Bill would create school-safety grant fund after Antioch High shooting; committee rolls measure for rework

Representative Powell introduced House Bill 1288, saying the measure "creates a school safety grant fund" in response to a school shooting at Antioch High in which "a student, Josain Correa Escalante, lost her life." The sponsor said the fund would support prevention, response and recovery efforts — including facility modifications and grief counseling — and that local districts would request aid through the Department of Education, which "would be able to promulgate those rules."

Chairman Mark White raised the bill's fiscal note during questioning, saying, "Now, the fiscal note on here is 10,000,000." Powell acknowledged the figure and said he could not explain how the fiscal estimate was calculated. Members repeatedly pressed for clarity on eligible uses and recipients, noting a 2023 statewide school-safety appropriation that totaled over $200,000,000 and requested an accounting of how this bill would complement existing programs. Representative Reedy and others emphasized that rules should prevent duplicative or nonessential spending.

Committee members also discussed implementation logistics — whether temporary classrooms or targeted renovations would be used when a space must be taken offline, and how grant amounts would be determined. The sponsor said grants could support temporary portable classrooms, targeted renovations (for example, removing or renovating a wing), and services such as counseling. Representative Powell asked the committee to give him time to work with legal counsel to tighten bill language; without objection the committee rolled HB 1288 for three weeks for further drafting and subcommittee review.