Senate panel advances bill requiring school safety plans, coordinated guidance on door locks

Representative Pendergraft introduced House Bill 31, which would require each school district to adopt safety and security policies, including threat assessment procedures, and would direct the School Facilities Division to develop security protocols for door securement devices in coordination with security experts and the State Fire Marshal.

The bill’s sponsor said the measure responds to questions raised by school resource officers and local fire marshals about which door-locking devices are permitted during lockdowns. "Folks, I bring you House Bill 31. This is a bill primarily about, I think, common sense and local control," Representative Pendergraft said, adding that districts should have plans and that some commonly available devices had been disallowed by fire marshals without clear alternatives being offered.

The bill as passed by the committee (as amended) requires school boards to…