House Study Bill 675 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE _____
BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON
PUBLIC SAFETY BILL BY
CHAIRPERSON THOMPSON)
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to school security, including by requiring
2 certain school districts to employ or retain school security
3 personnel, establishing the school security personnel grant
4 program within the department of education, and authorizing
5 school employees to be issued professional permits to carry
6 weapons.
7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 279.84 School security personnel
2 —— grant program.
3 1. For purposes of this section:
4 a. “Private school security officer” means an individual
5 employed by a private security business who possesses a permit
6 to carry weapons issued under section 724.6.
7 b. “Private security business” means the same as defined in
8 section 80A.1.
9 c. “School resource officer” means the same as defined in
10 34 U.S.C. §10389.
11 2. The board of directors of each school district with
12 a total enrollment of at least eight thousand students shall
13 employ, or retain the services of, at least one private school
14 security officer or school resource officer to guard each
15 attendance center where students enrolled in grades nine
16 through twelve regularly attend classes. A private school
17 security officer employed or retained by the board of directors
18 of a school district pursuant to this subsection shall be
19 required to participate in the annual live scenario training
20 and quarterly live firearms training provided by the department
21 of public safety pursuant to section 724.6, subsection 1,
22 paragraph “a”, subparagraph (3).
23 3. a. The board of directors of each school district with
24 a total enrollment of less than eight thousand students is
25 encouraged to employ, or retain the services of, at least one
26 private school security officer or school resource officer
27 to guard each attendance center where students enrolled in
28 grades nine through twelve regularly attend classes. A private
29 school security officer employed or retained by the board of
30 directors of a school district pursuant to this paragraph shall
31 be required to participate in the annual live scenario training
32 and quarterly live firearms training provided by the department
33 of public safety pursuant to section 724.6, subsection 1,
34 paragraph “a”, subparagraph (3).
35 b. The department of education shall develop and administer
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1 a school security personnel grant program to provide annual
2 grants to match moneys provided by a school district described
3 in paragraph “a” to allow such school districts to offset costs
4 associated with employing, or retaining the services of, a
5 private school security officer or school resource officer to
6 guard each attendance center providing education to students
7 enrolled in grades nine through twelve. The amount of an
8 annual grant provided by the department of education to a
9 school district that has provided matching moneys pursuant to
10 this paragraph shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars.
11 4. A school security personnel grant program fund
12 is established in the state treasury. The fund shall be
13 administered by the department of education and shall consist
14 of moneys appropriated by the general assembly and other moneys
15 received by the department for deposit in the fund. The moneys
16 in the fund are appropriated to the department for the school
17 security personnel grant program. Notwithstanding section
18 8.33, moneys in the fund at the close of the fiscal year shall
19 not revert to the general fund of the state but shall remain
20 available for expenditure for the school security personnel
21 grant program for subsequent fiscal years.
22 Sec. 2. Section 724.6, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2024,
23 is amended by adding the following new subparagraph:
24 NEW SUBPARAGRAPH. (3) A person may be issued a permit
25 to carry weapons if the person is a school employee of a
26 school district, a private school, or an institution of higher
27 education as defined in section 722.11 that has not opted out
28 of participating in the professional permitting of school
29 employees. The person shall complete a prescribed firearm
30 safety training course offered pursuant to section 724.9,
31 subsection 1, prior to being issued a permit, and not be
32 disqualified under section 724.8. A person issued a permit to
33 carry weapons under this subparagraph shall receive one-time,
34 in-person legal training, including training on qualified
35 immunity, annual emergency medical training, and annual
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1 communication training that is approved by the department of
2 public safety. The department of public safety shall implement
3 required annual live scenario training and quarterly live
4 firearm training for school employees of a school district,
5 a private school, or an institution of higher education that
6 has opted into participating in the professional permitting
7 of school employees. A school employee issued a professional
8 permit to carry by the department of public safety who is up
9 to date with department of public safety-approved training
10 shall be entitled to qualified immunity from criminal or civil
11 liability for all damages incurred pursuant to the application
12 of reasonable force at the place of employment.
13 Sec. 3. Section 724.6, subsection 2, Code 2024, is amended
14 to read as follows:
15 2. Notwithstanding subsection 1, fire fighters, as defined
16 in section 411.1, subsection 10, airport fire fighters included
17 under section 97B.49B, school employees, and emergency medical
18 care providers other than emergency medical care providers
19 specified in subsection 1, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (2),
20 shall not, as a condition of employment, be required to obtain
21 a permit under this section. However, the provisions of
22 this subsection shall not apply to a person designated as an
23 arson investigator by the chief fire officer of a political
24 subdivision.
25 Sec. 4. STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED. In accordance
26 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring
27 compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall
28 be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid
29 received by the school district under section 257.16. This
30 specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed
31 to meet all of the state funding-related requirements of
32 section 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding
33 shall be necessary for the full implementation of this Act
34 by and enforcement of this Act against all affected school
35 districts.
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1 EXPLANATION
2 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
3 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
4 This bill relates to school security, including by requiring
5 certain school districts to employ or retain school security
6 personnel, establishing the school security personnel grant
7 program within the department of education, and authorizing
8 school employees to be issued professional permits to carry
9 weapons.
10 The bill requires all school districts with a total
11 enrollment of at least 8,000 students to employ, or retain the
12 services of, at least one private school security officer or
13 school resource officer to guard each attendance center where
14 students enrolled in grades 9 through 12 regularly attend
15 classes.
16 The bill encourages all school districts with a total
17 enrollment of less than 8,000 students to employ, or retain
18 the services of, at least one private school security officer
19 or school resource officer to guard each attendance center
20 where students enrolled in grades 9 through 12 regularly
21 attend classes. The bill requires the department of education
22 to develop and administer a school security personnel grant
23 program to provide annual grants to match moneys provided by
24 such school districts to allow the school districts to offset
25 costs associated with employing, or retaining the services of,
26 a private school security officer or school resource officer.
27 The bill provides that the amount of an annual grant provided
28 by the department to a school district that has provided
29 matching moneys pursuant to this provision shall not exceed
30 $50,000. The bill establishes a school security personnel
31 grant program fund in the state treasury to be administered by
32 the department.
33 The bill defines “private school security officer” to
34 mean an individual employed by a private security business
35 who possesses a permit to carry weapons issued under Code
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1 section 724.6 (professional permit to carry weapons). The bill
2 requires a private school security officer employed or retained
3 by the board of directors of a school district to participate
4 in the annual live scenario training and quarterly live firearm
5 training sessions described below. The bill defines “private
6 security business” as a business of furnishing, for hire or
7 reward, guards, watch personnel, armored car personnel, patrol
8 personnel, or other persons to protect persons or property,
9 to prevent the unlawful taking of goods and merchandise, or
10 to prevent the misappropriation or concealment of goods,
11 merchandise, money, securities, or other valuable documents
12 or papers, and includes an individual who for hire patrols,
13 watches, or guards a residential, industrial, or business
14 property or district. Additionally, the bill defines “school
15 resource officer” by reference to the definition contained in
16 34 U.S.C. §10389.
17 The bill provides that a person may be issued a permit
18 to carry weapons if the person is a school employee of a
19 school district, a private school, or an institution of higher
20 education that has not opted out of participating in the
21 professional permitting of school employees. The person shall
22 complete a prescribed firearm safety training course offered
23 pursuant to Code section 724.9(1), prior to being issued a
24 permit, and not be ineligible for a permit to carry under Code
25 section 724.8. A person issued a permit to carry weapons
26 is required to receive one-time, in-person legal training,
27 including training on qualified immunity, annual emergency
28 medical training, and annual communication training that is
29 approved by the department of public safety. The department
30 of public safety is required to implement annual live scenario
31 training and quarterly live firearm training for school
32 employees.
33 The bill provides that a school employee issued a
34 professional permit to carry by the department of public safety
35 after completing department of public safety-approved training
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1 is entitled to qualified immunity from criminal or civil
2 liability for all damages incurred pursuant to the application
3 of reasonable force at the place of employment.
4 The bill provides that a school employee shall not be
5 required, as a condition of employment, to obtain a permit.
6 The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
7 section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of
8 any state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school
9 district from state school foundation aid received by the
10 school district under Code section 257.16. The specification
11 is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state mandate
12 funding-related requirements of Code section 25B.2. The
13 inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate the
14 requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any state
15 mandates included in the bill.
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Statutes affected:
Introduced: 724.6, 722.11