Title: School Safety and Mental Health Services Improvement Act of 2018
Policy area: Education

Summary:
School Safety and Mental Health Services Improvement Act of 2018
This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow state and local educational agencies to use certain federal funds for activities related to school safety, including: (1) infrastructure improvements to prevent, mitigate, or respond to incidents of school violence; and (2) professional development for school personnel in mental-health awareness, crisis response, and other programs designed to reduce and prevent school violence.
The bill also amends the Public Health Service Act to expand the programs for which the Department of Health and Human Services may provide financial support to assist local communities in helping children deal with violence. Such programs may include those designed to provide mental-health and substance-use disorder assessments, crisis-intervention training, counseling, treatment, and referral.
The President must convene an interagency task force to address school safety.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2513 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2513

          To improve school safety and mental health services.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 7, 2018

 Mr. Alexander (for himself, Mr. Blunt, Ms. Collins, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. 
 Roberts, Mr. Young, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Corker, Mr. Scott, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. 
 Grassley, Mr. Graham, and Mr. Isakson) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
          To improve school safety and mental health services.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``School Safety and 
Mental Health Services Improvement Act of 2018''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
                    TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Sec. 101. Supporting Safer Schools.
Sec. 102. Violence prevention and mental health support.
           TITLE II--DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Sec. 201. Children and violence.
Sec. 202. Priority mental health needs of regional and national 
                            significance.
Sec. 203. Supporting crisis response systems for children and youth.
Sec. 204. Studies on children and adolescents at risk of developing 
                            mental illness.
                   TITLE III--INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE

Sec. 301. Interagency Task Force.

                    TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

SEC. 101. SUPPORTING SAFER SCHOOLS.

    (a) Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants.--Subpart 1 of 
part A of title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7111) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating sections 4109 through 4112 as sections 
        4110 through 4113, respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after section 4108 the following:

``SEC. 4109. ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT SCHOOL SAFETY AND PREVENT VIOLENCE 
              AGAINST STUDENTS OR SCHOOL PERSONNEL.

    ``Each local educational agency, or consortium of such agencies, 
that receives an allocation under section 4105(a) may use such funds 
for school safety infrastructure improvements to prevent, mitigate, or 
respond to incidents of violence.''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 4102 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7112) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (5)(B), by inserting ``and prevention of 
        gun violence'' after ``school safety'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (7) and (8) as paragraphs 
        (8) and (9), respectively; and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (6) the following:
            ``(7) School safety infrastructure improvements.--The term 
        `school safety infrastructure improvements' means improvements 
        to the physical facility and technology of a school to prevent 
        intruders from entering a school, ensure students and school 
        personnel may safely enter the school building and exit during 
        an emergency, or protect the life and well-being of students 
        and school personnel, including--
                    ``(A) physical improvements to the school to 
                prevent and deter unauthorized access to the school, 
                including locks, double entry systems, hardened 
                entrances, and interior and exterior video surveillance 
                systems;
                    ``(B) security doors, automatic locks, security 
                glass, alarm systems, metal detectors, and sensor 
                systems;
                    ``(C) emergency communications systems, including 
                wireless and geographically precise mobile alert 
                systems;
                    ``(D) perimeter fencing;
                    ``(E) emergency exit systems;
                    ``(F) duress or panic systems;
                    ``(G) emergency tip lines; and
                    ``(H) any other physical improvements where the 
                primary purpose is to improve or enhance school 
                safety.''.
    (c) Formula Grants to States.--Section 4103 of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7113) is amended by striking 
``section 4112'' and inserting ``section 4113''.
    (d) State Use of Funds.--Section 4104(b)(3)(B) of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7114(b)(3)(B)) is 
amended--
            (1) in clause (iii), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(v) improving the safety and security of 
                        schools, including through school safety 
                        infrastructure improvements, which may 
                        include--
                                    ``(I) identifying and disseminating 
                                best practices for school safety 
                                infrastructure improvements;
                                    ``(II) assisting in the 
                                establishment or implementation of 
                                emergency planning, which may include 
                                emergency response teams to address 
                                emergencies at schools;
                                    ``(III) establishing or identifying 
                                agreements with local law enforcement 
                                and health agencies, including 
                                nonprofit, public, and private mental 
                                health agencies and institutions, to 
                                improve coordination of services and 
                                identify threats to the safety of 
                                students and school personnel; and
                                    ``(IV) school safety infrastructure 
                                improvements; and''.
    (e) Local Educational Agency Applications.--Section 4106 of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7116) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (d)(1)(B), by inserting ``, including 
        school safety infrastructure improvements to prevent or respond 
        to incidents of violence'' after ``environment.''; and
            (2) in subsection (e)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (D)--
                                    (I) by striking ``4109'' and 
                                inserting ``4110''; and
                                    (II) by striking ``and'' after the 
                                semicolon;
                            (ii) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as 
                        subparagraph (F); and
                            (iii) by inserting after subparagraph (D), 
                        the following:
                    ``(E) if applicable, how funds will be used for 
                activities related to supporting school safety 
                infrastructure improvements under section 4109; and''; 
                and
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (D), by inserting ``or 
                        4109'' after ``4108''; and
                            (ii) in subparagraph (E)--
                                    (I) by striking ``section 4109(a)'' 
                                and inserting ``section 4110(a)''; and
                                    (II) by striking ``section 
                                4109(b)'' and inserting ``section 
                                4110(b)''.
    (f) Activities To Support Safe and Healthy Students.--Section 4108 
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7118) 
is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
        ``Subject to'' and inserting the following:
    ``(a) In General.--Subject to'';
            (2) in subsection (a)(5)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (B), in the matter preceding 
                clause (i), by striking ``4111'' and inserting 
                ``4112''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``4111'' and 
                inserting ``4112''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to--
            ``(1) prevent Federal or local law enforcement from 
        detaining or arresting an individual who could otherwise be 
        detained or arrested for an alleged violent offense; or
            ``(2) otherwise interfere with Federal or local law 
        enforcement's discretion to investigate legitimate threats to 
        school safety.''.
    (g) Activities To Support the Effective Use of Technology.--Section 
4110 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
7281), as redesignated by subsection (a), is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' after the 
                semicolon;
                    (B) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(7) providing technology to improve school safety.''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) by striking ``Rule'' and all that follows 
                through ``agency'' and inserting the following: 
                ``Rule.--''
            ``(1) In general.--A local educational agency''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Exception.--The limitation described in paragraph (1) 
        shall not apply to technology infrastructure that is also a 
        school safety infrastructure improvement.''.
    (h) Project SERV.--Section 4631(b)(4) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7281(b)(4)) is amended by 
striking the period at the end and inserting ``, except where the 
primary purpose of the construction, renovation, or repair is to 
restore the learning environment or improve or enhance school 
safety.''.
    (i) Technical Amendments to the Table of Contents.--The table of 
contents in section 2 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act is 
amended by striking the items relating to sections 4109, 4110, 4111, 
and 4112 and inserting the following:

``Sec. 4109. Activities to support school safety and prevent violence 
                            against students or school personnel.
``Sec. 4110. Activities to support the effective use of technology.
``Sec. 4111. Supplement, not supplant.
``Sec. 4112. Rule of construction.
``Sec. 4113. Authorization of appropriations.''.

SEC. 102. VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT.

    (a) State Uses of Funds.--Section 2101(c)(4)(B) of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6611(c)(4)(B)) is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating clause (xxi) as clause (xxiv); and
            (2) by inserting after clause (xx) the following:
                            ``(xxi) Supporting efforts to increase the 
                        professional development that is evidence-based 
                        (to the extent the State, in consultation with 
                        local educational agencies in the State, 
                        determines that such evidence is reasonably 
                        available) for teachers, principals, school 
                        leaders, and other school personnel in mental 
                        health awareness, violence prevention, crisis 
                        response, de-escalation techniques and anger 
                        management techniques, positive behavioral 
                        interventions and supports, bullying and 
                        harassment prevention, and other similar 
                        programs designed to reduce and prevent school 
                        violence.
                            ``(xxii) Assisting local educational 
                        agencies in--
                                    ``(I) developing and implementing 
                                professional development that is 
                                evidence-based (to the extent the 
                                State, in consultation with local 
                                educational agencies in the State, 
                                determines that such evidence is 
                                reasonably available) on violence 
                                prevention programs and emergency 
                                response and notification systems; and
                                    ``(II) improving school climate.
                            ``(xxiii) Developing agreements between 
                        local educational agencies, law enforcement 
                        agencies, and health agencies, including 
                        nonprofit, public, and private mental health 
                        agencies and institutions, to improve 
                        coordination of services and to identify, 
                        respond to, and prevent threats to the safety 
                        of students and school personnel.''.
    (b) Local Uses of Funds.--Section 2103(b)(3) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6613(b)(3)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (I)--
                    (A) in clause (ii), by inserting ``, including 
                mental health services,'' after ``services''; and
                    (B) in clause (iii), by striking ``and public or 
                private mental health organizations'' and inserting ``, 
                public or private mental health organizations, and 
                local law enforcement agencies, to improve the 
                coordination of services and to identify, respond to, 
                and prevent threats to the safety of students and 
                school personnel'';
            (2) in subparagraph (O), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon;
            (3) by redesignating subparagraph (P) as subparagraph (R); 
        and
            (4) by inserting after subparagraph (O) the following:
                    ``(P) reducing the ratio of students to counselors 
                to improve the ability of schools to address the 
                academic and social and emotional needs of students and 
                school personnel through the recruiting and hiring of 
                school-based mental health services providers, as 
                defined in section 4102(6);
                    ``(Q) developing and implementing professional 
                development that is evidence-based (to the extent the 
                State, in consultation with local educational agencies 
                in the State, determines that such evidence is 
                reasonably available) for teachers, specialized 
                instructional support personnel, principals, school 
                leaders, and other school personnel in violence 
                prevention, mental health awareness, threat de-
                escalation methods, and positive behavioral 
                interventions and supports, and supporting bullying and 
                harassment prevention programs, and other similar 
                programs designed to reduce and prevent school violence 
                and improve the school climate for all students; and''.
    (c) Teacher and School Leader Incentive Fund Grants.--Section 
2212(e)(2)(D) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6613(e)(2)(D)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (i)(III), by striking ``or'' after the 
        semicolon;
            (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following:
                            ``(iii) school-based mental health services 
                        providers (as defined in section 4102(6)) who 
                        improve the climate of the school.''.
    (d) Supporting Effective Educator Development.--Section 2242(a) of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6672(a)) 
is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``school-based mental 
        health services providers (as defined in section 4102(6)),'' 
        after ``teachers,''; and
            (2) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``school-based mental 
        health services providers (as defined in section 4102(6)),'' 
        after ``teachers,''.

           TITLE II--DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

SEC. 201. CHILDREN AND VIOLENCE.

    Section 581 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290hh) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) by inserting ``and technical 
                        assistance'' after ``support''; and
                            (ii) by inserting ``, including programs 
                        designed to provide mental health and substance 
                        use disorder assessments, crisis intervention 
                        training, counseling, treatment, and referral 
                        to a continuum of services including emergency 
                        psychiatric care, community support programs, 
                        inpatient care, and outpatient programs'' after 
                        ``children'';
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``, which may 
                include improved coordination with the Project SERV 
                program under section 4631 of the Elementary and 
                Secondary Education Act of 1965,'' after 
                ``assistance''; and
                    (C) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``and maintain'' 
                after ``establish'';
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) 
                        through (F) as subparagraphs (E) through (G), 
                        respectively;
                            (ii) by inserting after subparagraph (C) 
                        the following:
                    ``(D) crisis intervention training''; and
                            (iii) in subparagraph (E), as so 
                        redesignated, by striking ``alcohol and drug 
                        abuse'' and inserting ``alcohol and other 
                        substance use disorder''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ``subparagraphs 
                (D), (E), and (F)'' and inserting ``subparagraphs (D), 
                (E), (F), and (G)'';
            (3) by striking subsection (e);
            (4) by redesignating subsections (f) through (h) as 
        subsections (e) through (g), respectively;
            (5) in subsection (f), as so redesignated, by inserting 
        ``or maintain'' after ``establish''; and
            (6) in subsection (g), as so redesignated, by striking 
        ``2002 and 2003'' and inserting ``2019 through 2023''.

SEC. 202. PRIORITY MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS OF REGIONAL AND NATIONAL 
              SIGNIFICANCE.

    Section 520A(e) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290bb-
32(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) At-risk youth.--The Secretary shall, as appropriate, 
        disseminate information to recipients of grants, contracts, and 
        cooperative agreements under this section regarding training 
        for appropriate school personnel on techniques and supports 
        needed to early identify children with, or at risk of, mental 
        illness, and regarding the use of referral mechanisms to link 
        such children to intervention services, including treatment and 
        prevention services. Such information shall include best 
        practices for collaboration between behavioral and mental 
        health professionals and law enforcement for assisting at-risk 
        youth who have a history of interactions with law enforcement 
        or the criminal justice system.''.

SEC. 203. SUPPORTING CRISIS RESPONSE SYSTEMS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH.

    Section 520F of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290bb-37) 
is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ``, which may 
        include improved coordination with the Project SERV program 
        under section 4631 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
        Act of 1965'' before the semicolon; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``local 
                educational agencies (as defined in section 8101 of the 
                Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965),'' 
                after ``service providers,''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``, including 
                local educational agencies (as so defined),'' after 
                ``entities''.

SEC. 204. STUDIES ON CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS AT RISK OF DEVELOPING 
              MENTAL ILLNESS.

    The Secretary of Health and Human Services may conduct, or support, 
studies on children and adolescents who are at significant risk of 
developing, show early signs of, or have been diagnosed with mental 
illness, including a serious emotional disturbance. Such studies, 
including services research studies, shall examine--
            (1) early identification and intervention to prevent the 
        further progression of mental illness, including serious 
        emotional disturbance, in such children and adolescents;
            (2) early identification and intervention to reduce or 
        mitigate the development of behaviors in such children and 
        adolescents that could lead to arrest, incarceration, suicide, 
        property destruction, or other violent behavior; and
            (3) the extent to which early identification or 
        intervention for children and adolescents at a clinical high 
        risk for psychosis or aggressive behaviors can be scaled up to 
        mitigate or delay the progression of mental illness, reduce 
        disability, and maximize recovery.

                   TITLE III--INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE

SEC. 301. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established an interagency task force 
to address school safety (referred to in this section as the ``Task 
Force'').
    (b) Members.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall convene the members of the 
Task Force, which shall include the Secretary of Education, the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Attorney General, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of the Interior, or their 
designees, and such other Federal officials as may be designated by the 
President.
    (c) Chair.--The Task Force shall be chaired by the Secretary of 
Education.
    (d) Activities of the Task Force.--The Task Force shall carry out 
the following activities:
            (1) Convene at least 2 public meetings--
                    (A) to consult with students, parents, teachers, 
                specialized school support personnel, school officials, 
                and other relevant stakeholders on identifying problems 
                and proposing solutions to improve school safety and 
                prevent school violence;
                    (B) which--
                            (i) shall be noticed not later than 30 days 
                        in advance; and
                            (ii) if practicable, shall be 
                        electronically streamed in real time; and
                    (C) a recording of which shall be made publicly 
                available on the Department of Education's website.
            (2) Make recommendations, after consulting with relevant 
        stakeholders, to States, local educational agencies, and 
        schools on policies and procedures to improve the safety of all 
        schools, including recommendations on school safety 
        infrastructure improvements, as defined by section 4102(7) of 
        the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        7112) (as added by section 101(b)(3)). The recommendations 
        shall include a full listing of all available Federal grant 
        opportunities, across Federal agencies, related to improving 
        school safety and mental health services for students.
            (3) Review interagency procedures to improve coordination, 
        and assess current barriers, between schools and health 
        agencies, including nonprofit, public, and private mental 
        health agencies and institutions, and Federal, State, and local 
        law enforcement to identify individuals at risk of committing 
        violence and provide treatment or prevent violent outbreaks.
            (4) Identify best practices in preventing violence in 
        schools, including bullying and harassment prevention programs, 
        positive behavioral interventions and supports, response-to-
        intervention systems, conflict prevention and de-escalation 
        methods, anger-management training, and other measures to 
        improve school climate.
            (5) Make recommendations to State and local educational 
        agencies on model agreements between local educational 
        agencies, law enforcement agencies, and health agencies, 
        including nonprofit, public, and private mental health agencies 
        and institutions, to improve coordination of services and 
        identify, respond to, and prevent threats to the safety of 
        students and school personnel, which shall include best 
        practices on coordination regarding the mental health services 
        available to students upon suspension or expulsion.
    (e) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Chair shall submit to the Committee 
        on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Education and 
        the Workforce and the Committee on Appropriations of the House 
        of Representatives, a report on--
                    (A) activities conducted under this section; and
                    (B) Federal barriers to coordination among schools, 
                State and local health agencies (including nonprofit, 
                public, and private mental health agencies and 
                institutions), and Federal, State, and local law 
                enforcement.
            (2) Publicly available.--The report described under this 
        subsection shall be made publicly available, including on the 
        website of the Department of Education.
    (f) Termination.--The Task Force established under this section 
shall terminate on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act.
                                 <all>