H-8080

   Amend House File 2409 as follows:
   1.  By striking everything after the enacting clause and inserting: 
   Section 1.  Section 135.11, subsection 30, Code 2014, is amended by striking the subsection.
   Sec. 2.  Section 256.2, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  2A.  “Harassment” and “bullying” mean the same as defined in section 280.28.
   Sec. 3.  Section 256.7, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  33.  Adopt rules incorporating the training required by section 272.2, subsection 19, into the standards for school district or attendance center teacher professional development plans in accordance with section 284.6 and school district or attendance center administrator professional development plans in accordance with section 284A.6.
   Sec. 4.  Section 256.9, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  65.  Submit to the general assembly annually by January 1, a report on harassment and bullying in schools in this state. The report shall include harassment and bullying incidence data reported by school districts and accredited nonpublic schools pursuant to section 280.28, subsection 7, including the number of founded and unfounded reports of harassment or bullying per school district and accredited nonpublic school; relevant response data from the Iowa youth survey; outcome data for the school climate improvement grant program established by section 256.101; and any recommendations relating to harassment and bullying prevention in this state. The department shall publish the report on the department’s internet site.
   Sec. 5.  NEW SECTION.  256.100  Office of support and analysis for safe schools.
   1.  The office of support and analysis for safe schools is established in the department to coordinate and implement the state’s efforts to prevent and respond to harassment and bullying.
   2.  The office shall coordinate efforts between state agencies and promote research-based best practices for programming and training in the prevention of and response to harassment and bullying. The office may enter into chapter 28E agreements with the board of educational examiners, department of human rights, the civil rights commission, postsecondary educational institutions, and other public agencies for the joint employment of personnel to carry out its duties. The office shall coordinate with appropriate stakeholders in carrying out its duties.
   3.  The office shall:
   a.  Assist schools in the implementation of section 280.28, using research-based best practices.
   b.  Develop or recommend qualified training programs for training required by section 272.2, subsection 19.
   c.  Coordinate with area education agencies to ensure that training required by section 272.2, subsection 19, and appropriate mental health services are available to every school in this state.
   d.  Provide assistance to school employees responsible for conducting investigations of complaints of incidents of harassment or bullying to ensure compliance with section 280.28.
   e.  Administer the school climate improvement grant program established by section 256.101.
   f.  Compare and analyze harassment and bullying incidence data reported by school districts and accredited nonpublic schools pursuant to section 280.28, subsection 7, and response data from the Iowa youth survey. The office may use its analysis to provide technical assistance to school districts or schools to improve school learning environments and school safety and to achieve compliance with section 280.28.
   g.  Coordinate with the department of public health and other public and private agencies and organizations in the administration of the your life Iowa initiative. Contacts with the initiative relating to possible harassment or bullying shall be shared with the office, which shall assist the initiative in responding to such contacts. The office shall maintain compliance with applicable federal and state privacy laws to ensure the confidentiality of information provided to the initiative.
   h.  Collaborate with the department of public health and other state agencies in the administration of the Iowa youth survey to students in grades six, eight, and eleven in Iowa’s public and nonpublic schools. Survey data shall be evaluated and reported, with aggregate data available online at the Iowa youth survey internet site.
   Sec. 6.  NEW SECTION.  256.101  School climate improvement grant program.
   1.  A school climate improvement grant program is established in the department to build upon previous state efforts to promote school safety, including the Iowa safe and supportive schools grant and program, by providing funds to school districts and accredited nonpublic schools to maintain, improve, and promote safe and supportive learning environments in this state. The program shall be administered by the office of support and analysis for safe schools established by section 256.100.
   2.  The office shall award funds from the program to schools on a competitive grant basis. Awards shall be consistent with the following goals of the program:
   a.  To implement section 280.28, using research-based best practices.
   b.  To assist schools to promote a climate of greater productivity, safety, and learning.
   c.  To assist schools in the professional development of staff in research-based school safety programs and classroom management programs.
   d.  To assist schools in enhancing and coordinating antiviolence efforts between schools, professional, parental, governmental, law enforcement, and community organizations and associations.
   3.  Grants from the program may be used to fund school programs or activities including but not limited to the following:
   a.  Research-based staff training or other efforts to implement section 280.28.
   b.  Assessment of compliance with section 280.28.
   c.  Technical assistance for improved classroom management.
   d.  Research-based school safety programs that address risk factors to reduce incidents of problem behaviors among students including antiharassment and antibullying programs.
   e.  Mental health demonstration projects.
   f.  Safety and security training and resources that enhance the overall safety and security of staff and students.
   4.  The office shall give priority in grant awards to the following applicants:
   a.  Applicants that have a disproportionate need as identified by results in the Iowa youth survey indicating a heightened incidence of severe behavior that negatively impacts the culture and climate conditions necessary for student learning.
   b.  Applicants that demonstrate that they are addressing needs or gaps identified from their results in the Iowa youth survey.
   c.  Applicants that provide a commitment of additional funds from public or private sources for the programs or activities for which a grant is sought.
   5.  The office shall pursue additional funding from public and private sources to support the program.
   6.  The department shall adopt rules to administer the program, including but not limited to an application process and grant award criteria.
   Sec. 7.  Section 272.1, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  4A.  “Harassment” and “bullying” mean the same as defined in section 280.28.
   Sec. 8.  Section 272.2, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  19.  a.  Adopt rules requiring all teachers who have regular and substantial contact with students to complete training approved by the office of support and analysis for safe schools established by section 256.100, on harassment and bullying prevention and response as part of their professional development and training plans.
   b.  Adopt rules requiring all individuals applying for or renewing a license, certificate, authorization, or statement of recognition issued by the board who are responsible for conducting investigations of complaints of incidents of harassment or bullying to complete training approved by the office of support and analysis for safe schools established by section 256.100, on the provisions of section 280.28, conducting impartial investigations with transparency, collecting evidence, following up on previous investigations, and reporting founded and unfounded incidents of harassment and bullying to the department.
   c.  Adopt rules requiring all individuals applying for or renewing an administrator license to complete training approved by the office of support and analysis for safe schools established by section 256.100, on implementation of school-wide policies and procedures for harassment and bullying identification, reporting, response, and prevention.
   Sec. 9.  Section 280.28, subsection 2, paragraph a, Code 2014, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  “Electronic” means any communication involving the transmission of information by wire, radio, optical cable, electromagnetic, or other similar means. “Electronic” includes but is not limited to communication via electronic mail, internet-based communications including social networking sites and applications, pager service, cell phones, and electronic text messaging, or any other electronic communication site, device, or means.
   Sec. 10.  Section 280.28, subsection 3, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new paragraph:
   NEW PARAGRAPH.  h.  A procedure for documenting the actions taken by the school to investigate and respond to harassment or bullying.
   Sec. 11.  Section 280.28, subsection 7, Code 2014, is amended to read as follows:
   7.  Integration of policy and reporting.  The board of directors of a school district and the authorities in charge of each nonpublic school shall integrate its antiharassment and antibullying policy into the comprehensive school improvement plan required under section 256.7, subsection 21, and shall report data collected under subsection 6, as specified by the following to the department, to and the local community.:
   a.  Data collected under subsection 6, as specified by the department.
   b.  The process used for filing complaints, including the location of online or other complaint forms.
   c.  The number of school employees and volunteers who have completed antiharassment and antibullying training.
   Sec. 12.  Section 280.28, Code 2014, is amended by adding the following new subsections:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  9.  Parental notification.
   a.  Each school district and accredited nonpublic school shall establish notification procedures for incidents of harassment or bullying in accordance with this subsection. The procedures shall include notification of the custodial parent or guardian of any student directly involved in any incident of harassment or bullying, upon investigation and determination that harassment or bullying has occurred, consistent with a notification plan made in consultation with the student and school guidance staff. The notification shall include information on the action that school officials have taken regarding the incident and the actions school officials will take to prevent further acts of harassment or bullying. If such notification is delayed, the school district or school shall document the reasons for the delay. This paragraph does not prohibit a school official from contacting a parent or guardian about a report of harassment or bullying prior to a determination that harassment or bullying has occurred.
   b.  The requirements of this subsection shall not apply if a school official reasonably believes notification would subject a student to abuse, neglect, or other physical or mental harm.
   c.  Notification pursuant to this subsection shall comply with state and federal privacy laws, regulations, and rules.
   NEW SUBSECTION.  10.  Authority off school grounds.  A school official may investigate and respond appropriately to an alleged incident of harassment or bullying, including cyberbullying, that occurs outside of school, off of school property, or away from a school function or school-sponsored activity if the alleged incident of harassment or bullying has an effect on school grounds that creates an objectively hostile school environment and that meets one or more of the conditions set out under subsection 2, paragraph “b”. 
   NEW SUBSECTION.  11.  Rulemaking authority.  The department of education may adopt rules necessary to administer this section in a uniform way across the state.
   Sec. 13.  APPROPRIATIONS.  There is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department of education for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2013, and ending June 30, 2014, the following amounts, or so much thereof as is necessary, to be used for the purposes designated:

   For the establishment and administration of the office of support and analysis for safe schools, for carrying out the duties of the office, including salaries, support, maintenance, and for not more than the following full-time equivalent positions:

.................................................. $    250,000

............................................... FTEs       3.00

   For the provision of grants from the school climate improvement grant program established in section 256.101:

.................................................. $    750,000

   From the moneys appropriated to the office of support and analysis for safe schools, $150,000 shall be used to provide or facilitate the provision of training required by section 272.2, subsection 19, at minimal cost to the trainee.

   Notwithstanding section 8.33, moneys appropriated in this section that remain unencumbered or unobligated at the close of the fiscal year shall not revert but shall remain available for expenditure for the purposes designated until the close of the succeeding fiscal year.
   Sec. 14.  EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT.  The following provision or provisions of this Act, being deemed of immediate importance, take effect upon enactment:
   1.  The section of this Act enacting section 256.100.
   2.  The section of this Act enacting section 256.101.
   3.  The section of this Act making appropriations to the department of education.>
   2.  Title page, by striking lines 1 through 3 and inserting <An Act relating to state and school antiharassment and antibullying policies, establishing an office of support and analysis for safe schools, establishing a school climate improvement grant program, providing for training on harassment and bullying prevention and response, making appropriations, and including effective date provisions.>

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STECKMAN of Cerro Gordo