This document includes House Committee Amendments incorporated into the bill on Mon, Mar 7, 2016 at 10:40 PM by cynthiahopkin.
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8 LONG TITLE
9 General Description:
10 This bill enacts provisions regarding a law enforcement officer who provides police
11 services to a public school.
12 Highlighted Provisions:
13 This bill:
14 ▸ defines terms;
15 ▸ enacts provisions that require:
16 • the State Board of Education to create a certain training program relating to a
17 law enforcement officer who provides police services to a public school; and
18 • a contract for a law enforcement officer to provide police services to a public
19 school to contain certain provisions; and
20 ▸ gives rulemaking authority.
21 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
22 None
23 Other Special Clauses:
24 None
25 Utah Code Sections Affected:
26 ENACTS:
27 53A-11-1601, Utah Code Annotated 1953
28 53A-11-1602, Utah Code Annotated 1953
29 53A-11-1603, Utah Code Annotated 1953
30 53A-11-1604, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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32 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
33 Section 1. Section 53A-11-1601 is enacted to read:
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35 53A-11-1601. Title.
36 This part is known as "School Resource Officers."
37 Section 2. Section 53A-11-1602 is enacted to read:
38 53A-11-1602. Definitions.
39 As used in this section:
40 (1) "Governing authority" means:
41 (a) for a school district, the local school board;
42 (b) for a charter school, the governing board; or
43 (c) for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, the State Board of Education.
44 (2) "Law enforcement agency" means the same as that term is defined in Section
45 53-1-102.
46 (3) "Local education agency" or "LEA" means:
47 (a) a school district;
48 (b) a charter school; or
49 (c) the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind.
50 (4) "School resource officer" or "SRO" means a law enforcement officer, as defined in
51 Section 53-13-103, who contracts with or whose law enforcement agency contracts with an
52 LEA to provide law enforcement services for the LEA.
53 Section 3. Section 53A-11-1603 is enacted to read:
54 53A-11-1603. School resource officer training -- Curriculum.
55 (1) In accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, the
56 State Board of Education shall make rules that prepare and make available a training program
57 for school principals and school resource officers to attend.
58 (2) To create the curriculum and materials for the training program described in
59 Subsection (1), the State Board of Education shall:
60 (a) work in conjunction with the State Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice
61 created in Section 63M-7-201;
62 (b) solicit input from local school boards, charter school governing boards, and the
63 Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind;
64 (c) solicit input from local law enforcement and other interested community
65 stakeholders; and
66 (d) Ĥ→ [
66a recommendations on
67 school discipline and the role of a school resource officer.
68 (3) The training program described in Subsection (1) may include training on the
69 following:
70 (a) childhood and adolescent development;
71 (b) responding age-appropriately to students;
72 (c) working with disabled students;
73 (d) techniques to de-escalate and resolve conflict;
74 (e) cultural awareness;
75 (f) restorative justice practices;
76 (g) identifying a student exposed to violence or trauma and referring the student to
77 appropriate resources;
78 (h) student privacy rights;
79 (i) negative consequences associated with youth involvement in the juvenile and
80 criminal justice systems;
81 (j) strategies to reduce juvenile justice involvement; and
82 (k) roles of and distinctions between a school resource officer and other school staff
83 who help keep a school secure.
84 Section 4. Section 53A-11-1604 is enacted to read:
85 53A-11-1604. Contracts between an LEA and law enforcement for school
86 resource officer services -- Requirements.
87 (1) An LEA may contract with a law enforcement agency or an individual to provide
88 school resource officer services at the LEA if the LEA's governing authority reviews and
89 approves the contract.
90 (2) If an LEA contracts with a law enforcement agency or an individual to provide
91 SRO services at the LEA, the LEA's governing authority shall require in the contract:
92 (a) an acknowledgment by the law enforcement agency or the individual that an SRO
93 hired under the contract shall:
94 (i) provide for and maintain a safe, healthy, and productive learning environment in a
95 school;
96 (ii) act as a positive role model to students;
97 (iii) work to create a cooperative, proactive, and problem-solving partnership between
98 law enforcement and the LEA; Ĥ→ [
99 (iv) emphasize the use of restorative approaches to address negative behavior; Ĥ→ and
99a (v) at the request of the LEA, teach a vocational law enforcement class; ←Ĥ
100 (b) a description of the shared understanding of the LEA and the law enforcement
101 agency or individual regarding the roles and responsibilities of law enforcement and the LEA
102 to:
103 (i) maintain safe schools;
104 (ii) improve school climate; and
105 (iii) support educational opportunities for students;
106 Ĥ→ [
107 absent a real and immediate threat at the school;
107a (c) a designation of student offenses that the SRO shall confer with the LEA to resolve,
107b including an offense that:
107c (i) is a minor violation of the law; and
107d (ii) would not violate the law if the offense was committed by an adult; ←Ĥ
108 (d) a designation of Ĥ→ student ←Ĥ offenses that are administrative issues that an SRO
108a shall refer to a
109 school administrator for resolution;
110 (e) a detailed description of the rights of a student under state and federal law with
111 regard to:
112 (i) searches;
113 (ii) questioning; and
114 (iii) information privacy;
115 (f) a detailed description of:
116 (i) job duties;
117 (ii) training requirements; and
118 (iii) other expectations of the SRO and school administration in relation to law
119 enforcement at the LEA;
120 (g) that an SRO who is hired under the contract and the principal at the school where
121 an SRO will be working, or the principal's designee, will jointly complete the SRO training
122 described in Section 53A-11-1603; and
123 (h) if the contract is between an LEA and a law enforcement agency, that:
124 (i) both parties agree to jointly discuss SRO applicants; and
125 (ii) the law enforcement agency will accept feedback from an LEA about an SRO's
126 performance.
Legislative Review Note
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel