 emergency responders; 178 (2) The school district shall ensure procedures are in place to require that 179 employees who become aware of a security component functionality deficiency that 180 would be identified during the twice-yearly maintenance review described by 181 subdivision (1) of this subsection immediately report the deficiency to the school 182 district and the attendance center's administration, regardless of the status of the twice- 183 yearly maintenance review; and 184 (3) The school district shall promptly remedy any deficiencies discovered as a 185 consequence of maintenance checks required by or reports made under this section. 186 8. (1) Each school district shall implement the requirements of subsections 3 to 7 187 of this section for the 2025-26 school year and all subsequent school years. 188 (2) Each school district shall upgrade existing attendance center security 189 laminate that does not comply with this section to riot-resistant security laminate for 190 each area deemed an other entry area and bullet-resistant security laminate for each 191 area deemed a main front entry area, as appropriate, before July 1, 2025. 192 (3) Each school district shall annually certify compliance with the requirements 193 of subsections 3 to 7 of this section as part of the ongoing audits of building access 194 required in subsection 5 of this section and maintain the certification with the 195 department and local law enforcement agencies. Any noncompliance with subsections 3 196 to 7 of this section shall be reported to the department and the school board. 197 (4) Each school district may provisionally certify compliance of an attendance 198 center security component that is not in compliance with subdivision (2) of this 199 subsection if:  HB 1761 7 200 (a) The school district has taken the necessary steps to initiate an upgrade of the 201 attendance center security component to ensure compliance; and 202 (b) For the 2025-26 school year, the contractor or supplier has been procured 203 and has provided a schedule for when the upgrade will be completed. 204 (5) Each school district shall choose a contractor to install bullet-resistant 205 security laminate and riot-resistant security laminate before July 1, 2025. 206 9. (1) There is hereby created in the state treasury the "School Safety and 207 Security Matching Grant Fund", which shall consist of moneys appropriated under 208 subsection 10 of this section. The state treasurer shall be custodian of the fund. In 209 accordance with sections 30.170 and 30.180, the state treasurer may approve 210 disbursements. The fund shall be a dedicated fund and, upon appropriation, moneys 211 in this fund shall be used solely for making matching grants for school safety and 212 security projects as provided in this section. 213 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 33.080 to the contrary, any moneys 214 remaining in the fund at the end of the biennium shall not revert to the credit of the 215 general revenue fund. 216 (3) The state treasurer shall invest moneys in the fund in the same manner as 217 other funds are invested. Any interest and moneys earned on such investments shall be 218 credited to the fund. 219 10. There is hereby created the "School Safety and Security Matching Grant 220 Program". The general assembly may appropriate amounts to the school safety and 221 security matching grant fund created in this section. The department shall not be 222 required to provide moneys for matching grants under this section if no appropriation 223 for such grants is made by the general assembly. The total amount appropriated to such 224 fund in a fiscal year shall not exceed the amount necessary to provide matching grants 225 to assist each school district in completing eligible projects under this section in such 226 fiscal year. 227 11. (1) For the 2025-26 school year and each subsequent school year and subject 228 to the appropriation of moneys to the school safety and security matching grant fund, 229 each school district may apply to the department for a matching grant of moneys from 230 the school safety and security matching grant fund to assist such district in completing 231 school safety and security projects under this section. 232 (2) Applications for such school safety and security projects shall be made as 233 provided by the department by rule. Each application submitted by a school district 234 shall contain at least information about the project's objectives and methods, the 235 project's estimated total cost and expenditures, an indication that the school district has 236 allocated the necessary moneys to cover the remaining percentage of the project's  HB 1761 8 237 estimated total cost and expenditures not covered by an approved matching grant