Text of MA H 3584 (2012)

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 03904 FILED ON: 06/30/2011 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 03584 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts _______________ PRESENTED BY: ￿ [Primary Sponsor] ￿ _______________ To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General Court assembled: The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the passage of the accompanying bill: relative to bullying in schools. _______________ PETITION OF: NAME: DISTRICT/ADDRESS: HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 03584 Report of the special commission established (pursuant to Section 18 of Chapter 92 of the Acts of 2010) relative to implementation of the school bullying law [copies of said report forwarded to the House committee on Ways and Means and the joint committees on Education and the Judiciary]. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts _______________ In the Year Two Thousand Eleven _______________ relative to bullying in schools. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1 SECTION 1. Section 37O of chapter 71 of the general laws, as added by section 5 of chapter 2 92 of the acts of 2010, is hereby amended in subsection (d) by striking the third paragraph and 3 inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:- 4 Each plan shall include a statement recognizing that certain students may be more 5 vulnerable to becoming targets of bullying, harassment, or teasing based on actual or perceived 6 differentiating characteristics, including but not limited to race, color, religion, ancestry, national 7 origin, sex, socioeconomic status, academic status, gender identity or expression, physical 8 appearance, sexual orientation, or mental, physical, developmental, or sensory disability, or by 9 association with a person who has or is perceived to have one or more of these characteristics. 10 The plan shall include specific steps the district will take to create a safe, supportive environment 11 for vulnerable populations in the school community, and provide all students with the skills, 12 knowledge, and strategies to prevent or respond to bullying, harassment, or teasing. A school 13 district, charter school, non-public school, approved private day or residential school or 14 collaborative school may establish separate discrimination or harassment policies that include 15 these or other categories of students. Nothing in this section shall alter the obligations of a school 16 district, charter school, non-public school, approved private day or residential school or 17 collaborative school to remediate any discrimination or harassment based on a person's 18 membership in a legally protected category under local, state or federal law. 19 SECTION 2. Said section 37O of chapter 71, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding 20 the following section:- 21 (k) The department, after consultation with the attorney general, shall develop and implement 22 a mechanism for the collection and analysis of data regarding bullying. School districts, charter 23 schools, approved private day or reisdential schools and collaborative schools shall annually 24 report said data regarding bullying incidents to the department. The department shall compile an 25 annual report regarding current levels and the nature of bullying in schools and file the same with 26 the attorney general and with the clerks of the senate and the house of representatives who shall 27 forward the same to the chairs of the joint committee on education, the chairs of the joint 28 committee on the judiciary, and the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and 29 means. 30 SECTION 3. Said chapter 92 of the acts of 2010 is hereby further amended in section 18 by 31 adding the following:- 32 The commission shall continue to review the implementation of this act through June 30, 2013 33 and shall file an annual report with the clerks of the senate and the house of representatives who 34 shall forward the same to the chairs of the joint committee on education, the chairs of the joint 35 committee on the judiciary, and the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and 36 means on or before June 30 of each year.