The bill authorizes public entities, such as sheriffs and county commissions or local police chiefs and city councils, to contract with nonpublic K-12 schools to provide school resource officers under specific conditions. A nonpublic school is defined as a private, church, parochial, or religious school, including home-schooling entities. The bill stipulates that contracts for school resource officers can only be approved if these services are also available to every public school system in the respective county or municipality. Additionally, the nonpublic school must fully reimburse the public entity for all costs associated with the school resource officers, including salary and benefits.

Furthermore, the bill requires nonpublic schools to maintain occurrence-based liability insurance that meets or exceeds the coverage of the contracting public entity, naming them as additional insureds. If the school fails to maintain this insurance, it assumes liability for any actions taken by the school resource officer. The bill also clarifies that it does not waive any existing legal immunities for public entities and allows off-duty law enforcement officers to contract with nonpublic schools for security services. The act is set to take effect on June 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 16-1-44
Enrolled: 16-1-44