H.B. 245

1

IMPROVING SAFETY IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS
2 2000 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Sponsor: Bill Wright
5 AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; PROVIDING THAT A STUDENT, WHO HAS
6 BEEN EXPELLED FROM SCHOOL FOR A FIREARM, EXPLOSIVE, OR FLAMMABLE
7 MATERIAL VIOLATION, AND THE STUDENT'S PARENT SHALL MEET WITH THE
8 LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD WITHIN 30 DAYS AFTER THE EXPULSION TO DETERMINE
9 WHAT WOULD BE IN THE BEST INTEREST OF ALL PARTIES REGARDING THE
10 STUDENT'S SCHOOLING OPTIONS.
11 This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
12 AMENDS:
13 53A-11-904, as last amended by Chapter 74, Laws of Utah 1996
14 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
15 Section 1. Section 53A-11-904 is amended to read:
16 53A-11-904. Grounds for suspension or expulsion from a public school.
17 (1) A student may be suspended or expelled from a public school for any of the following
18 reasons:
19 (a) frequent or flagrant willful disobedience, defiance of proper authority, or disruptive
20 behavior, including the use of foul, profane, vulgar, or abusive language;
21 (b) willful destruction or defacing of school property;
22 (c) behavior or threatened behavior which poses an immediate and significant threat to the
23 welfare, safety, or morals of other students or school personnel or to the operation of the school;
24 (d) possession, control, or use of an alcoholic beverage as defined in Section 32A-1-105 ;
25 or
26 (e) behavior proscribed under Subsection (2) which threatens harm or does harm to the
27 school or school property, to a person associated with the school, or property associated with any

28 such person, regardless of where it occurs.
29 (2) (a) A student shall be suspended or expelled from a public school for any of the
30 following reasons:
31 (i) any serious violation affecting another student or a staff member, or any serious
32 violation occurring in a school building, in or on school property, or in conjunction with any
33 school activity, including the possession, control, or actual or threatened use of a real, look alike,
34 or pretend weapon, explosive, or noxious or flammable material under Section 53A-3-502 , or the
35 sale, control, or distribution of a drug or controlled substance as defined in Section 58-37-2 , an
36 imitation controlled substance defined in Section 58-37b-2 , or drug paraphernalia as defined in
37 Section 58-37a-3 ; or
38 (ii) the commission of an act involving the use of force or the threatened use of force
39 which if committed by an adult would be a felony or class A misdemeanor.
40 (b) A student who commits a violation of Subsection (2)(a) involving a real, look alike,
41 or pretend firearm, explosive, or flammable material shall be expelled from school for a period of
42 not less than one year, [unless the district superintendent determines, on a case-by-case basis, that
43 a lesser penalty would be more appropriate.] subject to the following:
44 (i) within 30 days after the expulsion the student shall appear before the student's local
45 school board or a subcommittee of the board, accompanied by a parent or legal guardian; and
46 (ii) the board shall determine at that time:
47 (A) what conditions must be met by the student and the student's parent for the student to
48 return to school;
49 (B) if the student should be placed on probation in a regular or alternative school setting
50 consistent with Section 53A-11-907 , and what conditions must be met by the student in order to
51 ensure the safety of students and faculty at the school the student is placed in; and
52 (C) if it would be in the best interest of both the school district and the student to modify
53 the expulsion term to less than a year, conditioned on giving highest priority to providing a safe
54 school environment for all students.
55 (3) A student may be denied admission to a public school on the basis of having been
56 expelled from that or any other school during the preceding 12 months.
57 (4) A suspension or expulsion under this section is not subject to the age limitations under
58 Subsection 53A-11-102 (1).

Legislative Review Note
as of 1-10-00 2:14 PM

A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel