In the near future, I plan to introduce legislation to enhance the safety of our students and educators by establishing uniform, high-quality standards for school mapping technology across the Commonwealth. While increasing the funding to map our schools is a priority, we must also work to ensure that our dollars are going to contractors delivering schools with the highest quality work.

During an emergency, every second counts. Currently, many of our schools utilize outdated or non-standardized floor plans that can be difficult for first responders to navigate during a crisis. While recent legislative efforts like Act 47 of 2025 have bolstered school safety protocols, a significant gap remains in ensuring that the digital maps used by first responders, law enforcement and emergency personnel are accurate, accessible, and integrated across jurisdictions.

My bill will amend the Public School Code of 1949 to require school entities to ensure mapping providers are delivering a product that ensures law enforcement will have the strongest data possible, which will meet the following modernized standards:

• Precision and Accuracy: Maps must be created onsite in consultation with school administrators and include labeled floor plans with entry points, room numbers, and utility shut offs.
• Interoperability: Data must be provided in a format that is compatible with multiple existing software programs and mobile platforms used by state police, local police and all emergency medical services.
• Verification: Standards will require annual reviews to ensure that any physical renovations or building changes are reflected in the data provided to the Department of Education and local authorities.

Modernizing our school mapping technology is a proactive step that ensures our first responders have the clear, actionable intelligence they need to save lives. By standardizing this technology, we remove the guesswork from emergency response and provide a safer environment for our children to learn.

I hope you will join in co-sponsoring this vital piece of school safety legislation. Please join in sponsoring this critically important legislation.