Below is a press release from NDRN on the restraint bill.
[Thank you to my colleague Debra Wysong for passing this along to me.]
On March 3, 2010, the House of Representatives
took up and passed H.R. 4247, the Keeping All Students Safe Act (formerly
the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act).
H.R. 4247 was introduced by Representatives George Miller (D-CA) and
Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (R-WA) on December 9, 2009, and approved by the
House Education and Labor Committee on February 23. The bill would
significantly lessen the incidents of restraint and seclusion in school
settings by outlawing its use as a disciplinary or therapeutic practice,
limiting its use to incidents of immediate physical danger, and banning
certain dangerous practices, such as prone restraint, outright.
It would call for staff training, parental notification, and ban the
inclusion of restraint and seclusion in an Individualized Education
Plan.
Full text of the bill can be found at www.thomas.gov.
Representative Miller led floor debate
on H.R. 4247, citing the need for swift passage to prevent future abuse
through restraint and seclusion in schools. He noted that while
he agrees with the bill’s opponents that it is important to allow
states and school districts to develop policies and practices that reflect
local needs. State and local laws were inadequate and minimum
Federal standards were needed. Chairman Miller also dismissed
the argument that Congress needed to wait for Department of Education
to collect data on the extent of the problem and added that while there
are numerous documented incidents, one child being hurt or killed is
evidence enough that a problem exists.
An amendment was agreed to which allows
for a competitive grant process for awards under H.R. 4247. Subsequently,
the bill passed easily by a vote of 262 yeas to 153 nays. For
H.R. 2426 to become law, a Senate companion bill would need to be passed
in the Senate, and any difference between the Senate and House bills
would need to be reconciled. The president would have to sign
that reconciled bill.