SESSION OF 2025
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON SENATE BILL NO. 263
As Amended by Senate Committee on
Education
Brief*
SB 263, as amended, would create the Student Safe at
School Act to establish standards and requirements for active
shooters drills, active shooter simulations, and violence
prevention training conducted by elementary and secondary
schools. The bill would also amend the requirement that the
State Fire Marshal adopt rules and regulations concerning
crisis drills at public and private schools.
Definitions (New Section 1)
The bill would define the following terms:
●“Active shooter drill” would mean an emergency
preparedness drill designed to inform and instruct
students, teachers, school personnel, and other
school staff on how to respond in the event that an
armed intruder is on the campus or an armed
assailant is in the immediate vicinity of the school.
This includes practice active shooter drills, but
does not include any sensory components,
activities, or elements that mimic a real-life
shooting, nor is it an active shooter simulation;
●“Active shooter simulation” would mean an
emergency exercise including full-scale or
functional exercises, designed to inform and
instruct adult teachers, school personnel, and other
____________________
*Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research
Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental
note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at
https://klrd.gov/ school staff on how to respond in the event of an
armed intruder on the school campus or an armed
assailant in the immediate vicinity of the school.
This includes activities or elements mimicking a
real-life shooting, including, but not limited to,
simulation of tactical response by law enforcement.
This does not include active shooter drills;
●“Department” would mean the State Department of
Education;
●“Evidence-based” would mean a program or
practice that demonstrates:
○A statistically significant effect based on:
– Strong evidence from not fewer than
one well-designed and well-
implemented experimental study;
– Moderate evidence from no fewer than
one well-designed and well-
implemented quasi-experimental study;
or
– Promising evidence from no fewer than
one well-designed and well-
implemented correlational study with
statistical controls for selective bias; or
○A rationale based on high-quality research
finding or positive evaluations that the
program or practice is likely to improve
relevant outcomes and includes ongoing
efforts to examine the effects of the program
or practice;
○“Parent” and “person acting as parent” would
mean the same as defined in KSA 72-3127,
and amendments thereto;
●“School” would mean any elementary or secondary
public school maintained and operated by a school
district and any accredited non-public school that
2- 263 provides any of the grades kindergarten through
twelve; and
●“Vendor” would include not-for-profit entities, for-
profit entities, and public agencies.
Active Shooter Drills (New Section 2)
Standards for Active Shooter Drills
The bill would require each active shooter drill
undertaken at a school to meet the following standards:
●Be accessible;
●Be developmentally and age appropriate, including
appropriate safety vocabulary and verbiage;
●Be culturally-aware;
●Be trauma-informed; and
●Be inclusive of accommodations for students with
any mobility needs, sensory needs, developmental
or physical disabilities, mental health needs, and
auditory or visual limitations.
The bill would not require student participation in an
active shooter drill that does not meet the above described
standards.
Conducting Active Shooter Drills
The bill would prohibit an active shooter drill from being
conducted consecutively or concurrently with another crisis or
emergency preparedness drill. The bill would also require
active shooter drills to be announced as a practice prior to the
commencement of the drill in a manner that is concise, age
3- 263 appropriate, and that informs the students that there is no
immediate danger to their life and safety.
Notice and alternative safety education. The bill
would require schools to notify each parent or person acting
as a parent at least 24 hours prior to an active shooter drill. If
such notice cannot be provided, the bill would require notice
to be provided within 24 hours after the drill occurs.
The bill would require the notice to provide a parent the
option to exempt a student from participation in such drill. The
bill would require any student who is exempted to have the
opportunity to participate in alternative safety education, and
the bill would prohibit exempted students from receiving any
negative or punitive treatment for not participating.
The bill would require the Kansas State Department of
Education (KSDE) to establish criteria for alternative safety
education for students who do not participate in active
shooter drills. This criteria would include essential safety
instruction and training that is appropriate for students with
mobility restrictions, sensory needs, developmental or
physical disabilities, mental health needs, and auditory or
visual limitations.
Debriefing. The bill would require active shooter
protocols to include a reasonable amount of time immediately
following the drill, and before regular classroom activity
resumes, for teachers to debrief with students. The bill would
also require students who participate in an active shooter drill
to have access to on-site mental health services including,
but not limited to, access to school psychologists, counselors,
and social workers.
Review by Board of Education or Governing Body
The bill would require each local board of education and
governing body of a non-public school to review:
4- 263 ●Efficacy and effect of active shooter drills and
practice active shooter drills; and
●Impact of active shooter drills on the safety and
mental health of students, teachers, and other
school personnel and staff.
Vendors
The bill would require KSDE to publish on its website a
list of vendors who teach school personnel and staff,
including safety officers, on how to conduct active shooter
drills. This list would include the name and website of the
vendor and would be updated by KSDE at least every two
years.
Guidelines for Measuring Effectiveness
The bill would require that KSDE partner with the
Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) to
create guidelines for measuring the effectiveness of active
shooter drills. These guidelines should be provided to every
school that conducts an active shooter drill and also be made
available to the public.
Participation in Active Shooter Simulations (New Section
3)
This bill would state that no student, teacher, school
personnel, or other school staff would be required to
participate in an active shooter simulation.
The bill would specify that no active shooter simulations
would occur during regular school hours, while students are
present or expected to be present at school.
The bill would allow parents of students in grades 9
through 12 to opt their student into participation in an active
5- 263 shooter simulation by providing a written notice to the school.
This notice should state that the student has parental
permission to participate in active shooter simulations.
Evidence-based Violence Prevention Training (New
Section 4)
The bill would require that every school provide students
in grades 6 through 12 at least one hour or one standard
class period of evidence-based violence training annually.
The training would be required to teach students:
●How to identify observable warning signs and
signals of someone who may be at risk of harming
themselves or others;
●The importance of taking threats seriously and
seeking help; and
●The steps to take to report dangerous, violent,
threatening, harmful, or potentially harmful activity.
The bill would require that KSDE develop and publish a
list of evidence-based training options that schools could use
to fulfill the requirements listed above on or before October 1,
2026. This list would include any available, no-cost
programming and would be updated at least once every two
years. The bill would permit schools to use any evidence-
based violence prevention training, regardless of whether it
meets the requirements listed from KSDE.
Safety Planning (New Section 5)
The bill would require that each local board of education
and non-public school governing body ensure that students
have the opportunity to contribute to the students’ school’s
safety and violence-prevention planning. These opportunities
would include the recommendations of the Federal
6- 263 Emergency Management Agency’s multi-hazard planning for
schools, which includes providing:
●Student opportunities for prevention safety
leadership roles;
●Encouragement and support to students in
establishing clubs and programs focused on safety;
and
●The opportunity for students to learn about and
seek help from adults regarding prevention for
bullying, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and
suicide.
State Fire Marshal Rules and Regulations (Section 6)
The bill would define “crisis drills” in continuing law to
include intruder response drills, lockdown drills, and active
shooter drills. The bill would also require any public or private
school that conducts an active shooter drill to conduct such
drill in accordance with the provisions of the bill.
[Note: The State Fire Marshal is required to adopt
reasonable rules and regulations to safeguard life and
property from fire, explosion, and hazardous materials and
includes requiring public and private K-12 schools and
educational institutions to conduct at least three crisis drills
each school year and during school hours. The manner in
which crisis drills are conducted is subject to approval by the
Safe and Secure Schools Unit of KSDE.]
Background
The bill was introduced by the Senate Committee on
Federal and State Affairs at the request of Senator Thomas.
7- 263 Senate Committee on Education
In the Senate Committee, proponent testimony was
provided by a representative of the Sandy Hook Promise. The
proponent stated that the bill would allow for evidence-based
violence prevention practices in the classroom, with students’
mental health and well-being in mind.
Neutral testimony was provided by representatives of
Kansas Association of School Boards, Kansas National
Education Association, United School Administrators, and a
private citizen who identified as an elementary school
teacher. The conferees generally stated that the topics in this
bill should be worked on between local school boards and the
Legislature. The representatives supported the mission of the
bill but were concerned with local control and individual
school choice on safety.
Written-only neutral testimony was provided by
representatives of Olathe Public Schools and State Fire
Marshal.
Written-only opponent testimony was provided by a
representative from Wichita Public Schools.
No other testimony was provided.
The Senate Committee amended the bill to include
teachers, school personnel, and other school staff to be able
to opt-out of a school shooter simulation.
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, KSDE, KDHE, and the
State Fire Marshal indicate that enactment of the bill would
have no fiscal effect on state expenditures. There may be
costs to school districts to implement requirements of the bill,
8- 263 including required trainings; however, a fiscal effect cannot be
estimated.
Education; Students Safe At School Act; safe and secure schools; Kansas State
Department of Education; crisis drills; State Fire Marshal
9- 263