UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 1 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
AN ACT relating to student health and safety. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 158.162 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) As used in this section: 4
(a) "Critical incident" shall mean when a student: 5
1. Incurs a severe physical injury or death; 6
2. Requires transportation by ambulance; or 7
3. Suffers an event that triggers the use of the cardiac emergency 8
response plan; 9
(b) "Emergency management response plan" or "emergency plan" means a 10
written document to prevent, mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover 11
from emergencies; and 12
(c)[(b)] "First responders" means local fire, police, and emergency medical 13
personnel. 14
(2) (a) Each local board of education shall require the school council or, if none 15
exists, the principal in each school building in its jurisdiction to adopt an 16
emergency plan. The emergency plan shall include: 17
1. Procedures to be followed in case of medical emergency, fire, severe 18
weather, earthquake, or a building lockdown as defined in KRS 19
158.164; 20
2. A written cardiac emergency response plan;[ and] 21
3. A copy of the data created through the School Mapping Data Program 22
pursuant to KRS 158.4433 or, if the school mapping data is unavailable, 23
a diagram of the facility that clearly identifies the location of each 24
automated external defibrillator; and 25
4. A requirement to adequately document and conduct a subsequent 26
investigation when a student suffers a critical incident, including 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 2 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
through involvement of appropriate third parties. The purpose of the 1
investigation shall be to gain an understanding of what occurred to 2
cause the critical incident, the effectiveness of the response, and 3
opportunities to improve the safety of students to prevent similar 4
critical incidents in the future and improve the response to future 5
critical incidents. 6
(b) The emergency plan shall be provided to appropriate first responders and all 7
school staff. 8
(c) The emergency plan shall be reviewed following the end of each school year 9
by the school nurse, school council, the principal, and first responders and 10
revised as needed. 11
(d) The principal shall discuss the emergency plan with all school staff prior to 12
the first instructional day of each school year and document the time and date 13
of any discussion. 14
(e) The cardiac emergency response plan shall be rehearsed by simulation prior to 15
the beginning of each athletic season by all: 16
1. Licensed athletic trainers, school nurses, and athletic directors; and 17
2. Interscholastic coaches and volunteer coaches of each athletic team 18
active during that athletic season. 19
(f) The emergency plan shall be excluded from the application of KRS 61.870 to 20
61.884. 21
(3) Each local board of education shall require the school council or, if none exists, the 22
principal in each school building to: 23
(a) Establish primary and secondary evacuation routes for all rooms located 24
within the school and shall post the routes in each room by any doorway used 25
for evacuation; 26
(b) Identify the best available severe weather safe zones, in consultation with 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 3 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
local and state safety officials and informed by guiding principles set forth by 1
the National Weather Service and the Federal Emergency Management 2
Agency, and post the location of safe zones in each room of the school; 3
(c) Develop practices for students to follow during an earthquake; 4
(d) Develop and adhere to practices to control the access to each school building. 5
Practices shall include but not be limited to: 6
1. Controlling outside access to exterior doors during the school day; 7
2. Controlling the main entrance of the school with electronically locking 8
doors, a camera, and an intercom system; 9
3. Controlling access to individual classrooms; 10
4. Requiring classroom doors to be equipped with hardware that allows the 11
door to be locked from the outside but opened from the inside; 12
5. Requiring classroom doors to remain closed and locked during 13
instructional time, except: 14
a. In instances in which only one (1) student and one (1) adult are in 15
the classroom; or 16
b. When approved in writing by the state school security marshal; 17
6. Requiring classroom doors with windows to be equipped with material 18
to quickly cover the window during a building lockdown; 19
7. Allowing for the use of secondary locking mechanisms on classroom 20
doors, notwithstanding any provisions of the Kentucky Building Code 21
promulgated pursuant to KRS Chapter 198B to the contrary; 22
8. Requiring all visitors to report to the front office of the building, provide 23
valid identification, and state the purpose of the visit; and 24
9. Providing a visitor's badge to be visibly displayed on a visitor's outer 25
garment; 26
(e) Maintain a portable automated external defibrillator in a public, readily 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 4 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
accessible, well-marked location in every school building and, as funds 1
become available, at school-sanctioned athletic practices and competitions 2
and: 3
1. Adopt procedures for the use of the portable automated external 4
defibrillator during an emergency; 5
2. Adopt policies for compliance with KRS 311.665 to 311.669 on 6
training, maintenance, notification, and communication with the local 7
emergency medical services system; 8
3. Ensure that a minimum of three (3) employees in the school and all 9
interscholastic athletic coaches be trained on the use of a portable 10
automated external defibrillator in accordance with KRS 311.667; 11
4. Ensure that all interscholastic athletic coaches maintain a 12
cardiopulmonary resuscitation certification recognized by a national 13
accrediting body on heart health; and 14
5. No later than November 1 of each school year, submit an annual report 15
to the Kentucky Department of Education on: 16
a. The number and location of each portable automated external 17
defibrillator in every school building; 18
b. The name, school, and training date of each school district 19
employee and interscholastic athletic coach in the district trained 20
in the use of a portable automated external defibrillator; and 21
c. The progress made towards having a portable automated external 22
defibrillator at all school-sanctioned athletic practices and 23
competitions; and 24
(f) Require development of an event-specific emergency action plan for each 25
school-sanctioned nonathletic event held off-campus to be used during a 26
medical emergency, which may include the provision of a portable automated 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 5 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
external defibrillator. The plan shall: 1
1. Include a delineation of the roles of staff and emergency personnel, 2
methods of communication, any assigned emergency equipment 3
including a portable automated external defibrillator, a cardiac 4
emergency response plan, and access to and plan for emergency 5
transport; and 6
2. Be in writing and distributed to any member of school personnel 7
attending the school-sanctioned event in an official capacity. 8
(4) All schools shall be in compliance with the provisions of subsection (3)(d) of this 9
section. 10
(5) (a) Each local board of education shall require the principal in each public school 11
building in its jurisdiction to conduct, at a minimum, emergency response 12
drills to include: 13
1. One (1) severe weather drill, one (1) earthquake drill, and one (1) 14
lockdown drill within the first thirty (30) instructional days of each 15
school year and again during the month of January; and 16
2. The emergency response plan rehearsal by simulation required by 17
subsection (2) of this section and the venue-specific emergency action 18
plan rehearsal by simulation required by KRS 160.445(5) prior to the 19
beginning of each athletic season. 20
(b) Required fire drills shall be conducted according to administrative regulations 21
promulgated by the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction. 22
Whenever possible, first responders shall be invited to observe emergency 23
response drills. 24
(6) No later than November 1 of each school year, a local district superintendent shall 25
send verification to the Kentucky Department of Education that all schools within 26
the district are in compliance with the requirements of this section. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 6 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
(7) A district with a school not in compliance with the requirements of subsection 1
(3)(d) of this section by July 1, 2022, shall not be eligible for approval by the 2
Kentucky Department of Education for new building construction or expansion in 3
the 2022-2023 school year and any subsequent year without verification of 4
compliance, except for facility improvements that specifically address the school 5
safety and security requirements of this section, when deemed necessary for the 6
protection of student or staff health and safety, or to comply with other legal 7
requirements or orders. 8
Section 2. KRS 158.4410 is amended to read as follows: 9
(1) There is established within the Department of Criminal Justice Training the office 10
of the state school security marshal. The state school security marshal shall enhance 11
school safety by monitoring school safety and security initiatives, conducting 12
investigations into public school-related incidents involving serious physical 13
injury or death of students, conducting investigations of incidents involving 14
serious physical injury or death during interscholastic athletics conducted under 15
KRS 156.070(2), developing reasonable training and other guidelines, developing a 16
school security risk assessment tool pursuant to subsection (5) of this section, and 17
ensuring compliance with the provisions of subsection (7) of this section and KRS 18
158.162(3). 19
(2) The office of the state school security marshal shall conduct on-site reviews to 20
ensure compliance with subsection (7) of this section and KRS 158.162(3) as 21
deemed necessary by the state school security marshal. 22
(3) The state school security marshal shall be appointed by and report to the 23
commissioner of the Department of Criminal Justice Training. 24
(4) By September 1 of each year the state school security marshal shall present an 25
annual report to the board of the Center for School Safety which shall consist of a 26
summary of the findings and recommendations made regarding the school safety 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 7 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
and security activity of the previous school year and other items of significance as 1
determined by the Center for School Safety or the Department of Criminal Justice 2
Training. Once presented, the annual report information shall also be submitted to 3
the Legislative Research Commission and the Kentucky Board of Education. 4
(5) By July 1, 2020, the state school security marshal shall develop and update as 5
necessary a school security risk assessment tool in collaboration with the Center for 6
School Safety and the Kentucky Department of Education to be used by local 7
school districts to identify threats, vulnerabilities, and appropriate safety controls 8
for each school within the district. The tool shall be approved by the board of 9
directors of the Center for School Safety pursuant to KRS 158.443(9)(b) and used 10
by local school administrators when completing a school security risk assessment in 11
accordance with this section. 12
(6) The assessment tool shall enable administrators to evaluate school security 13
compared to best practices and standards in a minimum of the following areas: 14
(a) School emergency and crisis preparedness planning; 15
(b) Security, crime, and violence prevention policies and procedures; 16
(c) Physical security measures; 17
(d) Professional development training needs; 18
(e) Support service roles in school safety, security, and emergency and crisis 19
preparedness planning; 20
(f) School resource officer staffing, operational practices, and related services; 21
(g) School and community collaboration on school security; and 22
(h) An analysis of the cost effectiveness of recommended physical security 23
controls. 24
(7) No later than July 15, 2021, and each subsequent year, the local district 25
superintendent shall send verification to the state school security marshal and the 26
Kentucky Department of Education that all schools within the district have 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 8 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
completed the school security risk assessment for the previous year. School security 1
risk assessments shall be excluded from the application of KRS 61.870 to 61.884 2
pursuant to KRS 61.878(1)(m). 3
(8) Beginning with the 2021-2022 school year and each subsequent year, any school 4
that has not completed a school security risk assessment in the previous year shall 5
be required to provide additional mandatory training as established by the 6
Department of Criminal Justice Training for all staff employed at the school. 7
SECTION 3. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 158 IS CREATED TO 8
READ AS FOLLOWS: 9
(1) The state school security marshal shall be responsible for conducting and 10
coordinating investigations of each incident involving serious physical injury to 11
or death of a student that occurs on public school property, at a school-12
sanctioned event, or upon school transportation. At the conclusion of the 13
investigation, the state school security marshal shall file a report on the 14
investigation with the board of education of the appropriate school district and 15
make a copy of the report available to the injured party, the injured party's parent 16
or legal guardian if the injured party is a minor, or the decedent's next of kin. 17
(2) As part of its investigation, the state school security marshal shall seek to gain an 18
understanding of the cause of the incident, including but not limited to: 19
(a) The circumstances preceding the incident; 20
(b) The sequence of events leading to the incident; 21
(c) The severity of the injury incurred; 22
(d) The appropriateness and effectiveness of the response by school officials; 23
(e) The adherence to the emergency plan as required in Section 1 of this Act; 24
and 25
(f) Recommendations to improve risk management policies and procedures to 26
prevent similar incidents in the future and to improve the response if similar 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 9 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
incidents occur. 1
(3) For incidents resulting in serious physical injury or death during an 2
interscholastic athletic event managed by the board or the organization or agency 3
designated under KRS 156.070, in addition to the requirements under subsection 4
(2) of this section, the state school security marshal shall include relevant 5
information in the investigation and report, which may include but not be limited 6
to information regarding: 7
(a) Environmental conditions, including: 8
1. Conditions of the athletic field or facility; 9
2. Temperature and weather conditions; 10
3. Availability and proximity of an athletic trainer; 11
4. Availability and proximity of medical treatment; 12
5. Availability and proximity of an automated external defibrillator; and 13
6. Use and effectiveness of the cardiac emergency response plan; 14
(b) Sporting equipment, including: 15
1. Sizing and appropriate fit of protective equipment or gear; 16
2. Appropriate use of protective equipment or gear; and 17
3. Condition of protective equipment used, including age, degradation, 18
and prior impacts on helmets; 19
(c) Necessity for and response time of emergency medical transportation; and 20
(d) Location and circumstances of the incident, including: 21
1. Condition of the school property or location where the incident 22
occurred; 23
2. Description of the events leading up to, during, and in the response to 24
the incident; 25
3. Parties involved in the incident or response; and 26
4. Statements provided by any parties involved or witnesses to the 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 10 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
incident or response. 1
(4) The board shall promulgate administrative regulations in accordance with KRS 2
Chapter 13A to establish procedures and require cooperation by school districts 3
in investigations required pursuant to this section. The administrative regulations 4
shall require cooperation by nonpublic schools in investigations required 5
pursuant to subsection (3) of this section as a condition of participation in 6
interscholastic athletics managed by the board or the organization or agency 7
designated pursuant to KRS 156.070. 8
(5) The state school security marshal may contract with necessary third parties to aid 9
in conducting investigations. 10
(6) The state school security marshal shall refer potential criminal conduct 11
discovered in the course of its investigation required pursuant to this section to 12
the appropriate law enforcement agency. 13
Section 4. KRS 72.025 is amended to read as follows: 14
Coroners shall require a post-mortem examination to be performed in the following 15
circumstances: 16
(1) When the death of a human being appears to be caused by homicide or violence; 17
(2) When the death of a human being appears to be the result of suicide; 18
(3) When the death of a human being appears to be the result of the presence of drugs 19
or poisons in the body; 20
(4) When the death of a human being appears to be the result of a motor vehicle 21
accident and the operator of the motor vehicle left the scene of the accident or the 22
body was found in or near a roadway or railroad; 23
(5) When the death of a human being occurs while the person is in a state mental 24
institution or mental hospital when there is no previous medical history to explain 25
the death, or while the person is in police custody, a jail or penal institution; 26
(6) When the death of a human being occurs in a motor vehicle accident and when an 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 484
Page 11 of 11
XXXX 2/14/2025 9:28 AM Jacketed
external examination of the body does not reveal a lethal traumatic injury; 1
(7) When the death of a human being appears to be the result of a fire or explosion; 2
(8) When the death of a child appears to indicate child abuse prior to the death; 3
(9) When the manner of death appears to be other than natural; 4
(10) When human skeletonized remains are found; 5
(11) When post-mortem decomposition of a human corpse exists to the extent that 6
external examination of the corpse cannot rule out injury or where the 7
circumstances of death cannot rule out the commission of a crime; 8
(12) When the death of a human being appears to be the result of drowning; 9
(13) When the death of an infant appears to be caused by sudden infant death syndrome 10
in that the infant has no previous medical history to explain the death; 11
(14) When the death of a human being occurs as a result of an accident; 12
(15) When the death of a human being occurs under the age of forty (40) and there is no 13
past medical history to explain the death; 14
(16) When the death of a human being occurs at the work site and there is no apparent 15
cause of death such as an injury or when industrial toxics may have contributed to 16
the cause of death; 17
(17) When the body is to be cremated and there is no past medical history to explain the 18
death; 19
(18) When the death of a human being is sudden and unexplained; 20
(19) When the death of a human being occurs on public or nonpublic school property 21
or during a school-sanctioned event; and 22
(20)[(19)] When the death of a human being occurs and the decedent is not receiving 23
treatment by a licensed physician and there is no ascertainable medical history to 24
indicate the cause of death. 25