Text of NY A 9320 (2004)

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Bill No.: Summary Actions Floor Votes Memo Text A09320 Summary: BILL NOA09320 SAME ASSAME AS S04023-A SPONSORMcDonough COSPNSRHayes, Wirth, Calhoun, McDonald, Townsend, Finch, O'Connell, Kolb MLTSPNSRAlfano, Bacalles, Burling, Butler, Crouch, Errigo, Ferrara, Fitzpatrick, Straniere, Tedisco,Thiele, Warner, Weisenberg, Young Amd SS801-a, 2801 & 3028-c, add S2803, Ed L; add S240.33, Pen L Prohibits bullying on school property; defines bullying; establishes punishment for people who are found guilty of bullying on school property; establishes the class B misdemeanor of aggravated harassment of teachers and school personnel.Go to top A09320 Text: STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9320 IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled) January 7, 2004 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. McDONOUGH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to prohibiting bullying on school property; and to amend the penal law, in relation to estab- lishing the crime of aggravated harassment of teachers and school personnel The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative intent. In recent years, the state legislature 2 has taken several steps to ensure that school pupils, teachers and other 3 personnel are provided with a safe and secure learning environment on 4 all school property. Through the enactment of provisions requiring the 5 fingerprinting of a school district's prospective employees and the 6 enactment of the Safe Schools Against Violence in Education Act, the 7 legislature has ensured the increased safety of our schools. However, 8 to address concerns that harassment of pupils and school personnel 9 through acts of bullying can be both disruptive to the learning process 10 and harmful, mentally and/or physically, to intended victims, the legis- 11 lature finds that enactment of this legislation to prohibit bullying on 12 school property, which shall be known and may be noted as the "Schools 13 as Safe Harbors Act," is necessary and appropriate to further ensure 14 that New York state's public schools be made as safe as possible. 15 § 2. Section 801-a of the education law, as added by chapter 181 of 16 the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 17 § 801-a. Instruction in civility, citizenship and character education. 18 The regents shall ensure that the course of instruction in grades 19 kindergarten through twelve includes a component on civility, citizen- 20 ship and character education. Such component shall instruct students on 21 the principles of honesty, tolerance, personal responsibility, respect 22 for others, observance of laws and rules, courtesy, dignity and other 23 traits which will enhance the quality of their experiences in, and 24 contributions to, the community. Such component shall also address 25 methods of discouraging acts of bullying, as defined in subdivision one EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02231-03-4 A. 9320 2 1 of section twenty-eight hundred three of this chapter, against fellow 2 students. The regents shall determine how to incorporate such component 3 in existing curricula and the commissioner shall promulgate any regu- 4 lations needed to carry out such determination of the regents. 5 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 2801 of the education law is amended by 6 adding a new paragraph a-1 to read as follows: 7 a-1. provisions prohibiting bullying on school property, including a 8 school function, pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred three of this 9 article; 10 § 4. Subdivision 2 of section 2801 of the education law is amended by 11 adding a new paragraph f-1 to read as follows: 12 f-1. when any school employee having reasonable cause to suspect that 13 a student has committed an act of bullying, as defined in section twen- 14 ty-eight hundred three of this article, the school employee shall report 15 such incident to the principal, or designee thereof, who in turn shall 16 report such incident to the superintendent, upon a determination by the 17 principal, or designee thereof, that there is a reasonable suspicion 18 that the act occurred. Failure of an employee to make a report pursuant 19 to this paragraph may not be the basis for any disciplinary action or 20 professional misconduct charge against the employee; 21 § 5. The education law is amended by adding a new section 2803 to read 22 as follows: 23 § 2803. Bullying prohibited. 1. For purposes of this section, the 24 following terms shall have the following meanings: 25 a. "Public school" means: 26 (i) a public elementary or secondary school, kindergarten or pre-kin- 27 dergarten program, adult or continuing education program or other educa- 28 tional program operated by a school district, charter school, board of 29 cooperative educational services, county vocational education and exten- 30 sion boards; and 31 (ii) a school or educational program that serves students in any of 32 grades kindergarten through twelve and is operated by the department, or 33 is operated or supervised by another state agency or a political subdi- 34 vision and is subject to the provisions of section one hundred twelve of 35 this chapter. 36 b. "Publicly funded special education program" means an approved 37 provider of special education programs and services under section 38 forty-four hundred ten of this chapter, an approved private residential 39 or non-residential school for the provision of special services or 40 programs pursuant to subdivision two of section forty-four hundred one 41 of this chapter, a state-supported school subject to the provisions of 42 article eighty-five of this chapter or any other agency or entity that 43 provides special education programs or services pursuant to the 44 provisions of article eighty-one or eighty-nine of this chapter. 45 c. "School property" means in or within any building, structure, 46 athletic playing field, playground, parking lot or land contained within 47 the real property boundary line of a public school or a publicly funded 48 special education program; or in or on a school bus, as defined in 49 section one hundred forty-two of the vehicle and traffic law; and a 50 "school function" means a school sponsored extra-curricular event or 51 activity. 52 d. "Bullying" means threatening, stalking or seeking to coerce or 53 compel a person to do something; engaging in verbal or physical conduct 54 that threatens another with harm, including intimidation through the use 55 of epithets or slurs involving race, ethnicity, national origin, reli- 56 gion, religious practices, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. A. 9320 3 1 2. No student shall be subject to bullying by any student of a public 2 school or publicly funded special education program. 3 3. a. Any person found to be in violation of subdivision two of this 4 section in a public school or on school property shall be subject to 5 disciplinary action in accordance with the district's code of conduct 6 adopted pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred one of this article and 7 the discipline procedures applicable to students or employees of the 8 public school. Any person found to be in violation of subdivision two of 9 this section in a publicly funded special education program shall be 10 subject to discipline under the policies and procedures of such program 11 governing student conduct or employee discipline. 12 b. Nothing in this section shall be construed to create a private 13 cause of action. 14 4. Nothing in this section shall apply, or be construed to apply, to 15 private, religious or denominational educational institutions. Nor shall 16 this section preclude or limit, or be perceived to preclude or limit, 17 any right or cause of action provided under any local, state or federal 18 ordinance, law, rule or regulation. 19 5. A plain-language, age-appropriate description of the policies 20 outlined in subdivision two of this section shall be distributed to 21 employees, students and parents of each public school or publicly-funded 22 special education program on at least an annual basis. In the case of 23 public schools, such requirement shall be met by including such 24 description in the summary of the code of conduct provided to each 25 student and mailed to parents pursuant to subdivision four of section 26 twenty-eight hundred one of this article. 27 6. The provisions of this section shall be severable, and if any court 28 of competent jurisdiction declares any phrase, clause, sentence or 29 provision of this article to be invalid, or its applicability to any 30 government agency, person or circumstance, is declared invalid, the 31 remainder of this article and its relevant applicability shall not be 32 affected. 33 § 6. Section 3028-c of the education law, as added by chapter 181 of 34 the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 35 § 3028-c. Protection of school employees who report acts of bullying 36 or violence and weapons possession. Any school employee having reason- 37 able cause to suspect that a person has committed an act of bullying as 38 such term is defined in section twenty-eight hundred three of this chap- 39 ter or violence while in or on school property, or having reasonable 40 cause to suspect that a person has committed an act of bullying as such 41 term is defined in section twenty-eight hundred three of this chapter or 42 violence upon a student, school employee or volunteer either upon school 43 grounds or elsewhere, or having reasonable cause to suspect that a 44 person has brought a gun, knife, bomb or other instrument capable of or 45 that appears capable of causing death or physical injury upon school 46 grounds who in good faith reports such information to school officials, 47 to the commissioner, or to law enforcement authorities, shall have immu- 48 nity from any civil liability that may arise from the making of such 49 report, and no school district or school district employee shall take, 50 request or cause a retaliatory action against any such employee who 51 makes such report. 52 § 7. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 240.33 to read 53 as follows: 54 § 240.33 Aggravated harassment of teachers and school personnel. 55 A person is guilty of aggravated harassment of teachers and school 56 personnel when, with intent to harass, annoy or alarm a person whom he A. 9320 4 1 or she knows or reasonably should know to be a teacher, administrator or 2 other staff member of a public or private elementary, intermediate, 3 junior high, vocational or high school, engaged in the course of his or 4 her employment, he or she strikes, shoves or kicks such teacher, admin- 5 istrator or other staff member, and when such conduct takes place on 6 school property as defined in section twenty-eight hundred one of the 7 education law where such teacher, administrator or other staff member is 8 employed or assigned on the date of such conduct. 9 Aggravated harassment of teachers and school personnel is a class B 10 misdemeanor. 11 § 8. This act shall take effect on the first of September next 12 succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law. Go to top Sitemap Request Information Directions and Maps