As the United States continues to reckon with gun violence nationwide, including in its schools, U.S. Rep. Mike Garcia (R-CA) introduced the latest legislative proposals for change, with the Safe Schools Act and the Strengthening School Security for Students Act.
Touted as ways to protect students from mass shootings and other violent acts, both double down on the idea of making schools into more defensible structures, rather than addressing either the weapons involved or the perpetrators of these crimes.
The Safe Schools Act would allow unused COVID-19 relief funds allocated to these schools to be repurposed for implementing physical security measures, including locks, panic buttons, room security systems, video surveillance and armed school resource officers (SROs), often called school police. The Strengthening School Security for Students Act would further the placement of these officers in schools, offering funding for each to train at least two SROs per 500 students.
“Following the horrific events that have occurred in our schools across our country, in particular the recent events in Nashville, Tenn., I am reintroducing these commonsense bills to help harden our schools against violent crimes and individuals with intent to harm our students,” Garcia said. “Nobody in this country wants to see these tragic events continue, and now we must work together to find solutions to deter future violence from taking place.”
COVID-19 funds allowed for use under the Safe Schools Act would be those allocated through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund. To support his SRO initiatives, Garcia cited data from the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program at the U.S. Department of Justice. In a 2020 report, COPS determined SROs have played a significant role in preventing and mitigating targeted school violence and in almost 30 percent of cases between 2008-2017, were able to reach the scene of an attack within one minute.