HB4556 H ED AM #1
White 3336
The Committee on Education moved to amend the bill on page 1, after the enacting clause, by striking out the remainder of the bill and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
ARTICLE 20. EDUCATION OF EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN.
§18-20-11.
Video cameras required in certain special education self-contained
classrooms; audio recording devices required in restrooms of self-contained
classrooms.
(a) A county board of education shall ensure placement of video cameras in self-contained classrooms and audio recording devices in the restrooms of self-contained classrooms as defined in state board policy.
(b) As used in this section:
(1) “Incident” means a raised suspicion by a teacher, aide, parent, or guardian of a child, of bullying, abuse, or neglect of a child or of harm to an employee of a public school by:
(A) An employee of a public school or school district; or
(B) Another student;
(2) “Self-contained classroom” means a classroom at a public school in which a majority of the students in regular attendance are provided special education instruction and as further defined in state board policy; and
(3) “Special education” means the same as defined in §18-20-1 et seq. of this code.
(c) (1) A county board of education shall provide a video camera to a public school for each self-contained classroom that is a part of that school which shall be used in every self-contained classroom.
(2) Prior to August 1, 2022, a county board of education shall provide an audio recording device to a public school to be used in the restroom of each self-contained classroom that is a part of that school.
(3) The principal of the school or other school administrator whom the principal assigns as a designee shall be the custodian of the video camera and audio recording device, all recordings generated by the video camera and audio recording device, and access to those recordings pursuant to this section.
(d)(1) Every public school that receives a video camera under this section shall operate and maintain the video camera in every self-contained classroom that is part of that school.
(2) Every public school that receives an audio recording device under this section shall operate and maintain the audio recording device in every restroom that is a part of a self-contained classroom that is part of that school: Provided, That each restroom of a self-contained classroom shall have posted on its door a notice that states: “Pursuant to state law, this restroom is equipped with an audio recording device for the protection of the students.”
(2) (3) If there is an interruption in the
operation of the video camera or audio recording device for any reason,
a written explanation should be submitted to the school principal and the
county board explaining the reason and length for which there was no recording.
The explanation shall be maintained at the county board office for at least one
year.
(e)(1) A video camera placed in a self-contained classroom shall be capable of:
(A) Monitoring all areas of the self-contained classroom, including, without limitation, a room attached to the self-contained classroom and used for other purposes; and
(B) Recording audio from all areas of the self-contained classroom, including, without limitation, a room attached to the self-contained classroom and used for other purposes.
(2) A video camera placed in a self-contained classroom shall not monitor a restroom or any other area in the self-contained classroom where a student changes his or her clothes except, for incidental monitoring of a minor portion of a restroom or other area where a student changes his or her clothes because of the layout of the self-contained classroom.
(3) An audio recording device shall be placed in the restroom of the self-contained classroom and notice provided pursuant to §18-20-11(d)(2) of this code.
(3) (4) A video camera placed in a
self-contained classroom or an audio recording device required by this
section is not required to be in operation during the time in which students
are not present in the self-contained classroom.
(f) Before a public school initially places a video camera in a self-contained classroom or an audio recording device in the restroom of a self-contained classroom, pursuant to this section, the public school shall provide written notice of the placement to:
(1) The parent or legal guardian of a student who is assigned to the self-contained classroom: Provided, That a parent or legal guardian of a student in the self-contained classroom has the option to elect that their child be permitted to use a restroom where there is no audio recording, if they so choose, by completing an “opt-out” form;
(2) The county board; and
(3) The school employee(s) who is assigned to work with one or more students in the self-contained classroom.
(g)(1) A Except as provided in §18-20-11(g)(2)
of this code, a public school shall retain video and audio recorded from
a camera placed under pursuant to this section for at least three
months after the date the video was recorded of recording, after
which the recording shall be deleted or otherwise made unretrievable subject
to the following:
(A) If the minimum three-month period overlaps the summer break occurring between the last day of one instructional term and the first day of the next instructional term, the minimum three-month period shall be extended by the number of days occurring between the two instructional terms;
(B) For any school-based camera system or audio device recording that is installed or replaced after April 1, 2022, the public school shall retain the recordings for at least 365 days after the date of recording and no extension of this time period during the summer break is required.
(2) If a person requests to view a recording under subsection
(k) of this section §18-20-11(k) or §18-20-11(l) of this code, the
public school shall retain the recording from the date of the request until:
(A)(i) Except as provided in §18-20-11(g)(2)(A)(ii) of
this code, the person views the recording;
(ii) A person who requests to view a recording shall
make himself or herself available for viewing the recording within
30 The earlier of the person viewing the
recording or 60 days after the person who requested the recording was
being notified by the public school that the person’s request has
been granted recording is available; and
(B) Any investigation and any administrative or legal proceedings that result from the recording have been completed, including, without limitation, the exhaustion of all appeals.
(3) In no event may the recording be deleted or otherwise made unretrievable before the time period set forth in §18-20-11(g)(1) of this code elapses.
(h) This section does not:
(1) Waive any immunity from liability of a public school
district or employee of a public school district; or
(2) Create any liability for a cause of action against a public school or school district or employee of a public school or school district; or
(3) Require the principal or other designated school administrator to review the video or audio recordings absent an authorized request pursuant to this code section or suspicion of an incident except as otherwise provided in §18-20-11(j) of this code.
(i) A public school or school district shall not
(1) Allow regular, continuous, or continual monitoring
of video recorded under this section; or
(2) Use use video or audio recorded
under this section for:
(A) (1) Teacher evaluations; or
(B) (2) Any purpose other than the promotion
and protection of the health, wellbeing, and safety of students
receiving special education and related services in a self-contained classroom or
restroom of that self-contained classroom.
(j) Except as provided under §18-20-11(k) and
§18-20-11(l) of this code, a video recording of a student
made under this section is confidential and shall not be released or viewed by
anyone except the school principal, other school administration designee, or
county designee if the school principal or other school administration designee
is unable to review the recording pursuant to this subsection. The school
principal, other school administration designee, or county designee shall review
no less than 15 minutes of the video and no less than 15 minutes of the audio
of each self-contained classroom and restroom of that self-contained classroom at
the school no less than every 90 days. The state board shall include in its
rule authorized by this section requirements for documentation of compliance
with the requirements of this subsection.
(k) Within seven days of receiving a request, a public
school or school district shall allow viewing of a video review of a
recording by:
(1) A public school or school district employee who is
involved in an alleged incident that is documented by the video
recording and has been reported to the public school or school district;
(2) A parent or legal guardian of a student who is
involved in an alleged incident that is documented by the video
recording and has been reported to the public school or school district; or
(3) An employee of a public school or school district as
part of an investigation into an alleged incident that is documented by the video
recording and has been reported to the public school or school district.
(l) Within seven days of receiving a request, a public school or school district shall allow review of a recording by and comply with all subsequent requests for reviewing or release of the recording by:
(4) (1) A law-enforcement officer or
employee of the Department of Health and Human Resources, as part of an
investigation into an alleged incident that is documented by the video
recording and has been reported to the law-enforcement agency: Provided,
That if a release of the recording is requested pursuant to this subdivision,
the agency getting a copy of the recording will maintain strict confidentiality
of the recording and not further release the recording without authorization
from the public school district through its superintendent; or
(5) The Department of Health and Human Resources as
part of a child abuse and neglect investigation: Provided, That any
access provided to the Department of Health and Human Resources pursuant to
this subdivision shall comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy
Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. §1232g
(2) A judge, counsel, or other legal entity that is charged with deciding or representing either the school board, students, or employees in any matters related to legal issues arising from an incident: Provided, That the recording may only be released pursuant to an appropriate protective order or under seal.
(m) If an incident is discovered while initially reviewing a recording that requires a report to be made under §49-2-803 of this code, that report shall be made by the reviewer pursuant to that section within 24 hours of viewing the incident.
(l) (n) When a video recording
is under review as part of the investigation of an alleged incident, and the video
recording reveals a student violating a disciplinary code or rule of the
school, which violation is not related to the alleged incident for which the
review is occurring, and which violation is not already the subject of a
disciplinary action against the student, the student is not subject to
disciplinary action by the school for such unrelated violation unless it
reveals a separate incident as described in §18-20-11(b)(1) of this code.
(m) (o) It is not a violation of subsection
(j) of this section §18-20-11(j) of this code if a contractor or
other employee of a public school or school district incidentally views a
video reviews a recording under this section if the contractor or
employee of a public school or school district is performing job duties related
to the:
(1) Installation, operation, or maintenance of video or audio equipment; or
(2) Retention of video or audio recordings.
(n) (p) This section does not applies
solely to cameras and audio recording devices installed pursuant to this code
section and does not limit the access of a student’s parent or legal
guardian to a video recording regarding the student reviewable
under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. §1232g,
or any other law.
(o) (q) A public school or school district
shall:
(1) Take necessary precautions to conceal the identity of
a student who appears in a video recording but is not involved in the
alleged incident documented by the video recording for which the public
school allows viewing under subsection (j) of this section §18-20-11(j)
of this code, including, where applicable and without limitation,
blurring the face of the uninvolved student; and
(2) Provide procedures to protect the confidentiality of
student records contained in a video recording in accordance with the
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. §1232g, or any
other law.
(p) (r) (1) Any aggrieved person may appeal
to the State Board of Education an action by a public school or school district
that the person believes to be in violation of this section.
(2) The state board shall grant a hearing on an appeal under this subsection within 45 days of receiving the appeal.
(q) (s) (1) A public school or school
district may use funds distributed from the Safe Schools Fund created in
§18-5-48 of this code or any other available funds to meet the requirements of
this section.
(2) A public school or school district may accept gifts, grants, or donations to meet the requirements of this section.
(r) (t) The state board may promulgate a rule
in accordance with §29A-3B-1 et seq. of this code to clarify the
requirements of this section and address any unforeseen issues that might arise
relating to the implementation of the requirements of this section.
Adopted
Rejected