I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2491 

To establish a grant program to improve school security, including by training 

and hiring veterans and former law enforcement officers as school safety 

officers, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 6, 2023 

Mr. FLEISCHMANN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, 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 establish a grant program to improve school security, 

including by training and hiring veterans and former 

law enforcement officers as school safety officers, and 

for other purposes. 

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 Aid For 

5 Every School Act’’ or the ‘‘SAFE School Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. IMPROVING SCHOOL SECURITY. 

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘elementary 

2 school’’, ‘‘local educational agency’’, and ‘‘secondary 

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

4 8001 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

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

6 (2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

7 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the 

8 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 

9 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—The Attorney 

10 General shall establish within the Office of Justice Pro11 grams a grant program under which the Attorney General 

12 shall make grants to States and local educational agencies 

13 to carry out eligible activities described in subsection (c). 

14 (c) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—The eligible activities de15 scribed in this subsection are the following: 

16 (1) Establish, if necessary, and implement a 

17 State certification or licensure program, or other 

18 training program required by the State, that— 

19 (A) is designed to train individuals who are 

20 veterans or former law enforcement officers to 

21 serve as school safety officers; and 

22 (B) may include firearm or de-escalation 

23 training. 

24 (2) Hire veterans or former law enforcement of25 ficers who have completed the State certification or 


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1 licensure program described in paragraph (1), or off2 duty law enforcement officers, to serve as school 

3 safety officers in elementary schools and secondary 

4 schools in the State. 

5 (3) Improve the security of elementary schools 

6 and secondary schools in the State by installing in7 frastructure and implementing technology and other 

8 measures that strengthen security on school prem9 ises, including— 

10 (A) controlling access to school facilities 

11 through the installation of metal detectors, x12 ray machines, fencing or gating, and surveil13 lance cameras or systems; 

14 (B) securing doors through the installation 

15 of external door passcodes, internal door locks, 

16 peepholes for classroom doors, bulletproof glass 

17 or ballistic film, automatic door locking mecha18 nisms, and access control doors; and 

19 (C) enhancing emergency responsiveness 

20 through the installation of increased lighting on 

21 school grounds, emergency call boxes, emer22 gency alerts, and emergency generators. 

23 (d) NO FEDERAL INTERFERENCE.—In awarding 

24 grants pursuant to subsection (b), Attorney General may 

25 not— 


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1 (1) prevent or discourage any State or local 

2 educational agency from using any grant funds for 

3 a school security activity described in subsection (b); 

4 (2) impose any requirements relating to the 

5 content or structure of the State certification, licen6 sure, or other training program described in sub7 section (c)(1); or 

8 (3) enforce any requirement relating to grant 

9 funds that would prevent a State or local edu10 cational agency from carrying out an eligible activity 

11 described in subsection (c). 

12 (e) NONDISCRIMINATION.—The Attorney General 

13 shall award grants pursuant to subsection (b) without re14 spect to whether a recipient or subrecipient— 

15 (1) is a public or private school; 

16 (2) is religiously affiliated; or 

17 (3) receives any Federal or State funding for 

18 school resource officers. 

19 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

20 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

21 $900,000,000. 

Æ 


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