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Supporters urge House panel to advance HB 4477 to require annual water‑safety instruction in Michigan schools
Summary
A witness and committee members discussed House Bill 4477, which would require annual, grade‑appropriate water‑safety education in physical‑education courses; testimony cited drowning statistics, university research on gaps in school instruction, and questions about curriculum scope and geographic customization.
A witness told the Michigan House Committee on Education and Workforce that House Bill 4477 would help protect children by establishing annual, grade‑appropriate water‑safety education in schools across the state.
"Drowning is preventable," Joseph Matulus said in testimony supporting HB 4477, citing worldwide and U.S. statistics and research on drownings in the Great Lakes. Matulus told the committee that water‑safety instruction builds knowledge and skills that reduce risk and that a coordinated, multi‑layered approach — supervision, life jackets, barriers and rescue competencies — is needed to prevent deaths.
Matulus summarized the bill as a measure to develop data‑driven, evidence‑informed and context‑specific water‑safety standards that would be required annually in…
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