Dear Representatives Williams and Moskowitz,
I am writing on behalf of the members of the Fraternal Order of Police to advise you of our strong support for H.R. 6683, the “Safer Schools Act.”
No student or teacher should ever feel unsafe in the classroom. But unfortunately, this is a reality in our society due to tragic incidents where students and teachers have lost their lives on school grounds. One such step that can be taken to prevent this is by assessing physical safety measures at schools and exploring how different measures may help law enforcement better respond when an incident occurs. However, not all schools have the resources to assess and implement these safety measures.
Your legislation would assist schools by creating two pilot grant programs for public schools within the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). One grant program would be for risk assessment of public schools conducted by a verified Federal, State or local law enforcement or appropriate agency and would cover 100% of the cost of the assessment. The other would provide funding to fix the physical vulnerabilities that were identified in the risk assessment. This grant would cover 50% of the costs and also require the installation of at least one silent panic alarm linked to the closest law enforcement agency. These grant programs will help schools put safety measures in place that can help protect students and staff and allow law enforcement to respond faster and more effectively to any incident while preventing further loss of life.
On behalf of the more than 382,000 members of the Fraternal Order of Police, I thank you both for your leadership on this important issue. If I can provide any additional information about this bill, please do not hesitate to contact me or Executive Director Jim Pasco in our Washington, D.C. office.
Sincerely,
Patrick Yoes
National President