HARRISBURG, Pa. – A measure aimed at increasing reporting requirements for weapons incidents at Pennsylvania schools is headed to the governor’s desk.
Sponsored by State Senator Jarrett Coleman (R-16), who represents parts of Bucks and Lehigh counties, Senate Bill 246 would require parents and school employees to be notified by their school district of any weapon possession incidents occurring on school property. This applies to public, nonpublic and private schools.
“This legislation stems from an incident in the Parkland School District when parents learned about a weapon incident from police reports and the local news. I was shocked to learn that the district didn’t have to notify them immediately. Parents send their children to school with the expectation for them to receive a quality education in a safe environment, and they deserve to know what’s happening,” said Coleman.
Under current law, school districts are not required to inform parents or guardians about incidents when a weapon is brought onto school grounds or to related activities.
Approval of the legislation comes right after two schools in Lehigh and Montgomery counties each caught a student with a gun, one at Innovative Arts Academy Charter School in Catasauqua, Lehigh County, and the other at North Penn High School in Montgomery County. The guns were confiscated in both of those incidents without anyone being hurt.
Both schools sent out notifications, but a state lawmaker from the Lehigh Valley says that’s not always the case.
“This bill essentially now requires something that really should have been always done,” says Coleman.
“As a parent you send your children to school to learn, to get a great education but also to be in a safe environment. Parents and even staff in the building should know incidents involving weapons,” he continued.
The bill received bipartisan support from state lawmakers now it just needs the governor’s signature.