An Act to Update the Provision of Law Concerning Student Codes of Conduct in Order to Reflect Best Practices Regarding Behavioral Threat Assessment and Response
Summary
LD 21 amends Maine’s school law governing student codes of conduct to require school policies and procedures that address disruptive or violent students, students who threaten death or bodily harm, and students who may pose a threat of violence to themselves or others. The bill directs schools to establish procedures for identifying, assessing, and intervening with such students, and to include student supports, disciplinary actions, and placement decisions as appropriate.
The measure is framed as an update to reflect best practices in behavioral threat assessment and response. It does not create a new standalone program, but instead revises the duties of school administrative units under Title 20-A to more explicitly incorporate threat assessment and intervention into existing conduct and discipline policies, including removal from classrooms or school buses when necessary.
Impact
The bill amends 20-A MRSA §1001, sub-§15, paragraph F, expanding school board policy requirements related to student discipline and safety. It broadens the statutory language from addressing disruptive or violent students to also requiring identification, assessment, and intervention for students who may pose threats to themselves or others, and it expressly references supports, disciplinary actions, placement decisions, and removal from classrooms or buses. As enacted, it changes the legal expectations for local school policies statewide and affects school administrative units, school boards, administrators, and students subject to conduct and safety interventions.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have received mixed but ultimately favorable support. It advanced on majority ought-to-pass reports in both chambers, but the recorded votes show notable opposition in each chamber, suggesting the concept was supported enough to pass but remained controversial. The absence of committee transcript excerpts limits insight into detailed debate, but the final enactment indicates the Legislature and governor accepted the need to update school safety and conduct procedures.
Contention
The main point of contention appears to be the balance between school safety and student discipline on one hand, and concerns about how behavioral threat assessment tools may be applied on the other. Supporters likely viewed the bill as a necessary modernization of school policy to better identify and respond to potential violence and self-harm. Opponents, reflected in the substantial nay votes, may have been concerned about overreach, implementation burdens, subjective assessments, or the potential for punitive responses to student behavior rather than supportive interventions.
Relating to the membership of a public school's threat assessment and safe supportive school team when conducting threat assessments of certain students.
Creates the "Missouri Student Responsibility and Teacher Empowerment Act" requiring school districts and charter schools to adopt, publicly post, and annually review a code of student conduct
To Require The Department Of Human Services And The Department Of Education To Establish Regional Behavioral Health Programs; To Amend The Law Concerning The Education Of Certain Students; And To Declare An Emergency.