To set forth requirements relating to school safety and to define certain safety measures that schools are expected to meet. Amendments will address new requirements as a result of recent legislation and HB 543, including ....

 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

State Board of Education

RULE NO.:RULE TITLE:

6A-1.0018School Safety Requirements and Monitoring

PURPOSE AND EFFECT: To set forth requirements relating to school safety and to define certain safety measures that schools are expected to meet. Amendments will address new requirements as a result of recent legislation and HB 543, including removing threat assessment from the rule so that a new threat management rule can be created. Further changes will include the removal of outdated provisions for emergency drills and the updated requirements for reporting certain acts to law enforcement.

SUMMARY: Amendments will address new requirements as a result of recent legislation to include extracting threat assessment team requirements from the existing School Safety Requirements and Monitoring rule and creating a new rule on threat management to reflect the new process and instrument required in Chapter 2023-18, Laws of Florida.

SUMMARY OF STATEMENT OF ESTIMATED REGULATORY COSTS AND LEGISLATIVE RATIFICATION:

The Agency has determined that this will not have an adverse impact on small business or likely increase directly or indirectly regulatory costs in excess of $200,000 in the aggregate within one year after the implementation of the rule. A SERC has not been prepared by the Agency.

The Agency has determined that the proposed rule is not expected to require legislative ratification based on the statement of estimated regulatory costs or if no SERC is required, the information expressly relied upon and described herein: The changes are based on requirements in House Bill 543 (2023). This proposed rule is not expected to have any adverse impact on economic growth, business competitiveness or any other factors listed in s. 120.541(2)(a), F.S., and will not require legislative ratification. No increase in regulatory costs are anticipated as a result of the rule changes.

Any person who wishes to provide information regarding a statement of estimated regulatory costs, or provide a proposal for a lower cost regulatory alternative must do so in writing within 21 days of this notice.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY: 1001.02(1), (2)(n), 1001.11(9), 1001.212(15), 1006.07(4)(a),F.S.

LAW IMPLEMENTED: 1001.11(9), 1001.212(4), (12), (14), (15), 1006.07(4), (6), (7), (9), 1006.12(5), 1006.147, 1006.1493, 1008.386(3), F.S.

A HEARING WILL BE HELD AT THE DATE, TIME AND PLACE SHOWN BELOW:

DATE AND TIME: August 23, 2023, 9:00 a.m.

PLACE: Collier County School Board Office, 5775 Osceola Trail, Naples, FL 34109.

THE PERSON TO BE CONTACTED REGARDING THE PROPOSED RULE IS: Julie Collins, Office of Safe Schools, [e-mail].

 

THE FULL TEXT OF THE PROPOSED RULE IS:

 

6A-1.0018 School Safety Requirements and Monitoring

(1) No change. 

(2) Definitions.

(a) through (b) No change.

(c) “CSTAG” means the Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines behavioral threat assessment instrument, which must be used for threat assessments in all public schools, including charter schools.

(c) (d) “Department” means the Florida Department of Education.

(d) (e) “Discharge” means to fire a gun or firearm.

(e) (f) “Discipline” means a safe-school officer receiving a behavior-related official reprimand.

(f) (g) “Dismissal” means a safe-school officer is permanently relieved of his position. Dismissal or termination is involuntary and initiated by the employer, including firings or other removals for cause.

(g) (h) “Emergency drill” means a method of testing emergency plans and responses to incidents other than fire, including active threats, natural disasters, severe weather, hazardous materials, reunification, and other critical incident scenarios.

(h) (i) “Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool” or “FSSAT” means the site security risk assessment tool used by school officials at each school district and public school site in the state, including charter schools, to conduct security assessments, as provided in Section 1006.1493, F.S.

(i) (j) “FortifyFL” means the mobile suspicious activity reporting tool that allows students and members of the community to report information anonymously concerning unsafe, potentially harmful, dangerous, violent, or criminal activities, or threats of such activities to law enforcement or school officials as described in Section 943.082, F.S.

(j) (k) “Law enforcement officer” means the persons identified in Section 943.10(1), F.S.

(k) (l) “Office” means the Department’s Office of Safe Schools.

(l) (m) “Safe-school officer” means a school resource officer, a school-safety officer, a school guardian, or a school security guard, as identified in Sections 1006.12(1)-(4), F.S. 

(m) (n) “School administrator” means the school personnel identified in Section 1012.01(3), F.S.

(n) (o) “School-based mental health services provider” means a school psychologist certified under Rule 6A-4.0311, F.A.C., a school social worker certified under Rule 6A-4.035, F.A.C., a school counselor certified under Rule 6A-4.0181, F.A.C., or a mental health professional licensed under Chapter 490 or 491, F.S., who is employed or contracted by a district to provide mental health services in schools. 

(o) (p) “School day” means any day, including a partial day, where students are physically present at school for instructional purposes, as defined by Section 1011.60(2), F.S., and Rule 6A-1.045111, F.A.C. 

(p) (q) “School district” or “district” means a Florida school district or district school board, the Florida Virtual School (Section 1002.37, F.S.), the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind (Section 1002.36, F.S.), and Developmental Research (Laboratory) Schools (Section 1002.32, F.S.).

(q) (r) “School safety specialist” means the district school superintendent’s designee per Section 1006.07(6)(a), F.S., responsible for the oversight of all aspects of school safety and security within the school district and who is a school administrator or a law enforcement officer.

(r) (s) “SESIR” means School Environmental Safety Incident Reporting, as identified in Rule 6A-1.0017, F.A.C.

(t) “Substantive threat” means a threat where the intent to harm is either present or unclear, and requires protective action, as further defined in the CSTAG, Form CSTAG-2021.

(s) (u) “Suspected deficiency” means that there is at least some evidence that a district or school is not acting in compliance with the safety requirements set forth in this rule. 

(v) “Transient threat” means a threat where there is not a sustained intent to harm and the situation can be quickly resolved with apology, retraction, or explanation by the person who made the threat, as defined in the CSTAG, Form CSTAG-2021.

(3) through (9) No change.

(10) Threat management assessment teams.

(a) School districts must have policies and procedures for threat management and threat management teams in compliance with Rule 6A-1.0019, Threat Management. Purpose. The purpose of the threat assessment team is to establish a process focusing on behaviors that pose a threat to school safety while serving as a preventative measure to identify needs and provide support to students. This process is also known as a care assessment.

(b) Policies.

1. Each school district must adopt policies, consistent with this rule and with model policies developed by the Office, for the establishment of threat assessment teams at each school. 

2. District threat assessment policies must include procedures for referrals to mental health services identified by the school district pursuant to Section 1012.584(4), F.S.

(c) Composition. Each school’s threat assessment team must include persons with expertise in counseling, instruction, school administration, and law enforcement, as provided in Section 1006.07(7)(a), F.S. All members of the team must be involved in the threat assessment process and final decision-making.

1. The counseling team member must be a school-based mental health services provider that is able to access student mental health records.

2. The law enforcement team member must be a sworn law enforcement officer, as defined by Section 943.10(1), F.S., including a School Resource Office, school-safety officer, or other active law enforcement officer. At a minimum, a law enforcement officer serving on a threat assessment team must have access to local Records Management System information, the Criminal Justice Information System, and the Florida Crime Information Center and National Crime Information Center databases. Officers serving on school-based threat assessment teams must also have clearance to review Criminal Justice Information and Criminal History Record Information.

3. A school guardian, as defined under Section 1006.12(3), F.S., or a school security guard, as defined under Section 1006.12(4), F.S., may not serve as the law enforcement member of a threat assessment team.

(d) Instrument. Each school-based threat assessment team must use the Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines (CSTAG) model to assess the behavior of persons who may pose a threat to school staff or students and to coordinate intervention and services for such persons. All reported threats, even those determined not to be a threat, must be documented by the threat assessment team. Documentation must include the evaluation process and any resultant action. Requirements for retention, maintenance, and transfer of threat assessment records are found in Rule 6A-1.0955, F.A.C. Because the purpose of the threat assessment is to identify and intervene in response to threats to school safety, completing a threat assessment does not require parental consent; however, a student’s parent must be notified if the threat assessment process reveals information about a student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being, or results in a change in related services or monitoring. Threat assessment teams must follow local district policies and procedures for required parent notification.

(e) Training. All threat assessment team members must be trained on the CSTAG model. For assistance in accessing this training, districts must contact the Office in writing at [e-mail].

1. For the 2021-22 school year, each member of a threat assessment team must complete Office-approved training on the CSTAG model no later than December 31, 2021.

2. Beginning with the 2022-23 school year, threat assessment teams at each school must be fully staffed and all team members must complete CSTAG training before the start of the school year. Those appointed to threat assessment teams after the start of the school year must complete CSTAG training within ninety (90) days of appointment.

(f) Meetings. Each school-based threat assessment team must meet as often as needed to fulfill its duties of assessing and intervening with persons whose behavior may pose a threat to school staff or students, but no less than monthly. Districts must adopt policies requiring threat assessment teams to maintain documentation of their meetings, including meeting dates and times, team members in attendance, cases discussed, and actions taken. 

(g) Reporting. Each district must ensure that all threat assessment teams in the district report to the Office on the team’s activities during the previous school year. The district school safety specialist must ensure all schools in the district timely report information required by this paragraph. Information is due by October 1 and must be reported using the FSSAT: Beginning in the 2022-23 school year, the total number of threat assessments conducted, disaggregated by the total number of non-threats, the total number of transient threats, the total number of substantive threats, and the sex, race, and grade level of all students assessed by the threat assessment team.

(b) (h) Notification to Parents.

1. through 5. No change.

(11) No change.

(12) Zero-Tolerance Policies and Agreements with Law Enforcement.

(a) Each district must have zero-tolerance policies, including policies that define acts that require consultation with and reporting or referral to law enforcement, as provided by Section 1006.13, F.S.

(b) Each district must have an agreement with the county sheriff’s office and local police department for reporting acts that are required to be reported to law enforcement, which must at a minimum include the incidents identified in Rule 6A-1.0017, F.A.C. pose a threat to school safety, as provided by Section 1006.13(4), F.S.

(c) No change.

(13) through (14) No change.

(15) Emergency and fire-drills.

(a) Policies. Districts must develop policies and procedures for emergency drills and fire drills in consultation with the appropriate public safety agencies to include, at a minimum, law enforcement, fire service, and emergency management. The provisions of paragraph (15)(a) apply through July 31, 2023.

1. Active assailant and hostage situation drills must be conducted at least as often as fire drills are required by the Florida Fire Prevention Code, as adopted by the State Fire Marshal, available at www.myfloridacfo.com.

2. Districts must document completion of emergency drills at all school facilities in the district.

3. Active assailant and hostage situation drills must be conducted in accordance with developmentally appropriate and age-appropriate procedures. Districts are authorized to develop policies that provide for accommodations for drills conducted by exceptional student education (ESE) centers, as defined in Section 1003.57(1)(a)1.a., F.S. District accommodations for drills conducted at ESE centers, if any, must be included in the written policies and procedures for exceptional students that are submitted to the Department in accordance with subsection 6A-6.03411(2), F.A.C.

4. District school safety specialists must coordinate with the sheriff in their county to determine what law enforcement officers are responsible for responding to each school in their district in the event of an active assailant emergency and must provide those officers a minimum of twenty-four (24) hours’ notice prior to conducting an active assailant emergency drill, pursuant to Section 1006.07(4)(a), F.S. These law enforcement officers must be physically present on each school campus and directly involved in the execution of active assailant emergency drills, unless their presence is determined to be unnecessary by the sheriff.

(b) After-action report. An after-action report must be completed following each emergency drill and fire drill. After-action reports must identify the type of drill, location and date of the drill, participants, and involvement of law enforcement or other public safety agencies. In addition, the after-action report must describe actions taken by participants, must analyze areas of success and areas where improvement is needed, and include input from public safety agencies and a plan for corrective action. After-action reports must be submitted to the district school safety specialist for review fifteen (15) calendar days following drill completion. The provisions of paragraph (15)(b) apply beginning August 1, 2023.

1. Policies. Districts must develop policies and procedures for emergency drills and fire drills in consultation with the appropriate public safety agencies to include, at a minimum, law enforcement, fire service, and emergency management.

2. After-action report. An after-action report must be completed following each emergency drill and fire drill. After-action reports must identify the type of drill, location and date of the drill, participants, and involvement of law enforcement or other public safety agencies. In addition, the after-action report must describe actions taken by participants, must analyze areas of success and areas where improvement is needed, and include input from public safety agencies and a plan for corrective action. After-action reports must be submitted to the district school safety specialist for review fifteen (15) calendar days following drill completion.

(c) 3. Requirements for all emergency drills and fire drills.

1. a. All occupants of a building or any other location where an emergency or fire drill is held must participate in the drill.

2. b. During emergency drills, fire drills and during actual emergencies, schools must use plain language to communicate the nature of the emergency and instructions to students and staff. Plain language means communication that can be understood by the intended audience, which is free of coded language, jargon, and acronyms, and meets the purpose of the communicator.

3. c. Districts must vary the conditions of emergency drills and fire drills. Drills must be held at both expected and unexpected times and under varying conditions that require school staff, students and building occupants to take protective actions based on the specific circumstances of the simulated incident.

4. d. Districts must vary the time of day in which emergency drills and fire drills are held. In setting the drill schedule, districts must consider drills beginning at nonstandard times, such as within an hour of the start of the school day, during lunch, when students are between classes, or within an hour of the end of the school day.

5. e. Emergency drills and fire drills must test all applicable functions included in the threat scenario, such as panic buttons, participant movement (lockdown, shelter-in-place, or evacuation), simulated communications with first responders, notification to parents, and appropriate protective actions, such as turning off lights, and covering windows.

6. f. Emergency drills and fire drills must be conducted in accordance with developmentally appropriate and age-appropriate procedures. Districts are authorized to develop policies that provide for accommodations for drills conducted by exceptional student education (ESE) centers, as defined in Section 1003.57(1)(a)1.a., F.S. District accommodations for drills conducted at ESE centers, if any, must be included in the written policies and procedures for exceptional students that are submitted to the Department in accordance with subsection 6A-6.03411(2), F.A.C.

(d) 4. Requirements for specific types of drills.

1. a. Fire drills. Elementary, middle and high schools must conduct fire drills in accordance with the Florida Fire Prevention Code, located at https://www.myfloridacfo.com/division/sfm/bfp/florida-fire-prevention-code.

2. b. Emergency drills.

a. (I) Elementary, middle, and high schools are required to conduct six (6) emergency drills every school year that are nonconcurrent with fire drills. One emergency drill must take place within the first ten (10) days of the beginning of the school year, and the remaining drills must take place at least every forty-five (45) days that school is in session. Four (4) of the six (6) emergency drills must address active threats. The remaining two (2) drills must address other emergency events, such as severe weather, natural disasters, hazardous materials, or reunification.

b. (II) Active assailant drills. District school safety specialists must coordinate with the sheriff in their county to determine which law enforcement officers are responsible for responding to each school in their district in the event of an active assailant emergency and must provide those officers a minimum of twenty-four (24) hours’ notice prior to conducting an active assailant emergency drill, pursuant to Section 1006.07(4)(a), F.S. These law enforcement officers must be physically present on each school campus and directly involved in the execution of active assailant emergency drills, unless their presence is determined to be unnecessary by the sheriff.

(16) through (24) No change.

(25) The following forms are hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this rule. Copies may be obtained from the Florida Department of Education, 325 West Gaines Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-0400.

(a) Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines, Form CSTAG-2022 (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14264) effective June 2022.

(a) (b) Safe-School Officer Notification Report, Form SSON-2023 (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-15259) effective April 2023.

(c) Model Behavioral Threat Assessment Policies and Best Practices for K-12 Schools, Form BTAP-2022 (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14265) effective June 2022.

(b) (d) Model Policy Against Bullying and Harassment for K-12 Schools, Form PABH-2022 (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14266), effective June 2022.

Rulemaking Authority 1001.02(2)(n), 1006.07(4)(a) FS. Law Implemented 1001.11(9), 1001.212(4), (12), (14), (15), 1006.07(4)(a), (6), (7), (9), 1006.12(5), 1006.147, 1006.1493, 1008.386(3), 1012.584 FS. History‒New 7-14-21, Amended 11-23-21, 6-14-22, 9-20-22, 11-22-22, 4-25-23.

 

NAME OF PERSON ORIGINATING PROPOSED RULE: Julie Collins, Office of Safe Schools, [e-mail].

NAME OF AGENCY HEAD WHO APPROVED THE PROPOSED RULE: Manny Diaz Jr., Commissioner, Department of Education.

DATE PROPOSED RULE APPROVED BY AGENCY HEAD: July 27, 2023

DATE NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULE DEVELOPMENT PUBLISHED IN FAR: June 9, 2023