Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
House debate on school-safety bill stalls after amendment on one-year expulsion is introduced
Summary
On Feb. 10, 2000, the Utah House considered House Bill 245 addressing school safety. Representative Swallow proposed an amendment to require a one-year automatic expulsion for middle- and high-school students who bring a real weapon to school; debate produced concerns about look-alike items, elementary students and educational alternatives. The House circled the bill for further consideration.
The Utah House of Representatives debated House Bill 245 on Feb. 10, 2000, as members pushed and probed changes to the state's school-safety and expulsion-review process. Sponsor Representative Wright presented the bill as an effort to strengthen review procedures; Representative Swallow moved Amendment No. 4 to create a mandatory one-year expulsion for secondary (middle and high school) students who bring a real weapon to school.
"If you're in secondary education . . . and you bring a real weapon to school, then you don't have that option of not being expelled . . . you have to leave school for a year," Representative Swallow said when offering the amendment. Supporters, including Wright, said the amendment "strengthens the bill" and would send a clearer message that weapons are not tolerated in schools.
Opponents and questioners flagged practical concerns. Representative Becker asked whether the amendment would treat look-alike or pretend firearms the same as real weapons; Swallow clarified the proposal applies as a mandatory penalty only to real weapons carried by secondary students and retains appeal and review rights for look-alikes and for elementary students. Representative Carlson and others warned the language can be hard to parse and urged members to double-check statutory cross-references to avoid punishing very young children who bring toys or prop items for class projects.
Lawmakers also debated the scope of "expelled from school." Representative Dilley asked whether expelled students could still be educated through alternatives such as homeschooling or alternative programs; Representative Wright said they would retain access to nontraditional educational options and that the amendment did not remove those possibilities.
The amendment drew extended questioning about tracking expelled students and whether expulsions would transfer across districts; Representative Bennion noted work under way to develop tracking, and Wright said districts would report incidents to the Legislative Education Committee under an amendment being considered.
After extended debate and several members awaiting further study of the language, leadership moved to "circle" HB245 to allow lunch and more time for members to review the amendment and the underlying bill. The motion to circle the bill passed; consideration will resume after the recess. No final vote on Amendment No. 4 or on the bill occurred during the Feb. 10 session.
The bill and amendment touch on existing statutory expulsion procedures; the proposal would limit the review exceptions now available for serious weapons violations for secondary students. The House left the item pending so members could study the interaction of the amendment with current statute and with district-level alternatives.
