The Florida Senate has passed the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, in what they call a comprehensive approach to addressing the issues presented by the school shooting in Parkland, Fla.
The bill will still have to go to the House and then to the Governor's office before it is law.
The bill addresses mental health, firearm safety and school safety
“The opportunity to meet with and listen to survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting as well as the families of the victims has had a tremendous impact on each and every Senator and has significantly influenced the development of this important legislation,” said Senator Bill Galvano (R-Bradenton) who presented Senate Bill 7026 today. “We are listening. The Senate hears you and we are taking the appropriate steps to help ensure that a senseless tragedy like this never happens again.”
RELATED: Florida lawmakers debate school-safety bill in rare session
Here is how the bill plans to address each of the issues:
Mental Health
• Authorizes a law enforcement officer who is taking a person into custody for an involuntary examination under the Baker Act to seize and hold a firearm or ammunition from the person for 24 hours after the person is released and does not have a risk protection order against them or is the subject of a firearm disability.
• Prohibits a person who has been adjudicated mentally defective or who has been committed to a mental institution from owning or possessing a firearm until a court orders otherwise.
• Creates a process for a law enforcement officer or law enforcement agency to petition a court for a risk protection order to temporarily prevent persons who are at high risk of harming themselves or others from accessing firearms when a person poses a significant danger to himself or herself or others, including significant danger as a result of a mental health crisis or violent behavior. The bill also:
o Allows a court to issue a risk protection order for up to 12 months.
o Requires the surrender of all firearms and ammunition if a risk protection order is issued.
o Provides a process for a risk protection order to be vacated or extended.
Firearm Safety
The legislation also provides new provisions to ensure full and complete background checks when a firearm is purchased:
• Requires a three-day waiting period for all firearms, not just handguns or until the background check is completed, whichever is later. Provides exceptions for:
• Concealed weapons permit holders, and
• For the purchase of firearms other than handguns, an exception for:
o Individuals who have completed a 16 hour hunter safety course;
o Individuals holding a valid Florida hunting license; or
o Law enforcement officers, correctional officers and service members (military and national guard)
The bill addresses two of the most frequent requests Senators heard from the families of victims simply to raise the age for purchasing a firearm and ban devices that turn a legal firearm into an illegal weapon.
• Prohibits a person under 21 years of age from purchasing a firearm, and prohibits licensed firearm dealers, importers, and manufacturers, from selling a firearm, except in the case of a member of the military, or a law enforcement or correctional officer when purchasing a rifle or shotgun. (Persons under 21 years of age are already prohibited from purchasing a handgun under federal law.)
• Prohibits a bump-fire stock from being imported, transferred, distributed, sold, keeping for sale, offering for sale, possessing, or giving away within the state.
School Safety
• Establishes the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission to investigate system failures in the Parkland school shooting and prior mass violence incidents, and develop recommendations for system improvements.
• Codifies the Office of Safe Schools within the Florida Department of Education (DOE) and which will service as a central repository for the best practices, training standards, and compliance regarding school safety and security.
• Permits a sheriff to establish a Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program.
o The legislation allows school districts to decide whether to participate in the guardian program if it is available in their county.
o A guardian must complete 132 hours of comprehensive firearm safety and proficiency training, pass psychological evaluation, submit to and pass drug tests; and complete certified diversity training. The guardian program is named after Coach Aaron Feis, who lost his life protecting students during the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The guardian program is completely voluntary for a sheriff to establish, for a school district to participate, and for an individual to volunteer.
o Individuals who exclusively perform classroom duties as classroom teachers are excluded from participating in a Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program. However, this limitation does not apply to classroom teachers of a Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program; a current service member; and a current or former law enforcement officer.
• Requires each district school board and school district superintendent to cooperate with law enforcement agencies to assign one or more safe-school officers at each school facility. The safe-school officer requirement can be satisfied by appointing any combination of a school resource officer, a school safety officer, or a school guardian.
• Requires each district school board to designate a district school safety specialist to serve as the district’s primary point of public contact for public school safety functions.
• Requires each school district to designate school safety specialists and a threat assessment team at each school, and requires the team to operate under the district school safety specialist’s direction.
• Requires the DOE to contract for the development of a Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool which will assist school districts in conducting security assessments to identify threats and vulnerabilities.
• Creates the mental health assistance allocation to assist school districts in establishing or expanding school-based mental health care.
The legislation also:
• Prohibits a person from making, posting, or transmitting a threat to conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism.
• Requires DCF to contract for community action treatment teams to provider behavioral health and support services.
• Requires FDLE to procure a mobile app that would allow students and the community to relay information anonymously concerning unsafe, dangerous threats. The students of Marjory Stoneman Douglass recommended that the program be named “FortifyFL”
The legislation appropriates $400 million to implement the bill provisions.
For more on the bill,click here.
