I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5413 

To require the Secretary of Education to issue a rule requiring schools 

to implement protocols for suicide prevention, postvention, and traumainformed care. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 12, 2023 

Mr. NUNN of Iowa (for himself and Mrs. PELTOLA) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of Education to issue a rule requiring schools to implement protocols for suicide prevention, 

postvention, and trauma-informed care. 

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 ‘‘Prevent Youth Suicide 

5 Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. RULES ON PROTOCOLS FOR SUICIDE PREVENTION 

2 AT ANY EDUCATIONAL AGENCY OR INSTITU3 TION SERVING STUDENTS IN GRADES 6 

4 THROUGH GRADE 12. 

5 (a) RULE.—Not later than 210 days after the date 

6 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education shall 

7 issue a rule requiring, as a condition of receipt of funds 

8 under an applicable program, that an educational agency 

9 or institution carry out each of the following: 

10 (1) SCHOOL-BASED SUICIDE PREVENTION PRO11 TOCOLS.—The development and implementation of 

12 evidence-based suicide prevention programs tailored 

13 to the needs of students, which shall include— 

14 (A) biennial, evidence-based training for 

15 staff and faculty to— 

16 (i) identify signs of distress and risk 

17 factors for suicide in students; and 

18 (ii) in a case in which a student has 

19 been identified as exhibiting such signs or 

20 risk factors, guidelines for reporting such 

21 identification to parents and guidance 

22 counselors, and responding to concerns 

23 from such parents and counselors; 

24 (B) establishing a referral system to con25 nect students in need to appropriate mental 


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1 health resources at school and outside of school; 

2 and 

3 (C) conducting awareness campaigns and 

4 educational initiatives to reduce stigma associ5 ated with seeking help for mental health con6 cerns. 

7 (2) SUICIDE POSTVENTION SUPPORT.—The de8 velopment and implementation of a suicide 

9 postvention plan to address the aftermath of a sui10 cide, focusing on providing support to affected stu11 dents, staff, and the broader community, which shall 

12 include— 

13 (A) guidelines for communication, memori14 alization, and resources for grief counseling; 

15 and 

16 (B) collaboration with mental health pro17 fessionals and community organizations to en18 sure comprehensive postvention support. 

19 (3) TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE.—The adoption 

20 of a trauma-informed approach in policies and prac21 tices to create a safe and supportive environment for 

22 all students, which shall include the provision of bi23 ennial trauma-sensitive training for school staff to 

24 help such staff understand the potential impact of 


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1 trauma on students and to promote appropriate re2 sponses. 

3 (b) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SEC4 RETARY OF EDUCATION.— 

5 (1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 

6 shall provide each educational agency or institution 

7 subject to the rule issued under subsection (a) with 

8 the resources, guidelines, and technical assistance to 

9 comply with the requirements of such rule. 

10 (2) COMPLIANCE MONITORING.—The Secretary 

11 shall establish to ensure compliance with the rule 

12 issued under subsection (a), which shall include peri13 odic assessments, evaluations, and audits of each 

14 such educational agency or institution. 

15 (3) FEEDBACK AND IMPROVEMENT.—The Sec16 retary shall— 

17 (A) encourage educational agencies and in18 stitutions to provide feedback to the Secretary 

19 on the effectiveness of the requirements issued 

20 under the rule; and 

21 (B) review such feedback and make nec22 essary revisions to such rule. 

23 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

24 In this Act: 


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1 (1) APPLICABLE PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘appli2 cable program’’ has the meaning given the term in 

3 section 400 of the General Education Provisions Act 

4 (20 U.S.C. 1221). 

5 (2) EDUCATIONAL AGENCY OR INSTITUTION.— 

6 The term ‘‘educational agency or institution’’ means 

7 an educational agency or institution (as defined in 

8 section 444(a)(3) of the General Education Provi9 sions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g)) that serves students in 

10 any grade from grade 6 through grade 12, as deter11 mined under State law. 

12 (3) PARENT.—The term ‘‘parent’’ has the 

13 meaning given the term in section 8101 of the Ele14 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

15 U.S.C. 7801). 

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

17 the Secretary of Education. 

18 (5) SUICIDE POSTVENTION.—The term ‘‘suicide 

19 postvention’’ means activities and support provided 

20 after a suicide has occurred, designed to help indi21 viduals cope with the loss, minimize potential nega22 tive impacts, and prevent contagion. 

23 (6) SUICIDE PREVENTION.—The term ‘‘suicide 

24 prevention’’ means comprehensive strategies and ac25 tions aimed at identifying individuals at risk of suiVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:58 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5413.IH H5413

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1 cide, providing appropriate interventions, and fos2 tering a supportive environment to reduce the likeli3 hood of suicidal behavior. 

4 (7) TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE.—The term 

5 ‘‘trauma-informed care’’ means an approach based 

6 on an understanding of the vulnerabilities and trig7 gers of individuals who have experienced trauma, 

8 recognize the role trauma has played in the lives of 

9 those individuals, recognize the presence of trauma 

10 symptoms and their onset, are supportive of trauma 

11 recovery, and avoid further traumatization. 

Æ 


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