[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 809 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 809
To transfer funds for Energy Efficiency Improvements and Renewable
Energy Improvements at Public School Facilities to the Attorney General
to award grants to States to promote safety and security in schools.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 15, 2023
Mr. Rounds (for himself, Mr. Scott of Florida, Mrs. Hyde-Smith, and Ms.
Lummis) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To transfer funds for Energy Efficiency Improvements and Renewable
Energy Improvements at Public School Facilities to the Attorney General
to award grants to States to promote safety and security in schools.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Security to Avoid Violence in
Educational Settings Act'' or the ``SAVES Act''.
SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR STATES FOR SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
(A) a local educational agency, as defined in
section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801);
(B) an Indian Tribe or Tribal organization, as
defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination
and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304); or
(C) an elementary school or secondary school, as
such terms are defined in section 8101 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 7801).
(2) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the 50 States,
the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(b) Transfer of Funds.--The amount appropriated for Energy
Efficiency Improvements and Renewable Energy Improvements at Public
School Facilities, as authorized under section 40541 of the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (42 U.S.C. 18831), under the
Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Appropriations Act (division B of
Public Law 117-58) is transferred to the Attorney General to carry out
subsection (c).
(c) Grant Program for States for School Safety and Security.--
(1) In general.--The Attorney General shall use the amount
transferred under subsection (b) to award grants to States from
allotments under paragraph (2) for each of fiscal years 2023
through 2027. From the amount transferred, $100,000,000 shall
be available to be allotted for each fiscal year.
(2) State allotments.--
(A) Allotment.--
(i) In general.--Subject to clauses (ii)
and (iii), from the amount available to be
allotted for a fiscal year under paragraph (1),
the Attorney General shall allot to each State
for the fiscal year an amount that bears the
same relationship to the amount available as
the number of individuals residing in the State
who are aged 5 through 17, bears to the number
of such individuals residing in all States.
(ii) Small state minimum.--No State
receiving an allotment under this subparagraph
for a fiscal year shall receive less than 0.75
percent of the total amount allotted under this
subparagraph for the fiscal year.
(iii) Puerto rico.--The amount allotted
under this subparagraph to the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico for a fiscal year may not exceed
0.75 percent of the total amount allotted under
this subparagraph for the fiscal year.
(B) Reallotment.--If a State does not receive an
allotment under this paragraph for a fiscal year, the
Attorney General shall reallot the amount of the
State's allotment to the remaining States for the
fiscal year in accordance with this paragraph.
(3) Use of allotment.--Each State that receives an
allotment under paragraph (2) for a fiscal year shall--
(A) reserve not less than 95 percent of the
allotment to make subgrants to eligible entities under
paragraph (4);
(B) reserve not more than 1 percent of the
allotment for the administrative costs of carrying out
its responsibilities under this section, including
public reporting on how funds made available under this
section are being expended by eligible entities; and
(C) use the amount made available to the State and
not reserved under subparagraphs (A) and (B) for
activities designed to support eligible entities in
identifying, planning, and implementing school security
improvements.
(4) Subgrants to eligible entities.--
(A) In general.--Each State that receives an
allotment under paragraph (2) shall award subgrants to
eligible entities to support the eligible entities in
identifying, planning, and implementing school security
improvements.
(B) Applications.--An eligible entity that desires
to receive a subgrant grant under this paragraph shall
submit an application to the State at such time, in
such manner, and accompanied by such information as the
State may require.
(C) Use of subgrant funds.--An eligible entity that
receives a subgrant under this paragraph shall use the
subgrant funds, subject to any rules established by the
State, for the purpose of planning and designing school
buildings and facilities, installing infrastructure,
and implementing technology or other measures, that
strengthen security on school premises, which may
include--
(i) controlling access to school premises
or facilities, through the use of metal
detectors, or other measures, or technology,
with evidence-based effectiveness (to the
extent the State involved determines that such
evidence is reasonably available), in
accordance with the needs of the school;
(ii) implementing any technology or
measure, or installing any infrastructure, to
cover and conceal students within the school
during crisis situations;
(iii) implementing technology to provide
notification to relevant law enforcement and
first responders during crisis situations;
(iv) implementing any technology or
measure, including hiring school security
officers, or installing any infrastructure,
with evidence-based effectiveness (to the
extent the State involved determines that such
evidence is reasonably available) to increase
the safety of school students and staff;
(v) implementing any digital content
monitoring technology to assist in the
monitoring of communication on school-provided
platforms, as long as the system does not
transmit data outside of the United States and
uses human review instead of automated alerts
to increase safety of school students and
staff;
(vi) implementing any technology or
measure, or installing any infrastructure, for
school safety reinforcement, including bullet-
resistant doors and windows; and
(vii) implementing any technology or system
that would reduce the time needed to
disseminate official information to parents
regarding the safety of their children during
and immediately following a crisis.
(D) Restriction on doj.--The Attorney General may
not promulgate a rule that restricts a State's ability
to determine the eligible uses of subgrant funds
awarded under this paragraph.
(5) Matching requirements.--
(A) State match.--Each State that receives a grant
under this section shall provide non-Federal matching
funds equal to 20 percent of the amount of the grant
toward the cost of carrying out the activities
described in this section.
(B) Eligible entity match.--
(i) In general.--Each eligible entity that
receives a subgrant under this section shall
provide matching funds, in cash or through in-
kind contributions, from Federal, State, local,
or private sources in an amount equal to 5
percent of the amount of the subgrant toward
the cost of carrying out the activities
described in this section.
(ii) Waiver.--
(I) In general.--A State may waive
the matching funds requirement under
clause (i), on a case-by-case basis,
upon a showing of exceptional
circumstances, such as--
(aa) the difficulty of
raising matching funds for a
program to serve a rural area;
(bb) the difficulty of
raising matching funds in areas
with a concentration of local
educational agencies or schools
with a high percentage of
students aged 5 through 17--
(AA) who are in
poverty, as counted in
the most recent census
data approved by the
Attorney General;
(BB) who are
eligible for a free or
reduced price lunch
under the Richard B.
Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1751 et seq.);
(CC) whose families
receive assistance
under the State program
funded under part A of
title IV of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C.
601 et seq.); or
(DD) who are
eligible to receive
medical assistance
under the Medicaid
program; and
(cc) the difficulty of
raising funds on tribal land.
(II) State to cover eligible entity
match.--A State that waives the
matching funds requirement under clause
(i), shall provide the amount waived in
addition to the State match required
under subparagraph (A).
(iii) Consideration.--A State shall not
consider an eligible entity's ability to match
funds when determining which eligible entity
will receive subgrants under this section.
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