II 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2754 

To establish a grant program to address the impact of substance use-related 

trauma on children and youth in public schools. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 25, 2018 

Mr. MANCHIN (for himself, Mr. KAINE, and Mrs. CAPITO) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To establish a grant program to address the impact of substance use-related trauma on children and youth in public schools. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Handle With Care Act 

5 of 2018’’. 

6 SEC. 2. HANDLE WITH CARE. 

7 (a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to— 

8 (1) address the non-academic and social and 

9 emotional needs of children and youth experiencing 


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1 trauma, particularly as a result of the opioid epi2 demic and in communities facing high rates of drug 

3 overdose deaths; 

4 (2) improve communities’ response to the im5 pact of other substance use-related traumatic events 

6 where the children and youth live; 

7 (3) better prepare teachers, school leaders and 

8 principals, administrators, paraeducators, and other 

9 school staff to mitigate the effects of substance use10 related trauma on children and youth; 

11 (4) improve community coordination in address12 ing the effects of the opioid epidemic or other drug 

13 epidemic on children and families; 

14 (5) increase awareness of the effects of the 

15 opioid epidemic or other drug epidemic on children 

16 and youth; 

17 (6) improve the response of law enforcement of18 ficials to traumatic experiences in the home as a re19 sult of the opioid epidemic and in communities fac20 ing high rates of drug overdose deaths served by the 

21 officials, particularly as it relates to children and 

22 youth; 

23 (7) create trauma-informed schools that can 

24 help meet the needs of children and youth experi25 encing substance use-related trauma; 


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1 (8) rigorously evaluate the effect of the Handle 

2 With Care Initiative on children and youth experi3 encing substance use-related and other traumas; and 

4 (9) improve communication between school staff 

5 and experts in trauma-informed care to share prom6 ising best practices to mitigate the impact of sec7 ondary traumatic stress. 

8 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The terms ‘‘elementary 

10 school’’, ‘‘secondary school’’, ‘‘local educational agen11 cy’’, and ‘‘State educational agency’’ have the mean12 ings given the terms in section 8101 of the Elemen13 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

14 U.S.C. 7801). 

15 (2) HANDLE WITH CARE INITIATIVE.—The 

16 term ‘‘Handle With Care Initiative’’ means an initia17 tive that complies with the following: 

18 (A) Assembles State- and local-level task 

19 forces comprised of experts in trauma-informed 

20 care, which shall include, to the extent prac21 ticable, educators, school nurses, school coun22 selors and school psychologists, child trauma 

23 experts, substance use disorder prevention and 

24 treatment experts, public health officials, family 

25 and community agencies, and law enforcement. 


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1 (B) Includes local educational agencies, 

2 child trauma experts, substance use disorder 

3 prevention and treatment experts, youth service 

4 providers, social services providers, physical and 

5 mental health providers, community members, 

6 law enforcement, and families receiving evi7 dence-based or evidence-informed support and 

8 training to establish trauma-informed schools. 

9 (C) Includes programs that provide acute, 

10 on scene interventions, as well as longer-term 

11 coordinated care within school and community 

12 settings to children, youth, and their families 

13 impacted by the opioid epidemic or high over14 dose death rates from other drugs in the region 

15 where the children, youth, and their families 

16 live. 

17 (D) Includes a notification by law enforce18 ment when there has been a law enforcement 

19 action when a child or youth is present, which 

20 notification complies with the following: 

21 (i) The notification is sent by an 

22 email to the school where the child or 

23 youth is enrolled with only the words 

24 ‘‘Handle With Care’’ and no other infor25 mation on the child or youth’s situation. 


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1 (ii) The law enforcement official may 

2 not disclose information to the school 

3 about the case or the student. 

4 (iii) The notification may be shared 

5 with not more than 2 individuals in the 

6 school designated by the program to re7 ceive the notification. Such individuals may 

8 activate services for the student, but may 

9 not disseminate the notification with any 

10 other individual unless there is an imme11 diate risk of danger or the consent of the 

12 student. Such individuals may not have law 

13 enforcement responsibilities at the school 

14 and, whenever possible, should be health15 care providers. 

16 (iv) The notification may not be used 

17 as part of a legal proceeding without ap18 propriate due process. 

19 (v) The notification may not be pre20 served in the student’s school record. 

21 (vi) The notification shall be deleted 

22 not later than 6 months after the date of 

23 the notification unless the student requests 

24 that it be preserved. 


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1 (vii) All parties shall take reasonable 

2 steps with regard to cybersecurity to en3 sure the security of the notification. 

4 (E) Includes site teams providing resources 

5 such as individual, class, and whole school trau6 ma-informed care so that traumatized children 

7 and youth are supported in the school environ8 ment. 

9 (F) Develops and disseminates evidence10 based or evidence-informed training for trauma11 informed care, which may include using nation12 ally recognized practices developed by the Na13 tional Child Traumatic Stress Network, for 

14 school staff (and other youth service providers, 

15 where applicable) on the impact of substance 

16 use-related and other trauma on children and 

17 youth and how best to support such children 

18 and youth. 

19 (G) Includes resource sharing and commu20 nication between youth service providers and 

21 school site teams in order to provide referrals to 

22 wrap around services to youth and families. 

23 (H) Includes family engagement practices 

24 and referrals to relevant services for the child, 

25 youth, and affected family. 


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1 (I) Includes strategies that are non-dis2 criminatory and developmentally appropriate 

3 that can prevent and resolve students’ behav4 ioral issues associated with the impacts of trau5 ma related to substance abuse without relying 

6 on school resource officers, while reducing un7 necessary suspensions, expulsions, citations, and 

8 arrests in schools. 

9 (3) HIGH-NEED LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN10 CY.—The term ‘‘high-need local educational agency’’ 

11 means a local educational agency that serves a high12 need school (as such term in defined in section 

13 2211(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu14 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6631(b))). 

15 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

16 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

17 (5) TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE.—The term 

18 ‘‘trauma-informed care’’ means practices that— 

19 (A) promote a strengths-based trauma-in20 formed framework that involves understanding, 

21 recognizing, and responding to the effects of 

22 substance use and other traumas within the 

23 educational, home, and community environ24 ment; 


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1 (B) emphasize the physical, psychological, 

2 and emotional safety for children, youth, fami3 lies, and providers and helping children, youth, 

4 and families establish a sense of control and 

5 stability; 

6 (C) involve collaboration among appro7 priate experts, which may include community 

8 mental health and substance use treatment pro9 viders, child trauma experts, youth service pro10 viders, social services providers, physical and 

11 mental health providers, educational personnel, 

12 school-based mental health services providers, 

13 families, and law enforcement; 

14 (D) recognize the traumatic impact of 

15 caregiver substance use on children and youth’s 

16 social, emotional, and learning challenges; and 

17 (E) integrate a nationally recognized evi18 dence-based or evidence-informed framework or 

19 intervention, such as those developed by mem20 bers of the National Child Traumatic Stress 

21 Network or the Massachusetts Advocates for 

22 Children. 

23 (6) TRAUMA-INFORMED SCHOOL.—The term 

24 ‘‘trauma-informed school’’ means a school where 

25 staff has undergone training in trauma-informed 


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1 care and implements a shared vision and curriculum 

2 to help students who have undergone trauma feel 

3 safe and able to learn. 

4 (c) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in coordina6 tion with the Secretary of Education, shall award 5- 

7 year demonstration grants to States in order to ad8 dress the impact of substance use-related trauma on 

9 children and youth in public schools. 

10 (2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under para11 graph (1), the Secretary shall give priority to States 

12 with high rates of opioid overdose deaths. 

13 (d) STATE APPLICATION.—A State that desires to re14 ceive a grant under this section shall submit an application 

15 to the Secretary, through the State educational agency (in 

16 coordination with the State agency administering block 

17 grants awarded by the Substance Abuse and Mental 

18 Health Services Administration), at such time and in such 

19 manner as the Secretary may require. Such application 

20 shall include the following: 

21 (1) A needs assessment, including relevant data 

22 and a description of how rates of substance use in 

23 the State has affected children, families, and com24 munities, particularly in communities facing high 

25 rates of drug overdose deaths. 


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1 (2) A description of how the State will award 

2 subgrants to high-need local educational agencies, in 

3 partnership with local law enforcement and children 

4 and youth service providers, in order to carry out 

5 the Handle With Care Initiative or another evidence6 based, trauma-informed care initiative. 

7 (3) An assurance that the State will comply 

8 with section 444 of the General Education Provi9 sions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g) (commonly referred to 

10 as the ‘‘Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act 

11 of 1974’’) and all relevant privacy laws. 

12 (4) A plan to create a Handle with Care Task 

13 Force that will meet quarterly, including, to the ex14 tent practicable, representatives from law enforce15 ment, education officials, child traumatic stress ex16 perts, mental health and substance use services pro17 fessionals, school-based mental health services pro18 viders, youth service providers, parent organizations, 

19 juvenile and family court professionals, foster care 

20 professionals, domestic violence prevention profes21 sionals, sexual assault advocates, and advocates for 

22 children with disabilities. 

23 (5) A plan to collect the data described in sub24 section (g) and an assurance that the State will par25 ticipate in the evaluation described in subsection (j). 


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1 (6) An assurance that the State will comply 

2 with all applicable civil rights laws. 

3 (e) STATE USES OF FUNDS.—A State that receives 

4 a grant under this section— 

5 (1) shall reserve 5 percent of the grant funds 

6 in order to— 

7 (A) develop and coordinate the Handle 

8 with Care Task Force described in subsection 

9 (d)(4); 

10 (B) administer subgrants awarded under 

11 paragraph (2); and 

12 (C) engage in other State leadership activi13 ties such as training, program evaluation, and 

14 replication; and 

15 (2) shall award subgrants to high-need local 

16 educational agencies to enable the agencies to carry 

17 out Handle With Care Initiatives or other evidence18 based, trauma-informed care initiatives. 

19 (f) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY APPLICATION.—A 

20 high-need local educational agency that desires to receive 

21 a subgrant under this section shall submit to the State 

22 an application at such time and containing such informa23 tion as the State may require. Such application shall in24 clude information on how the high-need local educational 

25 agency will— 


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1 (1) develop a memorandum of understanding 

2 with partners, which shall include law enforcement, 

3 mental health and substance use treatment pro4 viders, and child protective services, and may include 

5 juvenile and family court professionals, child trau6 matic stress experts, youth services providers, social 

7 services providers, health providers, child protective 

8 services, and family organizations in carrying out a 

9 Handle With Care Initiative; 

10 (2) identify strategies that are non-discrimina11 tory, fair, and developmentally appropriate that can 

12 prevent and resolve students’ behavioral issues asso13 ciated with the impacts of trauma related to sub14 stance use without relying on school resource offi15 cers, while reducing unnecessary suspensions, expul16 sions, citations, and arrests in schools; 

17 (3) identify site teams, which may include rep18 resentatives from law enforcement, juvenile and fam19 ily courts, education officials, child traumatic stress 

20 experts, community mental health and substance use 

21 services professionals, school-based mental health 

22 services providers, youth service providers, child pro23 tective services, and family organizations to receive 

24 training in trauma-informed care; 


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1 (4) identify pilot school sites that have been im2 pacted by substance misuse to carry out the Handle 

3 With Care Initiative or another trauma-informed 

4 care initiative; 

5 (5) evaluate the effectiveness of the Handle 

6 With Care Initiative or another trauma-informed 

7 care initiative by collecting the data described in 

8 subsection (g); and 

9 (6) expand and sustain the effort beyond the 

10 use of grant funds. 

11 (g) LOCAL USE OF FUNDS.—A high-need local edu12 cational agency that receives a subgrant under this section 

13 shall use the subgrant funds to carry out a Handle With 

14 Care Initiative or another evidence-based, trauma-in15 formed care initiative, including by— 

16 (1) assembling a local educational agency-level 

17 task force representing, to the extent practicable, 

18 education officials, families, child traumatic stress 

19 experts, substance use disorder treatment profes20 sionals, school-based mental health services pro21 viders, youth service providers, social services pro22 viders, physical and mental health providers, and 

23 community agencies, including law enforcement; 

24 (2) working with the State to ensure that law 

25 enforcement agencies and juvenile and family court 


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1 personnel receive training on best practices in work2 ing with children exposed to violence and substance 

3 use disorders; 

4 (3) providing evidence-based training on trau5 ma-informed care to school staff, and other youth 

6 service providers, where applicable, to create trau7 ma-informed schools; and 

8 (4) creating trauma-informed schools through 

9 other strategies. 

10 (h) LOCAL REPORTING.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—A high-need local edu12 cational agency that receives a subgrant under this 

13 section shall collect and report data on the Handle 

14 With Care Initiative or another trauma-informed 

15 care initiative (including number of notifications, 

16 children affected, school-based arrests or law en17 forcement interactions), and the impact of the initia18 tive on the following outcomes: 

19 (A) Chronic absenteeism. 

20 (B) Truancy. 

21 (C) Suspensions, expulsions, and in-school 

22 discipline referrals. 

23 (D) Academic achievement. 

24 (E) Non-academic measures. 

25 (F) Health outcomes. 


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1 (2) DISAGGREGATION.—The data collected and 

2 reported under paragraph (1) shall be disaggregated 

3 by subcategories, including race and gender, unless 

4 doing so would reveal personally identifiable infor5 mation about a student. 

6 (i) REPORTS.—A State that receives a grant under 

7 this section shall submit to the Secretary and the Sec8 retary of Education a report detailing the effects of the 

9 Handle With Care Initiatives or other trauma-informed 

10 care initiatives supported by the State on the outcomes 

11 described in subsection (h). Such reports shall be sub12 mitted— 

13 (1) at the end of the third year of the 5-year 

14 grant period; and 

15 (2) at the end of such grant period. 

16 (j) EVALUATION.—The Secretary shall conduct an 

17 evaluation of each grant awarded under this section and 

18 report the findings of each such evaluation to Congress. 

19 Such an evaluation shall— 

20 (1) examine the results of the Handle With 

21 Care Initiatives and other trauma-informed care ini22 tiatives supported by the States on the outcomes de23 scribed in subsection (h); and 


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1 (2) be completed not later than 6 months after 

2 the date the Secretary receives the report under sub3 section (i) from a State. 

4 (k) CIVIL RIGHT.— 

5 (1) NONDISCRIMINATION.—No person in the 

6 United States shall, on the basis of actual or per7 ceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gen8 der identity (as defined in paragraph 249(c)(4) of 

9 title 18, United States Code), sexual orientation, or 

10 disability, be excluded from participation in, be de11 nied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimina12 tion under any program or activity funded in whole 

13 or in part with funds made available under this Act. 

14 (2) EXCEPTION.—If sex segregation or sex-spe15 cific programming is necessary to the essential oper16 ation of a program, nothing in this subsection shall 

17 prevent any such program or activity from consider18 ation of an individual’s sex. In such circumstances, 

19 grantees may meet the requirements of this sub20 section by providing comparable services to individ21 uals who cannot be provided with the sex-segregated 

22 or sex-specific programming. 

23 (3) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing contained in this 

24 subsection shall be construed, interpreted, or applied 

25 to supplant, displace, preempt, or otherwise diminish 


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1 the responsibilities and liabilities under other State 

2 or Federal civil rights law, whether statutory or 

3 common. 

4 (l) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec5 tion shall be construed to provide for inappropriate con6 tact between students and law enforcement, court per7 sonnel, child protective services or any other non-local edu8 cational agency that may result in unnecessary or dis9 proportionate contact with the juvenile justice system. 

10 (m) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

12 $10,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2018 through 

13 2024. 

Æ 


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