SB 1382 creates a new state grant program, administered by the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, to help local and regional boards of education obtain school mapping data services. The bill defines detailed technical requirements for the mapping data, including compatibility with public safety and school security software, printable and digital formats, verified walk-through accuracy, true-north orientation, floor plans over current aerial imagery, room and hazard labels, gridded coordinates, and permanent access for schools and responding agencies at no additional cost beyond production. The program begins July 1, 2025, and the department must publish eligibility criteria, application forms, and deadlines by October 1, 2025, then report annually on applications, awards, and recipient schools.
The bill also amends Connecticut’s existing school security infrastructure competitive grant program to expressly include school mapping data services as an eligible reimbursable expense. That program already covers a wide range of physical and technological security improvements, such as cameras, reinforced entrances, locks, alarms, communications systems, and training. SB 1382 keeps the existing reimbursement structure and eligibility framework for towns, regional educational service centers, charter schools, technical high schools, certain private schools, and, in limited circumstances, licensed child care centers and private preschools that have received threats.
The bill’s impact on state law is to expand the state’s school safety funding framework and formalize mapping data as a recognized security tool. It directs DESPP to administer the new grant program within available appropriations and to integrate school mapping data into the broader school security reimbursement system. The measure also preserves the existing priority rules and reimbursement percentages for the school security infrastructure program, including wealth-based town formulas and special treatment for nonpublic schools and child care providers.
The general sentiment around the bill appears strongly favorable. The substitute bill received unanimous support in the Public Safety committee vote and later passed the Senate 36-0, indicating broad bipartisan agreement. The absence of recorded committee testimony in the provided materials suggests there was little visible public controversy at the committee stage.
The main points of potential contention are not reflected in the vote totals but are inherent in the bill’s structure: funding is limited to available appropriations, the program imposes detailed technical standards that schools and vendors must meet, and the bill continues to allocate only 10 percent of certain funds to nonpublic schools and licensed child care/private preschool operators. Any debate would likely center on cost, implementation burden, vendor compatibility, data access, and whether the funding formula and eligibility rules adequately serve public and nonpublic schools alike.
SB 1382 adds a new state grant program for school mapping data and amends the existing school security infrastructure competitive grant statute to make mapping data services an eligible reimbursable expense. It requires DESPP to set program rules, publish application materials, and report annually, while leaving the existing reimbursement percentages, priority rules, and school security assessment framework in place. The bill affects local and regional boards of education, DESPP, public safety agencies, and certain nonpublic schools, child care centers, and private preschools that may seek security-related reimbursement.
The bill appears to have had very strong support. The Public Safety committee reported it favorably on a unanimous vote, and the Senate passed it 36-0. No committee transcript was provided, and there is no indication in the available record of organized opposition or significant debate.
No explicit controversy is shown in the available materials, but the bill’s likely pressure points are the scope and cost of the new grant program, the requirement that mapping data be compatible with multiple public safety and security platforms without added software purchases or access fees, and the detailed technical specifications vendors must meet. Another possible issue is the continued limitation that only 10 percent of funds under the school security program are reserved for nonpublic schools and licensed child care/private preschool operators, which could be viewed as either a necessary allocation or an inequity depending on the stakeholder.