2023 -- H 6422
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LC002903
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S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023
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H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N
CREATING A LEGISLATIVE STUDY COMMISSION TO EVALUATE AND PROVIDE
RECOMMENDATIONS ON M ANDATED SAFETY PROTO COLS FOR RHODE ISLAND
SCHOOLS
Introduced By: Representatives Boylan, Stewart, McNamara, Cruz, Knight, Tanzi,
Felix, Alzate, Donovan, and Spears
Date Introduced: May 19, 2023
Referred To: House Education
WHEREAS, Gunfire on school grounds takes many forms and mirrors the problem of 1
gun violence in the United States; and 2
WHEREAS, Numerous schools in Rhode Island received "swatting" calls over the past 3
year. Swatting can result in sending a police or emergency service response team to a school, and 4
can result in a lockdown event. During and in the aftermath of a school swatting event, students 5
and teachers may experience trauma and have difficulty returning to a normal routine after the 6
event; now, therefore be it 7
RESOLVED, That a special legislative commission be and the same is hereby created 8
consisting of twenty (20) members: four (4) of whom shall be members of the House of 9
Representatives, not more than three (3) from the same political party, to be appointed by the 10
Speaker of the House; one of whom shall be the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary 11
Education, or designee; one of whom shall be the President of the Rhode Island School 12
Superintendents Association, or designee; one of whom shall be the President of the Rhode Island 13
Association of School principals, or designee; one of whom shall be the President of the Rhode 14
Island Chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, or designee; one of whom shall be the 15
President of the Rhode Island Chapter of the National Education Association, or designee; one of 16
whom shall be the Rhode Island Attorney General, or designee; one of whom shall be a Rhode 17
Island school psychologist, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one of whom shall be a 18
member of the National Association of Social Workers, Rhode Island Chapter, who is employed 19
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in a Rhode Island public school, to be appointed be the Speaker of the House; one of whom shall 1
be the President of the Rhode Island PTA, or designee; one of whom shall be the President of the 2
Rhode Island Association of Fire Chiefs, Inc., or designee; one of whom shall be the Rhode 3
Island Child Advocate, or designee; two (2) of whom shall be Rhode Island high school students, 4
one of whom attends a suburban school district and one of whom attends an urban school district, 5
to be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one of whom shall be a special needs educator, 6
employed in a Rhode Island public school, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one of 7
whom shall be the Executive Director the RI Police Chiefs' Association, or designee; and one of 8
whom shall be the Rhode Island State Police School Safety Commissioner, or designee. 9
In lieu of any appointment of a member of the legislature to a legislative study 10
commission, or any commission created by a General Assembly resolution, the appointing 11
authority may appoint a member of the general public to serve in lieu of a legislator, provided that 12
the majority leader or the minority leader of the political party which is entitled to the 13
appointment consents to the appointment of the member of the general public. 14
The purpose of said commission shall be to determine what changes, if any, need to be 15
made in Rhode Island General Law 16-21-4 in light of the national landscape of school shootings 16
as well as recent swatting events. This study shall include, but not be limited to, evaluation of: 17
• Should the number of drills dictated in RI 16-21-4 be changed and if so, what should 18
they change to? 19
• Whether lockdown drills during school hours should include simulations that mimic an 20
actual incident; 21
• Should parents have advance notice of lockdown drills. Currently, no notice that 22
includes the exact time of the lockdown drill is required; 23
• Should a lockdown drill be announced to students and educators prior to its start; 24
• Should schools create age and developmentally appropriate lockdown drill content with 25
the involvement of school personnel, including school-based mental health professionals; 26
• Should schools couple drills, as well as lock down events, with trauma-informed 27
approaches to address students' wellbeing both during the drills, and over a sustained period and 28
if so, how can that approach be implemented; 29
• During actual lockdowns, what enforcements are necessary so that personal do not 30
ignore the lockdown; 31
• During actual lockdowns, should an evacuation option be available to students; and 32
• Should the frequency of mandatory emergency egress drills (fire drills) be changed 33
from one per month to some reduced number of drills per academic school year as these drills 34
LC002903 - Page 3 of 4
may be traumatizing; and 1
• Are there any additional steps that school administrators can take to minimize trauma 2
around all the drills as well as any lockdown events. 3
The membership of said commission shall receive no compensation for their services. 4
All departments and agencies of the state shall furnish such advice and information, 5
documentary and otherwise, to said commission and its agents as is deemed necessary or 6
desirable by the commission to facilitate the purposes of this resolution. 7
The Speaker of the House is hereby authorized and directed to provide suitable quarters 8
for said commission; and be it further 9
RESOLVED, That the commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the 10
House of Representatives no later than February 28, 2024, and said commission shall expire on 11
April 30, 2024. 12
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LC002903
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EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N
CREATING A LEGISLATIVE STUDY COMMISSION TO EVALUATE AND PROVIDE
RECOMMENDATIONS ON M ANDATED SAFETY PROTO COLS FOR RHODE ISLAND
SCHOOLS
***
This resolution would create a twenty (20) member legislative commission whose 1
purpose it would be to evaluate and provide recommendations on mandated safety protocols for 2
RI schools, and who would report back to the House no later than February 28, 2024, and whose 3
life would expire on April 30, 2024. 4
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LC002903
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