From the ECS State Policy Database School Safety--Disaster/Emergency Preparedness

This database is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States (ECS). Most entries are legislative, although rules/regulations and executive orders that make substantive changes are included. Every effort is made to collect the latest available version of policies; in some instances, recent changes might not be reflected. For expediency purposes minimal attention has been paid to style (capitalization, punctuation) and format. Please cite use of the database as: Education Commission of the States (ECS) State Policy Database, retrieved [date]. State Status/Date Level Summary MT Signed into law 05/2013 P-12 School Safety, Disaster Drills S.B. 348 Requires at least 8 disaster drills per year (prior law had specified that at least 4 had to be fire exit drills). Defines "disaster" as the... More... WA To governor 04/2013 P-12 Taking Measures to Promote Safe School Buildings S.B. 5197 Requires school districts, and the school safety advisory committee convened by the office of the superintendent of public instruction, to w... More... OK Signed into law 04/2013 P-12 Lockdown Drills S.B. 256 Requires each district board of education to ensure that a minimum of two (2) lockdown drills are conducted at each public school within the... More... AR Signed into law 03/2013 P-12 Safe School Initiative Act S.B. 140 Provides that a school district must train employees and students in preventing and responding to acts of violence, terrorism, and natural d... More... VA Signed into law 03/2013 P-12 School Lock Down Policies H.B. 2346 Mandates two lock down drills per year: one in September and another in January. Requires each school safety audit committee to conduct a sc... More... SD Signed into law 03/2013 P-12 Provide for the Training, and Creation of, Armed School Sentinel Programs H.B. 1087 Provide for the creation of school sentinel programs and for the training of armed school sentinels. The bill offers the option to arm scho... More... DE Signed into law 09/2012 P-12 Omnibus School Safety Act S.B. 233 Requires the Department of Safety and Homeland Security (DSHS) to work with schools, districts and first responders to develop a comprehensi... More... TX Signed into law 06/2011 Postsec. Postsecondary Emergency Alert Systems H.B. 2758 Requires public and private institutions of higher education to establish emergency alert systems for students and staff, using e-mail or te... More... NV Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Responding to Emergencies S.B. 317 Revising provisions governing plans for responding to a crisis in public schools of school districts, charter schools and private schools, s... More... TN Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 School Closures S.B. 449 Prohibits charging a teacher with a day of leave for any day on which the teacher's school or school district is closed because of natural d... More... IN Signed into law 05/2011 P-12 Teacher Training on Emergency Medical Procedures S.B. 176 Requires an applicant for an initial teaching license to be trained and certified in the use of an automated external defibrillator. Require... More... WV Signed into law 05/2011 P-12 School Crisis Response Plans S.B. 592 Requires the state board in conjunction with the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management to promulgate by December 31, 2011, ... More... FL Signed into law 05/2011 P-12 Firesafety Inspections of Educational Facilities H.B. 331 From Legislative Staff Summary: Aligns laws governing the State Fire Marshal with educational laws governing firesafety inspections on educa... More... ND Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Emergency Drills H.B. 1215 Requires each public and nonpublic school (added nonpublic) to conduct fire, tornado, and other emergency or disaster drills, including lock... More... WI Signed into law 05/2010 P-12 Health-Related School Closures S.B. 379 Requires a school board, within 24 hours of a school being closed by a local health officer or DHS, or by a school district administrator be... More... VA Signed into law 03/2010 Postsec. Community College Threat Assessment Teams H.B. 903/S.B. 207 Exempts all records of threat assessment teams established at public institutions of higher education from the provisions of the Freedom of ... More... VA Signed into law 03/2010 Postsec. Community College Institutional Crisis and Emergency Management Plan S.B. 608 Requires the president and vice-president of each public institution of higher education, or the superintendent in the case of the Virginia ... More... TX Signed into law 06/2009 P-12 Disaster Relief H.B. 4102 Relates to the disaster contingency fund and relief for school districts located in a disaster area. Provides that a government entity that ... More... TN Signed into law 05/2009 P-12 Waivers for Makeup Days S.B. 899 Provides that in the event of a natural disaster or serious outbreak of illness affective or endangering students or staff during a school y... More... IA Signed into law 04/2009 P-12 Disaster Assistance S.B. 81 Relates to assisting schools to recover from disaster; changes the approval method for transfers of emergency fund moneys by modifying certa... More... VA Signed into law 03/2009 P-12 Assistance in Event of an Emergency S.B. 1150 Requires all school emergency plans to include a provision that the Department of Criminal Justice Services and the State Criminal Injuries ... More... NH Signed into law 05/2008 P-12 Inspection of Schools by Fire Chiefs S.B. 376 Requires local fire chiefs to annually inspect all school buildings within his or her jurisdiction and submit a report to the state fire mar... More... CO Signed into law 05/2008 P-12 School Mapping System for First Responders H.B. 1267 Requires the School Safety Resource Center in the Department of Public Safety to create and operate a first responder school mapping system ... More... CO Signed into law 05/2008 P-12 School Safety Resource Center S.B. 1 Creates the School Safety Resource Center to assist schools in preventing, preparing for, responding to, and recovering from emergencies and... More... CO Signed into law 04/2008 P-12 Coordinated Response to School Incidents S.B. 181 Improves coordination among agencies when responding to school incidents; requires the Department of Public Safety to place on its web site ... More... CT Signed into law 07/2007 P-12 School Security Grants S.B. 1110 Establishes a school security competitive grant program to reimburse towns for certain expenses for schools under the school district for th... More... ME Signed into law 06/2007 P-12 School Emergency Plans H.B. 193 Relates to a school comprehensive emergency management plan; makes the approval of a crisis response plan by a school board public informati... More... NH Signed into law 06/2007 P-12 Site-Specific Emergency Response Plan H.B. 556 Requires public and nonpublic schools to develop and implement a site-specific emergency response plan which is based on and conforms to the... More... ME Signed into law 06/2007 P-12 Automated External Defibrillator H.B. 1247 Requires every school administrative unit to place an automated external defibrillator in each of the unit's school buildings and make it av... More... TX Signed into law 06/2007 P-12 Train Derailment Emergency Plan S.B. 1504 Requires school districts with schools located within 1,000 yards of a railroad track to establish a policy for responding to train derailme... More... TX Signed into law 05/2007 P-12 Postsec. Automated External Defibrillator S.B. 7 Requires that at least one automated external defibrillator (AED) be made available at every public school campus, and school athletic compe... More... WA Signed into law 04/2007 P-12 Safe School Plans and Task Force on Gangs S.B. 5097 Schools and school districts are required to adopt, by September 1, 2008, and implement a safe school plan, consistent with the school mappi... More... OH Signed into law 12/2006 P-12 Building Floor Plans Posted with Attorney General H.B. 79 -- Floor Plan Section From fiscal notes: Sub. H.B. 422 of the 126th General Assembly required that the Attorney General post a copy of the blueprint for each scho... More... VA Issued 11/2006 P-12 Postsec. Community College Emergency Preparedness Planning & Training E.O. 44 Directs all executive branch agencies, including institutions of higher education, to include emergency preparedness planning, training and ... More... IN Adopted 11/2006 P-12 Student Absences 512 IAC Establishes rules regarding the established threshold for absences related to students in local school corporations and accredited nonpublic... More... MO Issued 10/2006 P-12 Homeland Security Membership Executive Order 2006-44 Adds elementary and secondary education as another category with full membership representation on the Regional Homeland Security Oversight ... More... CA Signed into law 08/2006 P-12 Disaster Preparedness Materials A.B. 103 Requires the State Department of Education to electronically distribute disaster preparedness educational materials and lesson plans that ar... More... RI Became law without governor's signature 07/2006 P-12 Legislative Commission on Viral Pandemic in Schools S.B. 2300 Creates a fifteen member special legislative commission whose purpose it would be to make a comprehensive study of the impact a viral pandem... More... MI Signed into law 06/2006 P-12 Postsec. Community College Lockdown Drills H.B. 4460 Requires school officials to conduct two lockdown drills each school year, for instances including release of hazardous materials or armed i... More... OH Signed into law 05/2006 P-12 School Safety Plans H.B. 422 Requires community schools and chartered nonpublic schools to adopt school safety plans in the same manner as school districts; exempts scho... More... MN Signed into law 05/2006 P-12 Crisis Management Policy and Advisory Task Force on School and Staff Emergency/All Hazard Preparedness S.B. 2994 Directs the commissioner of education to maintain and make available to school boards and charter schools a model crisis management policy t... More... OK Adopted 04/2006 P-12 Tornado Drills OAC 210:35-3-186 Amends rules to requires public schools to conduct two tornado drillseach school year. Ensures all public schools are preparing students and... More... TN Signed into law 04/2006 P-12 Class Size Waiver During Natural Disasters S.B. 2898 Relates to maximum classroom sizes; In the event of a natural disaster which results in the enrollment of displaced students, the commission... More... WV Signed into law 03/2006 P-12 Flood Insurance S.B. 635 Requires boards of education to maintain certain flood insurance (for buildings meeting conditions such as in a flood hazard location; havin... More...