Safe Schools Act offered by Garcia

U.S. Rep. Mike Garcia (R-CA) on June 9 sponsored bicameral legislation that would allow states and local educational agencies to use any remaining COVID-19 elementary and secondary school emergency relief funds to bolster school security measures.

“Now more than ever, we must be proactive in securing our schools,” Rep. Garcia said last week. “All constitutional options need to be examined to ensure our children are safe in the classroom.”

The Safe Schools Act, H.R. 8008, specifically would allow COVID-19 relief dollars already allocated to schools through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund to be used by schools to harden themselves with physical security measures, such as locks, panic buttons, individual room security systems, video surveillance, and hiring and paying the salaries of armed school resource officers, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Garcia’s staff.

Nationwide, the congressman’s staff says, there is still $150.1 billion remaining to be spent of the $189.5 billion of COVID-19 money awarded under ESSER. H.R. 8008 would remove the requirement that ESSER expenses must be related to COVID-19, the summary says.

U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) on June 9 sponsored the identical bill, S. 4369, in his chamber with 13 GOP original cosponsors, including U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Steve Daines (R-MT), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Tim Scott (R-SC), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Todd Young (R-IN).