Bill to require safety drills at Georgia schools gets initial approval
State senators gave initial approval to a bill that would require Georgia schools to hold periodic safety drills to prepare students who might face situations similar to the fatal shootings last week at a Florida high school.
State Sen. Horacena Tate, D-Atlanta, sponsored the bill after speaking with a South Cobb High School sophomore a few weeks ago.
“I thought of this bill a week before the Parkland incident,” said Niles Francis, 16. “I thought of this bill the day my school had its first drill.”
A 19-year-old man is charged in a mass shooting that killed 17 people last week at a high school in Parkland, Fla., spurring lawmakers to find ways to make schools safer.
The legislation appears to be fast-tracked. After being introduced Tuesday, the bill passed a committee with a unanimous vote Thursday.
Public schools already are required to create safety plans. Some schools and districts hold drills to prepare students and staff for an emergency situation, but Tate's proposal, Senate Bill 457, would make it a requirement for all of the state's schools.
Louis Erste, an associate superintendent at the Georgia Department of Education, said his agency supports the move.
“This is just so critical and it really helps with safety,” he said.
Schools already hold other drills, such as fire drills, so running through the safety plan wouldn’t be an inconvenience, Erste said.
Francis told the Senate Education and Youth Committee that many students aren’t prepared to handle an emergency situation at school.
“Children are being murdered in the most senseless way,” he said. “I would like to go to school without having the thought that I may not return that afternoon.”
State Sen. John Wilkinson, R-Toccoa, said the bill was "right on the money."
“We need to be prepared,” he said. “Even though we have different ideas — all 236 people up here — keeping our children safe is foremost in our minds.”
Francis said,”This bill will help the state of Georgia, help every school in the state of Georgia, help every teacher in the state of Georgia be better prepared in case something like this were to take place.”
About the Author
Maya T. Prabhu covers the Georgia Senate and statewide issues as a government reporter for The AJC. Born in Queens, New York, and raised in northern Virginia, Maya attended Spelman College and then the University of Maryland for a master's degree. She writes about social issues, the criminal justice system and legislative politics.
