Title: Handle With Care Act of 2018
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Handle With Care Act of 2018
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services, in coordination with the Department of Education, to award five-year demonstration grants to states to address the impact of substance use-related trauma on children and youth in public schools.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2754 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






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.

    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 ``Handle With Care Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. HANDLE WITH CARE.

    (a) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to--
            (1) address the non-academic and social and emotional needs 
        of children and youth experiencing trauma, particularly as a 
        result of the opioid epidemic and in communities facing high 
        rates of drug overdose deaths;
            (2) improve communities' response to the impact of other 
        substance use-related traumatic events where the children and 
        youth live;
            (3) better prepare teachers, school leaders and principals, 
        administrators, paraeducators, and other school staff to 
        mitigate the effects of substance use-related trauma on 
        children and youth;
            (4) improve community coordination in addressing the 
        effects of the opioid epidemic or other drug epidemic on 
        children and families;
            (5) increase awareness of the effects of the opioid 
        epidemic or other drug epidemic on children and youth;
            (6) improve the response of law enforcement officials to 
        traumatic experiences in the home as a result of the opioid 
        epidemic and in communities facing high rates of drug overdose 
        deaths served by the officials, particularly as it relates to 
        children and youth;
            (7) create trauma-informed schools that can help meet the 
        needs of children and youth experiencing substance use-related 
        trauma;
            (8) rigorously evaluate the effect of the Handle With Care 
        Initiative on children and youth experiencing substance use-
        related and other traumas; and
            (9) improve communication between school staff and experts 
        in trauma-informed care to share promising best practices to 
        mitigate the impact of secondary traumatic stress.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) In general.--The terms ``elementary school'', 
        ``secondary school'', ``local educational agency'', and ``State 
        educational agency'' have the meanings given the terms in 
        section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (2) Handle with care initiative.--The term ``Handle With 
        Care Initiative'' means an initiative that complies with the 
        following:
                    (A) Assembles State- and local-level task forces 
                comprised of experts in trauma-informed care, which 
                shall include, to the extent practicable, educators, 
                school nurses, school counselors and school 
                psychologists, child trauma experts, substance use 
                disorder prevention and treatment experts, public 
                health officials, family and community agencies, and 
                law enforcement.
                    (B) Includes local educational agencies, child 
                trauma experts, substance use disorder prevention and 
                treatment experts, youth service providers, social 
                services providers, physical and mental health 
                providers, community members, law enforcement, and 
                families receiving evidence-based or evidence-informed 
                support and training to establish trauma-informed 
                schools.
                    (C) Includes programs that provide acute, on scene 
                interventions, as well as longer-term coordinated care 
                within school and community settings to children, 
                youth, and their families impacted by the opioid 
                epidemic or high overdose death rates from other drugs 
                in the region where the children, youth, and their 
                families live.
                    (D) Includes a notification by law enforcement when 
                there has been a law enforcement action when a child or 
                youth is present, which notification complies with the 
                following:
                            (i) The notification is sent by an email to 
                        the school where the child or youth is enrolled 
                        with only the words ``Handle With Care'' and no 
                        other information on the child or youth's 
                        situation.
                            (ii) The law enforcement official may not 
                        disclose information to the school about the 
                        case or the student.
                            (iii) The notification may be shared with 
                        not more than 2 individuals in the school 
                        designated by the program to receive the 
                        notification. Such individuals may activate 
                        services for the student, but may not 
                        disseminate the notification with any other 
                        individual unless there is an immediate risk of 
                        danger or the consent of the student. Such 
                        individuals may not have law enforcement 
                        responsibilities at the school and, whenever 
                        possible, should be healthcare providers.
                            (iv) The notification may not be used as 
                        part of a legal proceeding without appropriate 
                        due process.
                            (v) The notification may not be preserved 
                        in the student's school record.
                            (vi) The notification shall be deleted not 
                        later than 6 months after the date of the 
                        notification unless the student requests that 
                        it be preserved.
                            (vii) All parties shall take reasonable 
                        steps with regard to cybersecurity to ensure 
                        the security of the notification.
                    (E) Includes site teams providing resources such as 
                individual, class, and whole school trauma-informed 
                care so that traumatized children and youth are 
                supported in the school environment.
                    (F) Develops and disseminates evidence-based or 
                evidence-informed training for trauma-informed care, 
                which may include using nationally recognized practices 
                developed by the National Child Traumatic Stress 
                Network, for school staff (and other youth service 
                providers, where applicable) on the impact of substance 
                use-related and other trauma on children and youth and 
                how best to support such children and youth.
                    (G) Includes resource sharing and communication 
                between youth service providers and school site teams 
                in order to provide referrals to wrap around services 
                to youth and families.
                    (H) Includes family engagement practices and 
                referrals to relevant services for the child, youth, 
                and affected family.
                    (I) Includes strategies that are non-discriminatory 
                and developmentally appropriate that can prevent and 
                resolve students' behavioral issues associated with the 
                impacts of trauma related to substance abuse without 
                relying on school resource officers, while reducing 
                unnecessary suspensions, expulsions, citations, and 
                arrests in schools.
            (3) High-need local educational agency.--The term ``high-
        need local educational agency'' means a local educational 
        agency that serves a high-need school (as such term in defined 
        in section 2211(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
        Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6631(b))).
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.
            (5) Trauma-informed care.--The term ``trauma-informed 
        care'' means practices that--
                    (A) promote a strengths-based trauma-informed 
                framework that involves understanding, recognizing, and 
                responding to the effects of substance use and other 
                traumas within the educational, home, and community 
                environment;
                    (B) emphasize the physical, psychological, and 
                emotional safety for children, youth, families, and 
                providers and helping children, youth, and families 
                establish a sense of control and stability;
                    (C) involve collaboration among appropriate 
                experts, which may include community mental health and 
                substance use treatment providers, child trauma 
                experts, youth service providers, social services 
                providers, physical and mental health providers, 
                educational personnel, school-based mental health 
                services providers, families, and law enforcement;
                    (D) recognize the traumatic impact of caregiver 
                substance use on children and youth's social, 
                emotional, and learning challenges; and
                    (E) integrate a nationally recognized evidence-
                based or evidence-informed framework or intervention, 
                such as those developed by members of the National 
                Child Traumatic Stress Network or the Massachusetts 
                Advocates for Children.
            (6) Trauma-informed school.--The term ``trauma-informed 
        school'' means a school where staff has undergone training in 
        trauma-informed care and implements a shared vision and 
        curriculum to help students who have undergone trauma feel safe 
        and able to learn.
    (c) Program Authorized.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary, in coordination with the 
        Secretary of Education, shall award 5-year demonstration grants 
        to States in order to address the impact of substance use-
        related trauma on children and youth in public schools.
            (2) Priority.--In awarding grants under paragraph (1), the 
        Secretary shall give priority to States with high rates of 
        opioid overdose deaths.
    (d) State Application.--A State that desires to receive a grant 
under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary, 
through the State educational agency (in coordination with the State 
agency administering block grants awarded by the Substance Abuse and 
Mental Health Services Administration), at such time and in such manner 
as the Secretary may require. Such application shall include the 
following:
            (1) A needs assessment, including relevant data and a 
        description of how rates of substance use in the State has 
        affected children, families, and communities, particularly in 
        communities facing high rates of drug overdose deaths.
            (2) A description of how the State will award subgrants to 
        high-need local educational agencies, in partnership with local 
        law enforcement and children and youth service providers, in 
        order to carry out the Handle With Care Initiative or another 
        evidence-based, trauma-informed care initiative.
            (3) An assurance that the State will comply with section 
        444 of the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g) 
        (commonly referred to as the ``Family Educational Rights and 
        Privacy Act of 1974'') and all relevant privacy laws.
            (4) A plan to create a Handle with Care Task Force that 
        will meet quarterly, including, to the extent practicable, 
        representatives from law enforcement, education officials, 
        child traumatic stress experts, mental health and substance use 
        services professionals, school-based mental health services 
        providers, youth service providers, parent organizations, 
        juvenile and family court professionals, foster care 
        professionals, domestic violence prevention professionals, 
        sexual assault advocates, and advocates for children with 
        disabilities.
            (5) A plan to collect the data described in subsection (g) 
        and an assurance that the State will participate in the 
        evaluation described in subsection (j).
            (6) An assurance that the State will comply with all 
        applicable civil rights laws.
    (e) State Uses of Funds.--A State that receives a grant under this 
section--
            (1) shall reserve 5 percent of the grant funds in order 
        to--
                    (A) develop and coordinate the Handle with Care 
                Task Force described in subsection (d)(4);
                    (B) administer subgrants awarded under paragraph 
                (2); and
                    (C) engage in other State leadership activities 
                such as training, program evaluation, and replication; 
                and
            (2) shall award subgrants to high-need local educational 
        agencies to enable the agencies to carry out Handle With Care 
        Initiatives or other evidence-based, trauma-informed care 
        initiatives.
    (f) Local Educational Agency Application.--A high-need local 
educational agency that desires to receive a subgrant under this 
section shall submit to the State an application at such time and 
containing such information as the State may require. Such application 
shall include information on how the high-need local educational agency 
will--
            (1) develop a memorandum of understanding with partners, 
        which shall include law enforcement, mental health and 
        substance use treatment providers, and child protective 
        services, and may include juvenile and family court 
        professionals, child traumatic stress experts, youth services 
        providers, social services providers, health providers, child 
        protective services, and family organizations in carrying out a 
        Handle With Care Initiative;
            (2) identify strategies that are non-discriminatory, fair, 
        and developmentally appropriate that can prevent and resolve 
        students' behavioral issues associated with the impacts of 
        trauma related to substance use without relying on school 
        resource officers, while reducing unnecessary suspensions, 
        expulsions, citations, and arrests in schools;
            (3) identify site teams, which may include representatives 
        from law enforcement, juvenile and family courts, education 
        officials, child traumatic stress experts, community mental 
        health and substance use services professionals, school-based 
        mental health services providers, youth service providers, 
        child protective services, and family organizations to receive 
        training in trauma-informed care;
            (4) identify pilot school sites that have been impacted by 
        substance misuse to carry out the Handle With Care Initiative 
        or another trauma-informed care initiative;
            (5) evaluate the effectiveness of the Handle With Care 
        Initiative or another trauma-informed care initiative by 
        collecting the data described in subsection (g); and
            (6) expand and sustain the effort beyond the use of grant 
        funds.
    (g) Local Use of Funds.--A high-need local educational agency that 
receives a subgrant under this section shall use the subgrant funds to 
carry out a Handle With Care Initiative or another evidence-based, 
trauma-informed care initiative, including by--
            (1) assembling a local educational agency-level task force 
        representing, to the extent practicable, education officials, 
        families, child traumatic stress experts, substance use 
        disorder treatment professionals, school-based mental health 
        services providers, youth service providers, social services 
        providers, physical and mental health providers, and community 
        agencies, including law enforcement;
            (2) working with the State to ensure that law enforcement 
        agencies and juvenile and family court personnel receive 
        training on best practices in working with children exposed to 
        violence and substance use disorders;
            (3) providing evidence-based training on trauma-informed 
        care to school staff, and other youth service providers, where 
        applicable, to create trauma-informed schools; and
            (4) creating trauma-informed schools through other 
        strategies.
    (h) Local Reporting.--
            (1) In general.--A high-need local educational agency that 
        receives a subgrant under this section shall collect and report 
        data on the Handle With Care Initiative or another trauma-
        informed care initiative (including number of notifications, 
        children affected, school-based arrests or law enforcement 
        interactions), and the impact of the initiative on the 
        following outcomes:
                    (A) Chronic absenteeism.
                    (B) Truancy.
                    (C) Suspensions, expulsions, and in-school 
                discipline referrals.
                    (D) Academic achievement.
                    (E) Non-academic measures.
                    (F) Health outcomes.
            (2) Disaggregation.--The data collected and reported under 
        paragraph (1) shall be disaggregated by subcategories, 
        including race and gender, unless doing so would reveal 
        personally identifiable information about a student.
    (i) Reports.--A State that receives a grant under this section 
shall submit to the Secretary and the Secretary of Education a report 
detailing the effects of the Handle With Care Initiatives or other 
trauma-informed care initiatives supported by the State on the outcomes 
described in subsection (h). Such reports shall be submitted--
            (1) at the end of the third year of the 5-year grant 
        period; and
            (2) at the end of such grant period.
    (j) Evaluation.--The Secretary shall conduct an evaluation of each 
grant awarded under this section and report the findings of each such 
evaluation to Congress. Such an evaluation shall--
            (1) examine the results of the Handle With Care Initiatives 
        and other trauma-informed care initiatives supported by the 
        States on the outcomes described in subsection (h); and
            (2) be completed not later than 6 months after the date the 
        Secretary receives the report under subsection (i) from a 
        State.
    (k) Civil Right.--
            (1) Nondiscrimination.--No person in the United States 
        shall, on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, 
        religion, national origin, sex, gender identity (as defined in 
        paragraph 249(c)(4) of title 18, United States Code), sexual 
        orientation, or disability, be excluded from participation in, 
        be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination 
        under any program or activity funded in whole or in part with 
        funds made available under this Act.
            (2) Exception.--If sex segregation or sex-specific 
        programming is necessary to the essential operation of a 
        program, nothing in this subsection shall prevent any such 
        program or activity from consideration of an individual's sex. 
        In such circumstances, grantees may meet the requirements of 
        this subsection by providing comparable services to individuals 
        who cannot be provided with the sex-segregated or sex-specific 
        programming.
            (3) Construction.--Nothing contained in this subsection 
        shall be construed, interpreted, or applied to supplant, 
        displace, preempt, or otherwise diminish the responsibilities 
        and liabilities under other State or Federal civil rights law, 
        whether statutory or common.
    (l) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to provide for inappropriate contact between students and law 
enforcement, court personnel, child protective services or any other 
non-local educational agency that may result in unnecessary or 
disproportionate contact with the juvenile justice system.
    (m) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2018 through 2024.
                                 <all>