HB2485 would amend Pennsylvania’s Public School Code to allow school entities participating in the School Safety and Security Grant Program to create a trauma-informed records program. If a school chooses to establish one, it must maintain electronic records, in a department-developed format, that compile information about a student’s traumatic events and adverse childhood experiences. The records may include information from county or law enforcement agencies, family-authorized medical providers, behavioral health and crisis units, student assistance programs, school counselors, parent or guardian submissions, and school incident reports. The bill also requires a support plan for the student and directs the Department of Education to enforce that requirement.
The measure sets out a tiered access system for the records, with tier one containing the most complete file, tier two containing a summary and triggers, and tier three containing only a brief well-being statement. It limits use of the records to trauma-informed educational support, instructional planning, and student support decisions, and prohibits use of the records for school admissions, extracurricular participation, higher education admissions, or criminal and juvenile justice proceedings. The bill also provides for transfer of records when a student moves to another participating school, retention and destruction rules, parental notice and approval or rejection of record creation, and a third-degree misdemeanor penalty for unauthorized disclosure.
The bill would create a new section in the Public School Code governing school safety and security and would impose new recordkeeping, confidentiality, and training obligations on participating school entities. It would affect school districts and nonpublic schools that receive School Safety and Security Grant Program funding, as well as school counselors, administrators, mental health professionals, parents, guardians, and outside agencies that may contribute information or request access. It also defines key terms such as trauma, traumatic event, trauma-informed approach, support plan, and trauma-informed record.
Because there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, there is no documented legislative debate or voting sentiment to assess. Based on the bill text alone, the proposal appears oriented toward student mental health support and school safety, with a strong emphasis on confidentiality and parental control. Potential concerns suggested by the text include privacy, the scope of sensitive information collected, and the administrative burden of maintaining and transferring these records.
HB2485 would add a new trauma-informed records program to the Public School Code for school entities participating in the School Safety and Security Grant Program. It would authorize, but not require, participating schools to create and maintain electronic student records related to trauma and adverse childhood experiences, establish access and confidentiality rules, require a support plan, and impose a misdemeanor penalty for unauthorized disclosure. The bill would also require the Department of Education to develop the record format and regulations for retention and destruction, affecting school recordkeeping practices and student support procedures across participating public and nonpublic schools.
No committee discussion or vote history is provided, so there is no recorded legislative sentiment to summarize. On its face, the bill is framed as a student-support and school-safety measure, suggesting a generally protective and mental-health-oriented intent. The inclusion of parental notice, parental approval or rejection, and strict confidentiality provisions indicates an effort to address privacy concerns alongside the bill’s support-focused goals.
The main points of potential contention are privacy, consent, and administrative burden. The bill would collect and maintain highly sensitive information about students’ trauma histories, which may raise concerns about confidentiality, data security, and whether schools should hold such records at all. It also gives school officials and outside agencies limited access only with written authorization, and parents must be notified and may approve or reject creation of the record, indicating that parental control is likely to be a key issue. Schools may also object to the operational burden of creating, maintaining, transferring, and destroying these records, especially if they lack a mental health professional and must assign an administrator instead.