BILL NUMBER: S4559C
SPONSOR: MARTINEZ
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law and the executive law, in
relation to enacting the "school security guard training enhancement
act"
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to equip school security guards with
adequate training conducive to mitigating issues that arise in an educa-
tional environment pertaining to the youth population.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. Article 7-A of the general business law is amended to provide
that any individual seeking to gab employment as a school security
guard, including but not limited to police officers that have been
retired for more than five years, are required to obtain additional
training in the form of a specialized certification. This certification
will cover topics conducive to serving the youth population in an educa-
tional environment, including but not limited to, role and responsibil-
ity of school security officers, school-related laws and liability,
security awareness in an educational environment, youth
mediation/conflict resolution, disasters and emergencies, dynamics of
student behavior and cultural awareness, DASA, crisis prevention and
restorative justice.
This amendment further provides this specialized training program shall
be implemented and enforced by the Department of State in consultation
with the Department of Education, Department of Criminal Justice
Services, the Division of Homeland Security, state police and local law
enforcement. The secretary shall promulgate rules and regulations
related to determining if prior experience and training satisfies the
curriculum set forth in the certification as well as determine the peri-
od of time afte r this section becomes law an individual will have to
obtain such certification to retain employment as a school security
guard.
Section 3. Paragraphs (c) and (d) of subdivision- 1 of section 841-b of
the executive law, as added by chapter 336 of the laws of 1992, are
amenoed and a new paragraph (e) is added to provide the training
requirements for the school-specific training program described in
section eighty-nine-x of the general business law.
Section 4. Subdivision 7 of section 841 of the executive law, as amended
by section 6 of part Q of chapter 56 of the laws of 2009, is amended to
add school security guards.
Section 5. Is the enacting clause.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
To gain employment as a school security guard, one must obtain a general
security guard license. With this license, one can pursue employment as
a security guard in various sectors i.e., retail, schools, etc. However,
serving in a school environment requires additional knowledge and train-
ing the general license does not include. Such additional training
consists of youth mediation and conflict resolution, school-specific
roles/responsibilities and dynamics of student behavior.
In March 2022, a school security guard at Lincoln Middle School in
Wisconsin used a knee-on-neck restraint technique for more than half a
minute on a 12-year old girl priorto handcuffing her after breaking up a
fight. The lawsuit alleges the use of excessive force and failure to
provide the security guard with adequate training.
Amidst incidents like the example above, our nation and our state
continues to experience tragic school shootings that shine a light on
the need for increased school safety measures. This bill will provide
that school security guards are equipped with the appropriate training
and skills necessary to not only resolve internal conflicts in a safe
manner but to serve as a first line of defense against external threats.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law.

Statutes affected:
S4559: 841 executive law, 841(7) executive law
S4559A: 841 executive law, 841(7) executive law
S4559B: 841 executive law, 841(7) executive law
S4559C: 841 executive law, 841(7) executive law