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House passes bill tightening limits and reporting for seclusion and restraint of students with disabilities
Summary
Lawmakers approved HB 6 84, sponsored by Rep. Mac, which tightens rules on seclusion and physical restraint for students with exceptionalities, adds reporting, requires documentation and allows cameras in some rooms. The bill passed unanimously after technical and substantive amendments drafted with advocates and agencies.
The Louisiana House unanimously passed legislation aimed at tightening rules governing the use of seclusion and physical restraint for students with disabilities in public schools.
Representative Mac’s HB 6 84 updates statutes governing the education of students with exceptionalities to require clearer documentation, reporting, and limits on seclusion and physical restraint. The bill also addresses installation of cameras in rooms used for seclusion and requires expanded reporting and training.
Mac told the chamber the bill is intended to "improve the educational experience for our children with disabilities within the public schools." He credited a coalition of advocacy and education groups — the Arc of Louisiana, the Louisiana Developmental Disabilities Council, Disabilities Rights Louisiana, the Charter School Association, the Louisiana Department of Education and the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) — for helping craft the language.
On the House floor Mac offered two amendment sets (technical and more substantive) to accommodate concerns from school boards and other stakeholders; those amendments were adopted without objection. The sponsor said changes were negotiated to balance protections for students, procedural clarity for schools and input from disability advocates.
The bill cleared the House on a recorded vote of 99 yays, 0 nays.
Why it matters: the measure standardizes incident reporting, narrows conditions under which seclusion and certain restraints may be used, and increases transparency and oversight. Advocates praised the collaborative drafting process; school officials said the amendments improved implementation clarity.
Next steps: HB 6 84 will proceed to the Senate for committee review.
