I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2479 

To provide for safe schools and safe communities. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 3, 2023 

Mr. WEBER of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on Homeland Security, the Judiciary, Energy and Commerce, and 

Appropriations, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for safe schools and safe communities. 

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 ‘‘Securing Our Schools 

5 Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. NONPROFIT SECURITY GRANT PROGRAM. 

7 Section 2009 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 

8 (6 U.S.C. 609a) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘2022 through 

10 2028’’ and inserting ‘‘2023 through 2029’’; 


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1 (2) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

2 (l); 

3 (3) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(i) FEEDBACK.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator denies 

7 an application for a grant under this section, not 

8 later than 120 days after the date of the denial, the 

9 Administrator shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) notify the applicant; and 

11 ‘‘(B) provide an explanation for the denial. 

12 ‘‘(2) EXPLANATION.—An explanation described 

13 in paragraph (1)(B) shall include information identi14 fying the reason for the denial of the application, in15 cluding— 

16 ‘‘(A) any factors that led to a lower score 

17 or rank compared to other applicants; and 

18 ‘‘(B) an identification of any deficiencies in 

19 the application. 

20 ‘‘(j) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS AND TECHNICAL AS21 SISTANCE.—A State through which the Administrator 

22 makes a grant to an eligible nonprofit organization under 

23 this section shall receive a 5-percent increase in the 

24 amount of the grant— 

25 ‘‘(1) for administrative costs; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) to provide technical assistance to the eligi2 ble nonprofit organization. 

3 ‘‘(k) APPLICATION UPDATE AND IMPROVEMENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) PUBLIC MEETING.—Not later than 90 

5 days after the date of enactment of the Securing 

6 Our Schools Act of 2023, the Administrator shall 

7 hold a public meeting to solicit recommendations on 

8 updating the application process for a grant under 

9 this section. 

10 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 

11 the date of enactment of the Securing Our Schools 

12 Act of 2023, the Administrator shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) develop recommendations to mod14 ernize and update the application process for a 

15 grant under this section, which shall include 

16 considerations for— 

17 ‘‘(i) establishing a more streamlined 

18 application process; 

19 ‘‘(ii) establishing greater uniformity in 

20 the application process among all appli21 cants and the guidance provided to States 

22 through which the Administrator makes 

23 grants to eligible nonprofit organizations 

24 under this section; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) ensuring that the application 

2 template is compatible with the latest or 

3 most widely used version of software pro4 grams; and 

5 ‘‘(iv) coordinating with the Adminis6 trator of General Services to ensure that 

7 applications submitted under this section 

8 are compatible across online platforms of 

9 the Federal Government; and 

10 ‘‘(B) submit to the Committee on Home11 land Security and Governmental Affairs of the 

12 Senate and the Committee on Homeland Secu13 rity of the House of Representatives a report 

14 that includes— 

15 ‘‘(i) the recommendations developed 

16 under subparagraph (A); and 

17 ‘‘(ii) a description of whether the rec18 ommendations developed under subpara19 graph (A) are consistent with feedback re20 ceived at the public meeting required under 

21 paragraph (1). 

22 ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION OF RECOMMENDA23 TIONS.—Not later than 270 days after the date of 

24 enactment of the Securing Our Schools Act of 2023, 


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1 the Administrator shall implement the recommenda2 tions developed under paragraph (2)(A). 

3 ‘‘(4) PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT WAIVER.— 

4 For the purpose of meeting the deadlines established 

5 under this subsection, the Secretary may waive the 

6 application of subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, 

7 United States Code, to the requirements of this sub8 section.’’; and 

9 (4) in subsection (l), as so redesignated— 

10 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

11 follows: 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

13 appropriated for grants under this section— 

14 ‘‘(A) $360,000,000 for fiscal year 2023, of 

15 which— 

16 ‘‘(i) $180,000,000 shall be for recipi17 ents in high-risk urban areas that receive 

18 funding under section 2003; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) $180,000,000 shall be for recipi20 ents in jurisdictions that do not so receive 

21 such funding; and 

22 ‘‘(B) $480,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

23 2024 through 2029.’’; 

24 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘2028’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘2029’’; and 


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1 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(3) HIGH-RISK URBAN AREAS.—Of the 

3 amounts made available to carry out this section for 

4 each of fiscal years 2024 through 2029, not less 

5 than 0.35 percent shall be for grants to eligible re6 cipients located in each high-risk urban area receiv7 ing grants under section 2003. 

8 ‘‘(4) SALARIES AND EXPENSES.—Of the 

9 amounts made available to carry out this section in 

10 any fiscal year, the Administrator may transfer to 

11 another account of the Federal Emergency Manage12 ment Agency not more than 3 percent for salaries 

13 and administrative expenses, including any necessary 

14 expenses to provide feedback or technical assistance 

15 to applicants for a grant under this section in ac16 cordance with subsection (j).’’. 

17 SEC. 3. SECURING SCHOOLS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

19 (1) APPROPRIATION.—There are authorized to 

20 be appropriated, and there are appropriated, to the 

21 Secretary of Education to carry out subpart 1 of 

22 part A of title IV of the Elementary and Secondary 

23 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7111), 

24 $2,560,000,000 for fiscal years 2024 through 2033. 


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1 (2) SCHOOL SECURITY.—The Secretary of Edu2 cation shall use 50 percent of the funds appropriated 

3 under paragraph (1) to carry out clause (v) of sec4 tion 4104(b)(3)(B) of the Elementary and Sec5 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

6 7114(b)(3)(B)). 

7 (b) ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT

8 OF 1965.—Section 4104 of the Elementary and Secondary 

9 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7114) is amended in 

10 subsection (b)(3)(B)— 

11 (1) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

12 and 

13 (2) by inserting after clause (iv) the following: 

14 ‘‘(v) improving school conditions for 

15 student learning, by enabling local edu16 cational agencies to use funds available 

17 under subsection (a)(3) for the purpose of 

18 planning and designing school buildings 

19 and facilities, installing infrastructure, and 

20 implementing technology or other meas21 ures, that strengthen security on school 

22 premises, which may include— 

23 ‘‘(I) controlling access to school 

24 premises or facilities, through the use 

25 of metal detectors, or other measures, 


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1 or technology, with evidence-based ef2 fectiveness (to the extent the State in3 volved determines that such evidence 

4 is reasonably available), which may in5 clude— 

6 ‘‘(aa) secured campus exter7 nal gate or locked doors or check8 in points; 

9 ‘‘(bb) active shooter alert 

10 systems; 

11 ‘‘(cc) access control; 

12 ‘‘(dd) internal door locks; 

13 ‘‘(ee) peepholes for class14 room doors; 

15 ‘‘(ff) school site alarm and 

16 protection systems; 

17 ‘‘(gg) metal detectors or x18 ray machines (including port19 able); 

20 ‘‘(hh) door locking mecha21 nisms and access control doors; 

22 ‘‘(ii) increased lighting on 

23 school grounds; 

24 ‘‘(jj) emergency call boxes; 

25 ‘‘(kk) two-way radios; 


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1 ‘‘(ll) emergency alerts; 

2 ‘‘(mm) surveillance cameras 

3 or systems and infrastructure 

4 (such as poles and wiring); 

5 ‘‘(nn) software costs and 

6 warranties; 

7 ‘‘(oo) fencing and gating; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(pp) emergency generators 

10 to provide back-up power for 

11 phone systems, critical lighting, 

12 and essential outlets; 

13 ‘‘(II) implementing any tech14 nology or measure, or installing any 

15 infrastructure, to cover and conceal 

16 students within the school during cri17 sis situations; 

18 ‘‘(III) implementing technology 

19 to provide coordination with law en20 forcement and notification to relevant 

21 law enforcement and first responders 

22 during such a situation, which shall 

23 include— 

24 ‘‘(aa) emergency planning 

25 and preparation; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) emphasis on a school 

2 safety plan with buy in from all 

3 elements of the school commu4 nity, including board members, 

5 employees, students, parents, law 

6 enforcers, government and busi7 ness leaders, the media, and local 

8 residents; 

9 ‘‘(cc) school implementation 

10 of threat assessment programs; 

11 ‘‘(dd) development of dis12 trict-based mandatory incident 

13 reporting systems; 

14 ‘‘(ee) establishment of local 

15 school safety advisory groups (in16 cluding parents, families, judges, 

17 first responders, health and 

18 human service professionals, and 

19 mental health professionals); 

20 ‘‘(ff) evidence-based training 

21 for school resource officers, 

22 school personnel, and students to 

23 prevent student violence to enable 

24 them to recognize and quickly re25 spond to warning signs; 


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1 ‘‘(gg) development and oper2 ations of anonymous reporting 

3 systems; 

4 ‘‘(hh) evidence-based school 

5 threat assessment and crisis 

6 intervention teams; 

7 ‘‘(ii) programs to facilitate 

8 coordination with local law en9 forcement; 

10 ‘‘(jj) liability and insurance 

11 for school districts; 

12 ‘‘(kk) trauma-informed 

13 training for school staff on re14 sponses to active shooter situa15 tions; and 

16 ‘‘(ll) community engagement 

17 for planning and implementing 

18 safety policies and procedures; 

19 ‘‘(IV) implementing any tech20 nology or measure, including hiring 

21 school security officers, or installing 

22 any infrastructure, with evidence23 based effectiveness (to the extent the 

24 State involved determines that such 

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1 crease the safety of school students 

2 and staff; 

3 ‘‘(V) implementing any tech4 nology or measure, or installing any 

5 infrastructure, for school safety rein6 forcement, including bullet-resistant 

7 doors and windows; and 

8 ‘‘(VI) implementing any tech9 nology or system that would reduce 

10 the time needed to disseminate official 

11 information to parents regarding the 

12 safety of their children during and im13 mediately following a crisis;’’. 

14 SEC. 4. IMPROVING SCHOOL SECURITY THROUGH THE 

15 COPS ON THE BEAT PROGRAM. 

16 Section 1701(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Con17 trol and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381(b)) 

18 is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (22), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

20 end; 

21 (2) in paragraph (23), by striking the period at 

22 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

23 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(24) to pay salaries and expenses of school re25 source officers at public, charter, and private eleVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:21 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2479.IH H2479

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1 mentary schools and secondary schools (as such 

2 terms are defined under section 8101 of the Elemen3 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

4 U.S.C. 7801)); and 

5 ‘‘(25) to improve physical school security at 

6 public, charter, and private elementary schools and 

7 secondary schools (as such terms are defined under 

8 section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu9 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) by obtaining 

10 security equipment to protect students in schools 

11 and equip law enforcement officers responding to 

12 school security issues and installing physical struc13 ture improvements, including— 

14 ‘‘(A) fencing, external gates, door locks, 

15 and check-in points, to establish a secured cam16 pus; 

17 ‘‘(B) active shooter alert systems; 

18 ‘‘(C) access controls; 

19 ‘‘(D) internal door locks; 

20 ‘‘(E) school site alarm and protection sys21 tems; 

22 ‘‘(F) metal detector or x-ray machines (in23 cluding portable machines); 

24 ‘‘(G) ballistic safety equipment for schools 

25 and responding law enforcement officers; 


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1 ‘‘(H) increased lighting on school grounds; 

2 ‘‘(I) emergency call boxes; 

3 ‘‘(J) two-way radios; 

4 ‘‘(K) emergency alert systems; 

5 ‘‘(L) surveillance cameras or systems, in6 cluding infrastructure for such systems such as 

7 poles and wiring; 

8 ‘‘(M) software costs and warranties; and 

9 ‘‘(N) emergency generators to provide 

10 back-up power for phone systems, critical light11 ing, and essential outlets.’’. 

12 SEC. 5. STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH. 

13 (a) STUDENT ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH PRO14 GRAM FUND.— 

15 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

16 (A) ELIGIBLE SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘eligi17 ble school’’ means a school in which the lowest 

18 grade at the school is not lower than grade 6 

19 and the highest grade at the school is not high20 er than grade 12. 

21 (B) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

22 means the Secretary of Education. 

23 (2) STUDENT ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH

24 PROGRAM FUND.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—From the funds made 

2 available to carry out section 2001 of the Amer3 ican Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (20 U.S.C. 3401 

4 note), $10,000,000,000 shall be transferred to 

5 establish the ‘‘Student Access to Mental Health 

6 Program Fund’’, to remain available through 

7 September 30, 2032. The Secretary shall use 

8 amounts available in such Fund to award 

9 grants to States, from allocations under sub10 paragraph (B), to enable the States to support 

11 the salary of a mental health professional in eli12 gible schools located in the State. 

13 (B) ALLOCATION.—From the amounts 

14 available in the Fund established under sub15 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall make an al16 location to each State in the same proportion as 

17 the number of eligible schools located in the 

18 State. 

19 (C) PARTNERSHIP.— 

20 (i) IN GENERAL.—A State awarded a 

21 grant under this subsection shall comply 

22 with the following: 

23 (I) The State shall use the grant 

24 funds to cover the cost of the salary, 

25 which shall be not more than $55,000, 


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1 for 10 years for a mental health pro2 fessional to serve eligible schools lo3 cated in the State. Such mental health 

4 professional shall serve not more than 

5 5 eligible schools in any school year by 

6 rotating among the schools for not 

7 less than 1 day a week at each such 

8 school. 

9 (II) The State shall expend non10 Federal funds to pay for the other 

11 costs of recruitment, training, and 

12 benefits for each such mental health 

13 professional, and any other expenses 

14 related to such employment. 

15 (ii) CONDITIONS OF GRANTS.—A 

16 State awarded a grant under this sub17 section shall require that each eligible 

18 school served by the grant— 

19 (I) provide to the parents of any 

20 student enrolled in the school who has 

21 not reached age 19 who meets with a 

22 mental health professional employed 

23 at the school with all counseling 

24 records and mental health assess25 ments for such student; 


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1 (II) not teach Critical Race The2 ory or include Critical Race Theory in 

3 any school program; and 

4 (III) not advocate for abortion or 

5 abortion services in any form. 

6 (b) FUNDS FOR PROGRAMS.—The unobligated bal7 ance of funds made available to carry out sections 2021 

8 and 6002 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Pub9 lic Law 117–2) shall be transferred to, and evenly divided 

10 among, the following programs: 

11 (1) Project AWARE State Educational Agency 

12 Grant Program carried out by the Secretary of 

13 Health and Human Services. 

14 (2) Student Support and Academic Enrichment 

15 Grant Program carried out by the Secretary of Edu16 cation. 

17 (3) Community Mental Health Services Block 

18 Grant Program carried out by the Secretary of 

19 Health and Human Services. 

20 (4) Children’s Mental Health Initiative of the 

21 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Ad22 ministration. 

23 (c) BEST PRACTICES.— 

24 (1) ESEA DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, 

25 the terms ‘‘elementary school’’ and ‘‘secondary 


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1 school’’ have the meanings given the terms in section 

2 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

3 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

4 (2) DEVELOPMENT AND DISSEMINATION OF

5 BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than 1 year after the 

6 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 

7 the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 

8 Administration, the Secretary of Health and Human 

9 Services, and the Secretary of Education shall work 

10 in consultation to— 

11 (A) develop best practices for identifying 

12 warning signs of mental health problems with 

13 students and identify warning signs for teachers 

14 and administrator that a student is at high-risk 

15 for violence, specifically for a mass shooting; 

16 (B) develop best practices for identifying 

17 warning signs of mental health problems with 

18 children and identify warning signs for individ19 uals who work at a social service agency that a 

20 child under the age of 18 is at high-risk for vio21 lence, specifically for a mass shooting; and 

22 (C) disseminate the best practices devel23 oped under subparagraphs (A) and (B) to each 

24 elementary school and secondary school in the 

25 United States, and publish the best practices on 


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1 a publicly accessible website of the Department 

2 of Education and the Substance Abuse and 

3 Mental Health Services Administration. 

4 (d) GAO STUDY.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of 

6 the United States shall conduct a study on how 

7 many elementary schools and secondary schools in 

8 the United States have a mental health provider for 

9 students, how many students take advantage of the 

10 mental health services, the main causes for students 

11 to access the services. 

12 (2) ESEA DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, 

13 the terms ‘‘elementary school’’ and ‘‘secondary 

14 school’’ have the meanings given the terms in section 

15 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

16 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

17 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION AND APPROPRIATIONS OF FUNDS. 

18 The unobligated balance of funds made available to 

19 carry out section 18003 of division B of the CARES Act 

20 (Public Law 116–136; 134 Stat. 565), section 313 of the 

21 Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appro22 priations Act, 2021 (division M of Public Law 116–260; 

23 134 Stat. 1929), and section 2001 of the American Rescue 

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1 ferred to the Secretary of Education to be used to carry 

2 out this Act in an amount not to exceed $38,000,000,000. 

3 SEC. 7. NO FEDERAL FUNDING FOR ABORTIONS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—No funds authorized or appro5 priated by this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, 

6 shall be expended for any abortion or counseling that re7 sults in encouraging, facilitating, or referral for an abor8 tion. 

9 (b) HEALTH BENEFITS COVERAGE.—No funds au10 thorized or appropriated by this Act, or an amendment 

11 made by this Act, shall be expended for health benefits 

12 coverage that includes coverage of abortion. 

13 (c) EXCEPTIONS.—The limitations established in 

14 paragraphs (a) and (b) shall not apply to an abortion— 

15 (1) if the pregnancy is the result of an act of 

16 rape or incest; or 

17 (2) in the case where a woman suffers from a 

18 physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness, 

19 including a life-endangering physical condition 

20 caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself, that 

21 would, as certified by a physician, place the woman 

22 in danger of death unless an abortion is performed. 

Æ 


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