HB779 makes a broad set of changes to Kentucky law governing school personnel, student discipline, and mandatory reporting of school-related threats and violence. The bill expands and clarifies protections for teachers and other school employees who are assaulted while performing their duties by coordinating workers’ compensation, disability retirement, district salary payments, state-paid health insurance and retirement contributions, and counseling coverage so the affected employee can receive income equivalent to full contracted salary for specified periods. It also revises sick leave rules for school personnel, including donation programs, leave for family illness, bereavement, birth or adoption, and payment for unused sick leave at retirement or death.
On the student discipline side, the bill strengthens school authority to suspend or expel students for assaulting school personnel or other students, bringing weapons, making threats, or engaging in other serious misconduct. It requires local boards to adopt policies mandating at least a 12-month expulsion for certain threats, weapons offenses, and assaults on educational personnel, while also expanding the use of alternative programs or virtual placements and setting rules for appeals, annual review, and attendance/funding treatment. The bill also updates due process and special education provisions to preserve federal disability-law protections and to require educational services in most expulsion cases.
HB779 further amends Kentucky’s school safety reporting laws by requiring school employees to report threats of violence, firearms on school property, and a range of serious offenses such as assault, sexual offenses, kidnapping, weapons possession, controlled substance violations, and property damage. It also updates record-transfer and enrollment disclosure requirements for students with prior expulsions or adjudications involving violence, weapons, alcohol, or drugs, and makes intentional failure to report under KRS 158.155 a Class A misdemeanor. The bill also removes older criminal penalty language from the reporting statute and simplifies the enforcement provision in the related penalty section.
The bill’s impact on state law is substantial because it revises multiple chapters of Kentucky education law, especially KRS 161.155, 158.150, 158.155, and 158.990. It increases district and state obligations toward assaulted school employees, expands mandatory discipline and reporting requirements, and gives local boards and administrators more explicit authority to remove disruptive or dangerous students from classrooms and place them in alternative settings. It also affects school districts, the Kentucky Department of Education, the Teachers’ Retirement System, employees covered by public school benefits, students subject to discipline, and families navigating school transfers after disciplinary incidents.
No committee transcript or vote history was provided, so there is no recorded public sentiment in the supplied materials. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears oriented toward school safety and employee protection, suggesting likely support from those favoring stronger discipline and workplace protections, while potential concerns could come from those worried about mandatory expulsion, due process, disability accommodations, or the fiscal and administrative costs of expanded leave and benefit coordination.
HB779 would amend Kentucky statutes governing school personnel leave and compensation, student discipline, and mandatory reporting of school violence. It expands leave and benefit protections for teachers and employees assaulted on the job, requires districts and the state to coordinate salary, workers’ compensation, retirement, health insurance, and counseling benefits, and revises sick leave donation and payout rules. It also strengthens school discipline authority, mandates policies for expulsion and alternative placement for serious misconduct, and updates reporting, record-transfer, and penalty provisions for school safety incidents.
No committee discussion or vote record was provided, so there is no direct evidence of legislative sentiment in the supplied materials. From the bill text, the measure appears to be framed as a school safety and employee-protection bill, which typically attracts support from advocates for stronger discipline and staff protections. At the same time, the breadth of the discipline provisions and the expanded state and district obligations could prompt caution from those concerned about costs, implementation, and student rights.
The main points of contention likely involve the balance between school safety and student due process, especially the mandatory 12-month expulsion provisions, the treatment of assaults on educational personnel, and the use of alternative placements or virtual programs. Another likely issue is the fiscal and administrative burden on districts and the Commonwealth, since the bill requires coordinated salary continuation, retirement and health contributions, and counseling coverage for assaulted employees. Stakeholders may also differ over how the bill affects students with disabilities and whether the expanded reporting and record-disclosure requirements are appropriately protective or overly punitive.