Dear Neighbor,
A bill designed to further legislate against bullying in our schools is back in play after stalling during the 2013 session.
H.F. 826 – aka the “Safe and Supportive Schools Act” – passed the House but the Senate last year did not act on it. The Senate appears ready to vote on it soon, potentially bringing this bill closer to enactment.
A key point of contention with this legislation is that many people prefer to have parents and school officials at the local level in charge of tailoring anti-bullying policy to their needs. They are concerned this bill would lead to statewide policies and costly unfunded mandates. Also, current law already requires public schools to have policies protecting students from bullying.
Another top concern for some in this bill is a lack of required parental notification in instances of bullying. A group of senators has introduced the “Stamp Out Bullying Bill” as an alternative to provide more local control and parental rights. It is modeled after legislation that has been successful in other states, but this proposal has yet to gain traction in St. Paul.
I think we all agree that bullying has no place in our schools and I would like to hear your thoughts on this issue. Do you think we need more state regulations to eliminate bullying, or should we allow our local schools to make decisions in this are that they feel will best suit their particular situation?
Sincerely,
Paul