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Experts tell commission Senate Bill 364 would prohibit corporal punishment for students with disabilities under IDEA
Summary
A coalition speaker urged commissioners to support a bill that would prohibit corporal punishment for students protected under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, citing survey results and examples of harmful disciplinary practices.
Dr. Carolyn McAllister presented an overview of Senate Bill 364 and urged the commission to advise or support measures that would prohibit corporal punishment for children protected by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
Dr. McAllister described a 2022 state survey that indicated 63 schools reported continued use of corporal punishment for students with disabilities and that state officials recorded 455 incidents in one school year. She said the bill’s focus is narrowly on children who qualify under IDEA, not on the broader population of students.
Dr. McAllister recounted examples gathered during outreach, including cases where children with intellectual or developmental disabilities were hit, slapped, pulled by the hair, or subjected to other forms of physical control she characterized as corporal punishment. She said the state statute’s current definition can be broad and includes slapping and spanking.
She argued that school staff sometimes lack training to manage behavior that is a manifestation of a disability and that parents can be coerced into signing permissions that allow corporal punishment. Dr. McAllister and other witnesses presented research and professional guidance—she cited the 2023 policy statement of the American Academy of Pediatrics—saying corporal punishment is traumatic for children with disabilities and can impede access to a free appropriate public education under federal law.
Commission members asked questions about the bill’s scope (the definition of qualifying disabilities and whether parent permission would remain). Dr. McAllister said parent permission does not reliably protect children because some caregivers feel coerced to sign forms to keep children in school or on activities.
The commission did not take a formal vote on SB 364. Dr. McAllister requested advice and support and offered research and stakeholder contacts to legislators and the commission.
