MA H5157

School resource officers are prohibited from serving as school disciplinarians, enforcing school regulations, or replacing licensed school psychologists, psychiatrists, or counselors, and may only be involved when conduct rises to the level of criminal behavior posing substantial physical harm, malicious property damage, or theft of substantial value.

Superintendents must annually report by July 16 to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and present publicly to school committees: costs of school resource officers and security staff, proposed budgets for mental health support personnel, and disaggregated data on school-based arrests, citations, court referrals, searches, and student-officer interactions.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education must collect disaggregated data on school-based arrests, citations, and court referrals from all school districts annually by August 1, with penalties including potential forfeiture of Chapter 70 funding for districts failing to submit data by September 30 without an extension.

One- or two-year grants will be available to public schools and districts for implementing "holistic school health and safety practices" that do not include law enforcement presence, covering costs such as restorative justice programs, advisory groups, staff training, and hiring licensed clinical social workers, with schools serving higher percentages of low-income students receiving competitive preference.

Grant recipients are prohibited from purchasing metal detectors, weapons, or surveillance technology, or hiring school-based security personnel during the grant term, and must commit to eliminating security personnel beyond a first-year transition period.