SB 0114

CHAPTER 186

SB 114 - FINAL VERSION

AN ACT implementing an unsafe school choice option for pupils attending schools which have been classified as persistently dangerous and authorizing the state board of education to implement a complaint process to address school safety and school violence issues in nonpublic schools.

SPONSORS: Sen. O'Hearn, Dist 12; Sen. Johnson, Dist 2; Rep. Gile, Merr 38; Rep. Carson, Rock 75

This bill establishes a persistently dangerous school policy in compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, and authorizes the state board of education to implement a complaint process to address school safety and school violence issues in nonpublic schools.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

186:1 New Chapter; Persistently Dangerous Schools. Amend RSA 193 by inserting after chapter 193-F the following new chapter:

I. A persistently dangerous school is a school in which 3 of the following acts have occurred as separate incidents during the period of one school year for 3 consecutive years:

(f) Unlawful possession or sale of a firearm or other dangerous weapon under RSA 159.

II. Any act set forth in paragraph I must occur within the school or on school grounds, during regular school hours or during a school-sponsored event, or during transportation of pupils to or from school, if such transportation is provided by the school district.

III. No later than July 1 of each year, the commissioner of the department of education shall report any persistently dangerous schools to the state board of education and to the school board of such schools.

193-G:2 Citizen's Advisory Committee. If a school is classified as a persistently dangerous school, the local school board shall establish a citizen's advisory committee to examine the conditions which led to the designation and offer input to the school board and administrators on steps which might be taken to remedy the designation and prevent further incidents. The committee shall be appointed by the local school board chairman with the advice of the local school board members. It shall include but not be limited to the principal of the designated school, the superintendent of the designated school, one member of the school board, one teacher employed at the designated school, one law enforcement official from the police department having jurisdiction in the district in which the designated school is located, and representatives of parents whose children are assigned to the designated school. The committee shall serve until the designation of a persistently dangerous school is removed.

193-G:3 Removal of Designation. Any school which is designated a persistently dangerous school, which for 2 consecutive years has operated as a safe school, shall be decertified as a persistently dangerous school. For the purposes of this section, a safe school is a school which has not had the number or frequency of qualifying events set forth in this section.

I. Any school which is designated a persistently dangerous school shall, within 5 days of being notified of such designation, notify the parents or guardian of the pupil attending such school of the option to transfer the pupil from the school to a school within the same school district, consistent with local school board policy.

II. If a pupil is the victim of any offense set forth in RSA 193-G:1, I, the school district shall, within 5 days of being notified of the incident, notify the parents or guardian of the pupil of the option to transfer the pupil to another school within the same school district, consistent with local school board policy.

193-G:5 Department of Education Authority. The commissioner of the department of education shall be the certifying authority under this chapter.

193-G:6 School Safety. Schools shall be authorized to implement policies promoting school safety.

186:2 New Paragraph; State Board of Education; Rulemaking. Amend RSA 186:11 by inserting after paragraph XXIX the following new paragraph:

XXIX-a. Adopt rules pursuant to RSA 541-A, relative to establishing a process for receiving, investigating, and resolving complaints from parents or legal guardians concerning school safety and school violence in nonpublic schools.

(Approved: Enacted in accordance with Article 44, Part II, N.H. Constitution, without signature of Governor, June 26, 2003)