Parents Need to Know Act of 2022
Bill: H.R.7491 | Sponsor: Rep. Crist, Charlie (D-FL)
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Parents Need to Know Act of 2022
This bill requires local educational agencies to establish procedures for schools to provide (1) timely notification, including by calls and texts, to parents about certain threats, unlawful acts, or significant emergencies that occur on school grounds, during transportation for school sponsored-events, or during school-sponsored activities; (2) a plan to address, mitigate, or correct any risks to students associated with these acts or emergencies; and (3) an annual notice to students, parents, and employees describing the notification procedures required by the bill.

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to 
establish notification and reporting requirements relating to unlawful 
acts and significant emergencies faced by students in public elementary 
                         and secondary schools.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Parents Need to Know Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. NOTIFICATION AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO THREATS AND 
              EMERGENCIES FACED BY STUDENTS IN ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY 
              PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

    (a) Notification and Reporting Requirements.--Subsection (b) of 
section 1112 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6312) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (12), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (13) as paragraph (14); and
            (3) by inserting before paragraph (14), as so redesignated, 
        the following new paragraph:
            ``(13) how the local educational agency will establish 
        procedures for schools served by the local educational agency 
        to provide--
                    ``(A) timely notification to parents, in a manner 
                that does not reveal any personally identifiable 
                information about an individual student, about--
                            ``(i) an unlawful act or significant 
                        emergency that occurs on school grounds, during 
                        transportation for school-sponsored events, or 
                        during school-sponsored activities; or
                            ``(ii) a threat that has been made about an 
                        unlawful act or significant emergency occurring 
                        on school grounds, during transportation for 
                        school-sponsored events, or during school-
                        sponsored activities;
                    ``(B) a plan to address, mitigate, or correct any 
                risks to students associated with the unlawful act or 
                significant emergency; and
                    ``(C) provide annual notice to students, parents, 
                and any individual who works at the school describing 
                the notification procedures established under 
                subparagraph (A); and''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 1112 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 6312) is 
further amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Timely notification.--The term `timely notification' 
        means, with respect to the notification procedures established 
        under subsection (b)(13)(A), the exercise of reasonable care by 
        a school to contact the parents or other known emergency 
        contacts of students following the use of such notification 
        procedures, including by telephone calls, voice mail messages, 
        text messages, and email messages.
            ``(2) Unlawful act or significant emergency.--The term 
        `unlawful act or significant emergency' means one or more of 
        the following:
                    ``(A) Homicide or accidental death.
                    ``(B) Rape or sexual assault.
                    ``(C) Aggravated assault with intent to cause 
                serious bodily harm.
                    ``(D) Arson.
                    ``(E) Any unauthorized possession or use of a 
                firearm.
                    ``(F) A manmade or natural emergency including any 
                hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, wind driven 
                water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic 
                eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought, 
                or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood, explosion, 
                gas leak, building collapse, or damage by aircraft.''.
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