Texas schools may need panic buttons, door monitors if new law passes – By Michael Murney (Houston Chronicle) / Nov 4, 2022
The proposed law aims to address failures in law enforcement’s response to the Uvalde shooting.
A new proposed law would require Texas schools to install silent panic buttons in classrooms and to make sure that law enforcement and first responders’ two-way radios are functional, the Dallas Morning News reported Friday. According to the version of the proposed law released Thursday by the Texas Education Agency, Texas schools would also be required to ensure that all doors and windows leading into school buildings are locked and monitored.
TEA’s tentative new rule is the latest attempt to implement standardized protections for Texas students following the May 24 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas that left 19 students and two teachers dead at the hands of 18-year-old gunman Salvador Ramos. Gov. Greg Abbott told TEA to work on new safety regulations for schools in the first few days after the shooting.
Now, school districts will have a chance to apply for funding to install various security-related pieces of equipment inside school buildings. The funding, which will be awarded through a grant application-based system, can also be used to pay for the installation of potentially required panic alert technology.
