School Safety 2.0
The Kentucky Senate has approved an update to the state's school safety overhaul passed in 2019. The measure cleared the chamber despite some skepticism on both sides of the aisle.
A major part of the first school safety bill was the addition of School Resource Officers, or SROs — sworn law enforcement specially trained to work with youth. State law calls for all campuses to have at least one, but many districts have struggled to fill the positions, due to funding and workforce shortages.
HB 2 expands the field of potential applicants by creating new positions called "guardians." They would be former military, federal agents, retired state troopers, or other former law enforcement officers that proponents say would add a layer of protection in schools.
Sen. Stephen West said if it comes down to having a trained, armed veteran on site and ready to act versus an SRO five minutes away, he would choose the former.
"It comes down to that," West said. "I have to have someone there protecting my kids who are in the school."
But that alone wasn't enough to persuade Sen. Whitney Westerfield, who said the bill raises but doesn't answer questions about the chain of command and how guardians fit into the security picture.
"I have concerns about that, not because I question the qualifications of the guardians, but because I'm not sure how they interact with the system we know exists," the Fruit Hill Republican said.
SB 2 also creates a mapping system meant to improve communication during emergencies and adds new mental health provisions.
State Board of Education Elections
Members of the Kentucky state Board of Education would be chosen by voters at the ballot box in partisan elections under a bill that passed the Kentucky Senate Tuesday.
Appointees of the state Board of Education are chosen by the governor and must receive the blessing of the Senate, but Sen. Mike Wilson, a Bowling Green Republican, argues governors have abused that authority and a major change is necessary.
"This bill is the result of years of watching appointments to the state board used as political favors to gain political control, and we've seen it on both sides of the aisle," Wilson told colleagues. "The exercise of raw politics can't occur is voters make their own choices."
And that's exactly what Wilson is proposing and the Senate has agreed to. Senate Bill 8 would see Kentuckians voting in the board, a move Wilson argues would give rural residents more say.
Louisville Democratic Sen. Cassie Chambers Armstrong questioned the logic of the proposed change.
"I've seen no evidence that this change will improve education outcomes, that moving to partisan elections is good for our kids," she countered.
Gov. Beshear has called the move a "terrible idea," adding that members of the board of education should serve in a nonpartisan capacity.
Other Business
In addition, the chamber voted to approve a bill meant to ensure students are proficient in cursive by the time they enter middle school.
Other bills gaining passage include: SB 142, ensuring state employees receive up to four weeks of paid leave for childbirth or adoption, and SB 215, barring any state agency from adopting standards relating to emissions control or requirements mandating the sale or purchase of electric vehicles.
