Florida Senate - 2020                                    SB 1644
       
       
        
       By Senator Book
       
       
       
       
       
       32-00047E-20                                          20201644__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to students with disabilities in
    3         public schools; amending s. 1003.573, F.S.; defining
    4         terms; requiring school districts to prohibit the use
    5         of seclusion on students with disabilities in public
    6         schools; providing requirements for the use of
    7         restraint; prohibiting specified restraint techniques;
    8         revising school district policies and procedures
    9         relating to restraint; requiring school districts to
   10         adopt positive behavior interventions and supports and
   11         certain policies and procedures; requiring each school
   12         district to publicly post specified policies and
   13         procedures; requiring school districts to provide
   14         training on certain interventions and supports to
   15         specified personnel; providing requirements for such
   16         training; requiring each school district to publish
   17         training procedures in its special policies and
   18         procedures manual; requiring schools to develop a
   19         crisis intervention plan for certain students;
   20         providing requirements for such plans; revising the
   21         requirements for documenting, reporting, and
   22         monitoring the use of restraint; requiring the
   23         department to make certain information available to
   24         the public by a specified date; conforming provisions
   25         to changes made by the act; creating s. 1003.574,
   26         F.S.; defining terms; requiring a video camera to be
   27         placed in specified classrooms upon the request of a
   28         parent; requiring video cameras to be operational
   29         within a specified time period; providing requirements
   30         for the discontinuation of such video cameras;
   31         providing requirements for such video cameras;
   32         providing an exception; requiring a written
   33         explanation if the operation of such cameras is
   34         interrupted; requiring district school boards to
   35         maintain such explanation for a specified time;
   36         requiring schools to provide written notice to certain
   37         individuals of the placement of a video camera;
   38         providing requirements for retaining and deleting
   39         video recordings; providing prohibitions for the use
   40         of such video cameras and recordings; providing that
   41         school principals are the custodians of such video
   42         cameras and recordings; providing requirements for
   43         school principals and video recordings; providing
   44         requirements relating to student privacy; providing
   45         requirements for the viewing of such video recordings;
   46         providing for an appeal process for actions of a
   47         school or school district; providing that incidental
   48         viewings of video recordings by specified individuals
   49         are not a violation of certain provisions; providing
   50         construction; requiring the Department of Education to
   51         collect specified information; authorizing the State
   52         Board of Education to adopt rules; amending s.
   53         1012.582, F.S.; requiring continuing education and
   54         inservice training for instructional personnel
   55         teaching students with emotional or behavioral
   56         disabilities; conforming provisions to changes made by
   57         the act; providing an effective date.
   58          
   59  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   60  
   61         Section 1. Section 1003.573, Florida Statutes, is amended
   62  to read:
   63         1003.573 Seclusion and Use of restraint of and seclusion on
   64  students with disabilities in public schools.—
   65         (1)DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:
   66         (a)“Crisis intervention plan” means an individualized
   67  action plan for school personnel to implement when a student
   68  exhibits dangerous behavior that may lead to imminent risk of
   69  serious injury.
   70         (b)“Imminent risk of serious injury” means the threat
   71  posed by dangerous behavior that may cause serious physical harm
   72  to self or others.
   73         (c)“Restraint” means the use of a mechanical or physical
   74  restraint.
   75         1.“Mechanical restraint” means the use of a device that
   76  restricts a student’s freedom of movement. The term does not
   77  include the use of devices prescribed or recommended by physical
   78  or behavioral health professionals when used for indicated
   79  purposes.
   80         2.“Physical restraint” means the use of manual restraint
   81  techniques that involve significant physical force applied by a
   82  teacher or other staff member to restrict the movement of all or
   83  part of a student’s body. The term does not include briefly
   84  holding a student in order to calm or comfort the student or
   85  physically escorting a student to a safe location.
   86         (d)“Positive behavior interventions and supports” means
   87  the use of behavioral interventions to prevent dangerous
   88  behaviors that may cause serious physical harm to the student or
   89  others.
   90         (e)“Seclusion” means the involuntary confinement of a
   91  student in a room or area alone and preventing the student from
   92  leaving the room or area. The term does not include time-out
   93  used as a behavior management technique intended to calm a
   94  student.
   95         (f)“Student” means a child with an individual education
   96  plan enrolled in grades kindergarten through 12 in a school, as
   97  defined in s. 1003.01(2), or the Florida School for the Deaf and
   98  Blind. The term does not include students in prekindergarten,
   99  students who reside in residential care facilities under s.
  100  1003.58, or students participating in a Department of Juvenile
  101  Justice education program under s. 1003.53.
  102         (2)SECLUSION.—Each school district shall prohibit school
  103  personnel from using seclusion.
  104         (3)RESTRAINT.—
  105         (a)Authorized school personnel may use restraint only when
  106  all positive behavior interventions and supports have been
  107  exhausted. Restraint may be used only when there is an imminent
  108  risk of serious injury and shall be discontinued as soon as the
  109  threat posed by the dangerous behavior has dissipated.
  110  Straightjackets, zip ties, handcuffs, or tie-downs may not be
  111  used to obstruct or restrict breathing or blood flow. Restraint
  112  techniques may not be used to inflict pain to induce compliance.
  113         (b)Notwithstanding the authority provided in s. 1003.32,
  114  restraint shall be used only to protect the safety of students,
  115  school personnel, or others and may not be used for student
  116  discipline or to correct student noncompliance.
  117         (c)The degree of force applied during physical restraint
  118  must be only that degree of force necessary to protect the
  119  student or others from imminent risk of serious injury.
  120         (4)(3) SCHOOL DISTRICT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.—
  121         (a) Each school district shall adopt positive behavior
  122  interventions and supports and identify all school personnel
  123  authorized to use the interventions and supports. Each school
  124  district shall develop policies and procedures that are
  125  consistent with this section and that govern the following:
  126         1. Incident-reporting procedures.
  127         2. Data collection and monitoring, including when, where,
  128  and why students are restrained and or secluded; the frequency
  129  of occurrences of such restraint or seclusion; and the prone or
  130  mechanical restraint that is most used.
  131         3. Monitoring and reporting of data collected.
  132         4. Training programs and procedures relating to manual or
  133  physical restraint as described in subsection (3) and seclusion.
  134         5. The district’s plan for selecting personnel to be
  135  trained pursuant to this subsection.
  136         6. The district’s plan for reducing the use of restraint,
  137  and seclusion particularly in settings in which it occurs
  138  frequently or with students who are restrained repeatedly, and
  139  for reducing the use of prone restraint and mechanical
  140  restraint. The plan must include a goal for reducing the use of
  141  restraint and seclusion and must include activities, skills, and
  142  resources needed to achieve that goal. Activities may include,
  143  but are not limited to:
  144         a. Additional training in positive behavior interventions
  145  and supports. behavioral support and crisis management;
  146         b. Parental involvement.;
  147         c. Data review.;
  148         d. Updates of students’ functional behavioral analysis and
  149  positive behavior intervention plans.;
  150         e. Additional student evaluations.;
  151         f. Debriefing with staff.;
  152         g. Use of schoolwide positive behavior support.; and
  153         h. Changes to the school environment.
  154         i.Analysis of data to determine trends.
  155         j.Ongoing reduction of the use of restraint.
  156         (b) Any revisions a school district makes to its to the
  157  district’s policies and procedures pursuant to this section,
  158  which must be prepared as part of its special policies and
  159  procedures, must be filed with the bureau chief of the Bureau of
  160  Exceptional Education and Student Services within 90 days after
  161  the revision no later than January 31, 2012.
  162         (c)At the beginning of each school year, each school
  163  district shall publicly post its policies and procedures on
  164  positive behavior interventions and supports as adopted by the
  165  school district.
  166         (5)TRAINING.—Each school district shall provide training
  167  to all school personnel authorized to use positive behavior
  168  interventions and supports pursuant to school district policy.
  169  Training shall be provided annually and must include:
  170         (a)The use of positive behavior interventions and
  171  supports.
  172         (b)Risk assessment procedures to identify when restraint
  173  may be used.
  174         (c)Examples of when positive behavior interventions and
  175  support techniques have failed to reduce the imminent risk of
  176  serious injury.
  177         (d)Examples of safe and appropriate restraint techniques
  178  and how to use these techniques with multiple staff members
  179  working as a team.
  180         (e)Instruction in the district’s documentation and
  181  reporting requirements.
  182         (f)Procedures to identify and deal with possible medical
  183  emergencies arising during the use of restraint.
  184         (g)Cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
  185  
  186  Each school district shall publish the procedures for the
  187  training required under this subsection in the district’s
  188  special policies and procedures manual.
  189         (6)CRISIS INTERVENTION PLAN.—
  190         (a)Upon the second time a student is restrained during a
  191  semester, the school shall develop a crisis intervention plan
  192  for the student. The crisis intervention plan shall be developed
  193  by a team comprised of the student’s parent, school personnel,
  194  and applicable physical and behavioral health professionals.
  195         (b)The crisis intervention plan must include:
  196         1.Specific positive behavior interventions and supports to
  197  use in response to dangerous behaviors that create a threat of
  198  imminent risk of serious injury.
  199         2.Known physical and behavioral health concerns that will
  200  limit the use of restraint for the student.
  201         3.A timetable for the review and, if necessary, revision
  202  of the crisis intervention plan.
  203         (c)The school must provide a copy of the crisis
  204  intervention plan to the student’s parent.
  205         (7)(1) DOCUMENTATION AND REPORTING.—
  206         (a) A school shall prepare an incident report within 24
  207  hours after a student is released from restraint or seclusion.
  208  If the student’s release occurs on a day before the school
  209  closes for the weekend, a holiday, or another reason, the
  210  incident report must be completed by the end of the school day
  211  on the day the school reopens.
  212         (b) The following must be included in the incident report:
  213         1. The name of the student restrained or secluded.
  214         2. The age, grade, ethnicity, and disability of the student
  215  restrained or secluded.
  216         3. The date and time of the event and the duration of the
  217  restraint or seclusion.
  218         4. The location at which the restraint or seclusion
  219  occurred.
  220         5. A description of the type of restraint used in terms
  221  established by the department of Education.
  222         6. The name of the person using or assisting in the
  223  restraint or seclusion of the student and the date the person
  224  was last trained in the use of positive behavior interventions
  225  and supports.
  226         7. The name of any nonstudent who was present to witness
  227  the restraint or seclusion.
  228         8. A description of the incident, including all of the
  229  following:
  230         a. The context in which the restraint or seclusion
  231  occurred.
  232         b. The student’s behavior leading up to and precipitating
  233  the decision to use manual or physical restraint or seclusion,
  234  including an indication as to why there was an imminent risk of
  235  serious injury or death to the student or others.
  236         c. The specific positive behavior interventions and
  237  supports behavioral strategies used to prevent and deescalate
  238  the behavior.
  239         d. What occurred with the student immediately after the
  240  termination of the restraint or seclusion.
  241         e. Any injuries, visible marks, or possible medical
  242  emergencies that may have occurred during the restraint or
  243  seclusion, documented according to district policies.
  244         f. Evidence of steps taken to notify the student’s parent
  245  or guardian.
  246         g.The date the crisis intervention plan was last reviewed
  247  and whether changes were recommended.
  248         (c) A school shall notify the parent or guardian of a
  249  student each time manual or physical restraint or seclusion is
  250  used. Such notification must be in writing and provided before
  251  the end of the school day on which the restraint or seclusion
  252  occurs. Reasonable efforts must also be taken to notify the
  253  parent or guardian by telephone or computer e-mail, or both, and
  254  these efforts must be documented. The school shall obtain, and
  255  keep in its records, the parent’s or guardian’s signed
  256  acknowledgment that he or she was notified of his or her child’s
  257  restraint or seclusion.
  258         (d) A school shall also provide the parent or guardian with
  259  the completed incident report in writing by mail within 3 school
  260  days after a student was manually or physically restrained or
  261  secluded. The school shall obtain, and keep in its records, the
  262  parent’s or guardian’s signed acknowledgment that he or she
  263  received a copy of the incident report.
  264         (8)(2) MONITORING.—
  265         (a) Monitoring of The use of manual or physical restraint
  266  or seclusion on students shall be monitored occur at the
  267  classroom, building, district, and state levels.
  268         (b) Any documentation prepared by a school pursuant to as
  269  required in subsection (7) (1) shall be provided to the school
  270  principal, the district director of Exceptional Student
  271  Education, and the bureau chief of the Bureau of Exceptional
  272  Education and Student Services electronically each month that
  273  the school is in session.
  274         (c) The department shall maintain aggregate data of
  275  incidents of manual or physical restraint and seclusion and
  276  disaggregate the data for analysis by county, school, student
  277  exceptionality, and other variables, including the type and
  278  method of restraint or seclusion used. This information shall be
  279  updated monthly, de-identified, and made available to the public
  280  through the department’s website no later than October 1, 2020.
  281         (d) The department shall establish standards for
  282  documenting, reporting, and monitoring the incident reports
  283  related to the use of manual or physical restraint or mechanical
  284  restraint, and occurrences of seclusion. These standards shall
  285  be provided to school districts by October 1, 2011.
  286         (4)PROHIBITED RESTRAINT.—School personnel may not use a
  287  mechanical restraint or a manual or physical restraint that
  288  restricts a student’s breathing.
  289         (5)SECLUSION.—School personnel may not close, lock, or
  290  physically block a student in a room that is unlit and does not
  291  meet the rules of the State Fire Marshal for seclusion time-out
  292  rooms.
  293         Section 2. Section 1003.574, Florida Statutes, is created
  294  to read:
  295         1003.574Video cameras in public school classrooms.—
  296         (1)As used in this section, the term:
  297         (a)“Incident” means an event, circumstance, act, or
  298  omission that results in the abuse or neglect of a student by:
  299         1.An employee of a public school or school district; or
  300         2.Another student.
  301         (b)“Self-contained classroom” means a classroom at a
  302  public school in which a majority of the students in regular
  303  attendance are provided special education services and are
  304  assigned to one or more such classrooms for at least 50 percent
  305  of the instructional day.
  306         (2)(a)A school district shall provide a video camera to
  307  any school with a self-contained classroom upon the written
  308  request of a parent of a student in the classroom.
  309         (b)Within 30 days after receipt of the request from a
  310  parent, a video camera shall be operational in each self
  311  contained classroom in which the parent’s student is in regular
  312  attendance for the remainder of the school year, unless the
  313  parent withdraws his or her request in writing.
  314         (3)If the student who is the subject of the initial
  315  request is no longer in attendance in the classroom and a school
  316  discontinues operation of a video camera during a school year,
  317  no later than the fifth school day before the date the operation
  318  of the video camera is discontinued, the school must notify the
  319  parents of each student in regular attendance in the classroom
  320  that operation of the video camera will cease unless the
  321  continued use of the camera is requested by a parent. No later
  322  than the 10th school day before the end of each school year, the
  323  school must notify the parents of each student in regular
  324  attendance in the classroom that operation of the video camera
  325  will not continue during the following school year unless a
  326  written request is submitted by a parent for the next school
  327  year.
  328         (4)(a)A video camera placed in a self-contained classroom
  329  must be capable of all of the following:
  330         1.Monitoring all areas of the self-contained classroom,
  331  including, without limitation, any room attached to the self
  332  contained classroom which is used for other purposes.
  333         2.Recording audio from all areas of the self-contained
  334  classroom, including, without limitation, any room attached to
  335  the self-contained classroom which is used for other purposes.
  336         (b)A video camera placed in a self-contained classroom may
  337  not monitor a restroom or any other area in the self-contained
  338  classroom where a student changes his or her clothes, except for
  339  the entryway, exitway, or hallway outside a restroom or other
  340  area where a student changes his or her clothes because of the
  341  layout of the self-contained classroom.
  342         (c)A video camera placed in a self-contained classroom is
  343  not required to be in operation when students are not present in
  344  the self-contained classroom.
  345         (d)If there is an interruption in the operation of the
  346  video camera for any reason, an explanation must be submitted in
  347  writing to the school principal and the district school board
  348  which explains the reason for and duration of the interruption.
  349  The written explanation must be maintained at the district
  350  school board office for at least 1 year.
  351         (5)Before a school initially places a video camera in a
  352  self-contained classroom pursuant to this section, the school
  353  shall provide written notice of the placement of such video
  354  camera to all of the following:
  355         (a)The parent of each student who is assigned to the self
  356  contained classroom.
  357         (b)Each student who is assigned to the self-contained
  358  classroom.
  359         (c)The school district.
  360         (d)Each school employee who is assigned to work with one
  361  or more students in the self-contained classroom.
  362         (6)A school shall:
  363         (a)Retain video recorded from a video camera placed
  364  pursuant to this section for at least 3 months after the date
  365  the video was recorded, after which the recording shall be
  366  deleted or otherwise made unretrievable; or
  367         (b)Retain the recording until the conclusion of any
  368  investigation or any administrative or legal proceedings that
  369  result from the recording have been completed, including,
  370  without limitation, the exhaustion of all appeals.
  371         (7)A school or school district may not:
  372         (a)Allow regular, continuous, or continual monitoring of
  373  videos recorded under this section; or
  374         (b)Use videos recorded under this section for teacher
  375  evaluations or any purpose other than for ensuring the health,
  376  safety, and well-being of students receiving special education
  377  services in a self-contained classroom.
  378         (8)The principal of the school is the custodian of a video
  379  camera operated pursuant to this section, all recordings
  380  generated by that video camera, and access to such recordings.
  381         (a)The release or viewing of any video recording under
  382  this section must comply with s. 1002.22.
  383         (b)A school or school district shall:
  384         1.Conceal the identity of any student who appears in a
  385  video recording, but is not involved in the alleged incident
  386  documented by the video recording, which the school allows to be
  387  viewed under subsection (9), including, without limitation,
  388  blurring the face of the uninvolved student.
  389         2.Protect the confidentiality of all student records
  390  contained in a video recording in accordance with s. 1002.22.
  391         (9)(a)Within 7 days after receiving a request to view a
  392  video recording, a school or school district shall allow the
  393  following individuals to view a video recording made under this
  394  section:
  395         1.A school or school district employee who is involved in
  396  an alleged incident that is documented by the video recording as
  397  part of the investigative process;
  398         2.A parent of a student who is involved in an alleged
  399  incident that is documented by the video recording and has been
  400  reported to the school or school district;
  401         3.A school or school district employee as part of an
  402  investigation into an alleged incident that is documented by the
  403  video recording and has been reported to the school or school
  404  district;
  405         4.A law enforcement officer as part of an investigation
  406  into an alleged incident that is documented by the video
  407  recording and has been reported to the law enforcement agency;
  408  or
  409         5.The Department of Children and Families as part of a
  410  child abuse or neglect investigation.
  411         (b)A person who requests to view a recording shall make
  412  himself or herself available for viewing the recording within 30
  413  days after being notified by the school or school district that
  414  the person’s request has been granted.
  415         (c)A person who views the recording and suspects that
  416  child abuse has occurred must report the suspected child abuse
  417  to the Department of Children and Families.
  418         (10)(a)Any individual may appeal to the State Board of
  419  Education regarding an action by a school or school district
  420  which the individual alleges to be in violation of this section.
  421         (b)The state board shall grant a hearing on an appeal
  422  under this subsection within 45 days after receiving the appeal.
  423         (11)A school or school district does not violate
  424  subsection (8) if a contractor or other employee of the school
  425  or school district incidentally views a video recording made
  426  under this section in connection with the performance of his or
  427  her duties related to either of the following:
  428         (a)The installation, operation, or maintenance of video
  429  equipment; or
  430         (b)The retention of video recordings.
  431         (12)This section does not:
  432         (a)Limit the access of the parent of a student, under the
  433  Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), 20 U.S.C. s.
  434  1232g, or any other law, to a video recording regarding his or
  435  her student.
  436         (b)Waive any immunity from liability of a school district
  437  or an employee of a school district.
  438         (c)Create any liability for a cause of action against a
  439  school or school district or an employee of a school or school
  440  district carrying out the duties and responsibilities required
  441  by this section.
  442         (d)Apply to self-contained classrooms in which the only
  443  students receiving special education services are those who have
  444  been deemed gifted.
  445         (13)The department shall collect information relating to
  446  the installation and maintenance of video cameras under this
  447  section.
  448         (14)The State Board of Education may adopt rules to
  449  implement this section.
  450         Section 3. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 1012.582,
  451  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  452         1012.582 Continuing education and inservice training for
  453  teaching students with developmental and emotional or behavioral
  454  disabilities.—
  455         (1) The Commissioner of Education shall develop
  456  recommendations to incorporate instruction regarding autism
  457  spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, and other developmental
  458  disabilities, and emotional or behavioral disabilities into
  459  continuing education or inservice training requirements for
  460  instructional personnel. These recommendations shall address:
  461         (a) Early identification of, and intervention for, students
  462  who have autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, or other
  463  developmental disabilities, or emotional or behavioral
  464  disabilities.
  465         (b) Curriculum planning and curricular and instructional
  466  modifications, adaptations, and specialized strategies and
  467  techniques.
  468         (c) The use of available state and local resources.
  469         (d) The use of positive behavior interventions and
  470  behavioral supports to deescalate problem behaviors.
  471         (e) The Appropriate use of manual physical restraint and
  472  seclusion techniques, positive behavior interventions and
  473  supports, and effective classroom behavior management
  474  strategies.
  475         (2) In developing the recommendations, the commissioner
  476  shall consult with the State Surgeon General, the Director of
  477  the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, representatives from
  478  the education community in the state, and representatives from
  479  entities that promote awareness about autism spectrum disorder,
  480  Down syndrome, and other developmental disabilities, and
  481  emotional or behavioral disabilities and provide programs and
  482  services to persons with developmental disabilities, including,
  483  but not limited to, regional autism centers pursuant to s.
  484  1004.55.
  485         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.