Supporters push to codify Maryland's anonymous school reporting system as a statewide resource
Loading...
Summary
Witnesses told the committee HB326 would enshrine a statewide anonymous reporting portal (Safe Schools Maryland) in statute to preserve durability, promote consistency across districts, and ensure triage and interoperability with emergency systems for imminent threats.
Delegate Merrick Ebersole and supporters described House Bill 3-26, which would establish a statewide anonymous reporting system (Safe Schools Maryland) in statute so schools have a durable, consistent tool for students and others to report safety concerns.
Panelists from the Maryland Center for School Safety explained how tips arrive (web form, phone, app) and how the system triages urgent matters to 911 while routing non‑imminent school matters to designated school officials. "If it's imminent, it's going to 911 for an urgent response," a center representative said, and the system includes MCSS staff access to track whether a school has picked up a tip and closed it out.
Student advocates and MCSS staff argued statutory language would increase public confidence and promote equitable access to reporting for schools without existing systems; witnesses also described training, follow-up, and interconnectivity with 988 and local response protocols.
Questions from committee members focused on interoperability with 988 and how MCSS tracks follow-up; MCSS representatives said the portal has triage and tracking tools and that they can escalate unaddressed tips to school systems.
The committee concluded the hearing with panelists available to provide follow-up technical details.
