EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*sb0935*
SENATE BILL 935
F1 3lr3014
SB 973/22 – SRU
By: Senator Jennings
Introduced and read first time: February 16, 2023
Assigned to: Rules
A BILL ENTITLED
AN ACT concerning 1
Public Schools – School Resource Officers – Firearms Required 2
FOR the purpose of requiring a Baltimore City school police officer or a school resource 3
officer to carry a firearm while present on the premises of a certain school; and 4
generally relating to school resource officers. 5
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 6
Article – Education 7
Section 4–318(d)(3)(i) and 7–1508 8
Annotated Code of Maryland 9
(2022 Replacement Volume) 10
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 11
Article – Education 12
Section 7–1501(a) and (j) 13
Annotated Code of Maryland 14
(2022 Replacement Volume) 15
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 16
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 17
Article – Education 18
4–318. 19
(d) (3) (i) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a Baltimore City 20
school police officer whose permanent or temporary assignment is at a school or on school 21
property [may] SHALL carry a firearm on the premises of the school to which the officer is 22
assigned before or after regular school hours on school days and on days other than school 23
days. 24 2 SENATE BILL 935
7–1501. 1
(a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. 2
(j) “School resource officer” means: 3
(1) A law enforcement officer as defined under § 3–101(e) of the Public 4
Safety Article who has been assigned to a school in accordance with a memorandum of 5
understanding between the chief of a law enforcement agency as defined under § 3–101(b) 6
of the Public Safety Article and the local education agency; or 7
(2) A Baltimore City school police officer, as defined in § 4–318 of this 8
article. 9
7–1508. 10
(a) (1) Each local school system shall designate a school safety coordinator. 11
(2) A designated school safety coordinator shall: 12
(i) Be certified by the Center; and 13
(ii) Serve as a liaison between the local school system, the local law 14
enforcement agency, and the Center. 15
(B) A SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFI CER SHALL CARRY A FI REARM WHILE 16
PRESENT ON THE PREMI SES OF THE SCHOOL TO WHICH THE OFFICER IS ASSIGNED. 17
[(b)] (C) (1) (i) On or before September 1, 2018, the Center, in 18
consultation with local school systems, shall: 19
1. Develop a specialized curriculum for use in training of 20
school resource officers and school security employees; and 21
2. Submit the curriculum to the Maryland Police Training 22
and Standards Commission for approval. 23
(ii) The specialized curriculum developed under this subsection shall 24
include training in: 25
1. De–escalation; 26
2. Disability awareness; 27
3. Maintaining a positive school climate; 28
SENATE BILL 935 3
4. Constructive interactions with students; and 1
5. Implicit bias and disability and diversity awareness with 2
specific attention to racial and ethnic disparities. 3
(iii) 1. The specialized curriculum developed under this 4
subsection may not go into effect until it is approved by the Maryland Police Training and 5
Standards Commission. 6
2. If the Maryland Police Training and Standards 7
Commission does not initially approve the specialized curriculum, the Center shall amend 8
the curriculum until it meets with the Commission’s approval. 9
(2) On or before March 1, 2019, the Center shall develop and submit to the 10
Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission for approval a model training 11
program that meets the requirements of the curriculum approved under paragraph (1) of 12
this subsection. 13
(3) Each local law enforcement agency shall: 14
(i) Enroll individuals assigned to be school resource officers in the 15
model training program developed by the Center under paragraph (2) of this subsection; or 16
(ii) 1. Submit to the Maryland Police Training and Standards 17
Commission for approval a training program that is consistent with the curriculum 18
developed under paragraph (1) of this subsection; and 19
2. Enroll individuals assigned to be school resource officers 20
in the training program developed under item 1 of this item. 21
(4) Beginning September 1, 2019, to be assigned as a school resource officer 22
an individual shall: 23
(i) Complete: 24
1. The model training program developed by the Center 25
under paragraph (2) of this subsection through instruction provided by the Center in 26
collaboration with the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission; or 27
2. A local law enforcement agency’s training program 28
developed under paragraph (3)(ii) of this subsection; and 29
(ii) Be certified by the Maryland Police Training and Standards 30
Commission. 31
(5) Beginning September 1, 2019, to be employed as a school security 32
employee at a public school, an individual shall complete: 33 4 SENATE BILL 935
(i) The model training program developed by the Center under 1
paragraph (2) of this subsection through instruction provided by the Center in collaboration 2
with the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission; or 3
(ii) A local law enforcement agency’s training program developed 4
under paragraph (3)(ii) of this subsection. 5
[(c)] (D) The Center shall collect data regarding the school resource officers in 6
each local school system, including: 7
(1) The number of full–time and part–time school resource officers 8
assigned to each elementary school, middle school, and high school; and 9
(2) Any other local school system employees or local law enforcement 10
officers who are fulfilling the role of a school resource officer. 11
[(d)] (E) (1) On or before December 15, 2018, the Center, in collaboration 12
with local law enforcement agencies and local school systems, shall analyze the initial data 13
collected under subsection [(c)] (D) of this section and develop guidelines to assist local 14
school systems in: 15
(i) Identifying the appropriate number and assignment of school 16
resource officers, including supplemental coverage by local law enforcement agencies; and 17
(ii) Collaborating and communicating with local law enforcement 18
agencies. 19
(2) On or before July 1, 2019, each local school system, in consultation with 20
local law enforcement agencies, shall: 21
(i) Develop a plan to implement the guidelines developed by the 22
Center; and 23
(ii) Submit the plan to the Center for review and comment. 24
[(e)] (F) (1) Before the 2018–2019 school year begins, each local school 25
system shall file a report with the Center identifying: 26
(i) The public high schools in the local school system’s jurisdiction 27
that have a school resource officer assigned to the school; and 28
(ii) If a public high school in the local school system’s jurisdiction is 29
not assigned a school resource officer, the adequate local law enforcement coverage that 30
will be provided to the public high school. 31
(2) Beginning with the 2019–2020 school year, and each school year 32 SENATE BILL 935 5
thereafter, before the school year begins, each local school system shall, in accordance with 1
the plan developed under subsection [(d)(2)] (E)(2) of this section, file a report identifying: 2
(i) The public schools in the local school system’s jurisdiction that 3
have a school resource officer assigned to the school; and 4
(ii) If a public school in the local school system’s jurisdiction is not 5
assigned a school resource officer, the adequate local law enforcement coverage that will be 6
provided to the public school. 7
(3) On or before October 1, 2018, and each October 1 thereafter, the Center 8
shall submit a summary of the reports required under this subsection to the Governor and, 9
in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, the General Assembly. 10
[(f)] (G) Each local school system shall post on the school system’s website 11
information on the role and authority of school resource officers assigned to public schools 12
within the school system. 13
[(g)] (H) (1) For fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Governor 14
shall include in the annual budget bill an appropriation of $10,000,000 to the Fund for the 15
purpose of providing grants to local school systems and local law enforcement agencies to 16
assist in meeting the requirements of subsection [(e)] (F) of this section. 17
(2) Grants provided under this subsection shall be made to each local 18
school system based on the number of schools in each school system in proportion to the 19
total number of public schools in the State in the prior year. 20
[(h)] (I) (1) The Center shall collect data on incidents of use of force between: 21
(i) Any school resource officer and a student while a school resource 22
officer is carrying out the officer’s duties; and 23
(ii) Any school security employee and a student while the school 24
security employee is carrying out the employee’s duties. 25
(2) On or before December 1, 2020, and each December 1 thereafter, the 26
Center shall submit a report on the data collected under paragraph (1) of this subsection 27
for each jurisdiction, in accordance with federal and State law, to the Governor and, in 28
accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, the General Assembly. 29
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take ef fect July 30
1, 2023. 31