Board debates costs, evidence and timeline for weapons detectors and mandated school guardians under HB 84
May 08, 2024 | Salt Lake County School Board, Salt Lake School District , School Boards, Utah
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Salt Lake City School District leaders and board members spent substantial discussion time on May 7 weighing options for continuing and staffing weapons-detection systems and preparing to comply with House Bill 84, the state's recent school-safety law.
Business Administrator Alan Kearsley briefed the board on the upcoming choices: the one-year contract that provided staffing for weapons detectors is expiring, and the district must decide whether to continue contracting the staffing, bring it in-house, or alter its approach. Kearsley also tied the issue to HB 84, which requires school-specific safety assessments and may require armed security personnel depending on those assessments and state guidance.
"We estimate a year's contract is going to be somewhere between 1.1 and 3.75 million dollars for the weapons-detector staffing," Kearsley said, and offered an estimated cost of just under $2,000,000 to contract armed guards at every school for an 8-hour day.
Several board members and presenters emphasized the need for evidence. Corporal Anderson told the board he was concerned about the lack of data supporting detector efficacy and urged that the district prioritize evidence-based interventions and threat-assessment efforts such as the CSTAG threat assessments.
"Absent willingness of state and federal policy makers, I really only want to support data-driven solutions," Corporal Anderson said, adding that investments should be measured against other district priorities.
Board members asked whether existing School Resource Officers at high schools would meet the law's requirement if they could be guaranteed for the full school day; staff said that could meet the requirement in some instances but that safety assessments will determine specifics. Staff also explained that the safety assessments must be completed by Dec. 31, 2024, and that the state security chief will publish rules that will shape compliance timelines for physical improvements, panic buttons and guardianship implementation.
Several board members expressed concern that the state provided only a portion of the funding for new requirements. Kearsley noted a one-time $100 million statewide security allocation will be available for districts to apply to but said "a $100,000,000 statewide doesn't go very far and once it's gone, it's gone," leaving districts to identify long-term funding.
No final decision was made May 7. Board members asked staff to prepare FAQs, clarify timing tied to the state security chief's rules, and bring back cost and evidence summaries in coming meetings so the board can take action before the start of next school year if required.
Sources: staff presentation and extended Q&A during the May 7 board meeting.
Business Administrator Alan Kearsley briefed the board on the upcoming choices: the one-year contract that provided staffing for weapons detectors is expiring, and the district must decide whether to continue contracting the staffing, bring it in-house, or alter its approach. Kearsley also tied the issue to HB 84, which requires school-specific safety assessments and may require armed security personnel depending on those assessments and state guidance.
"We estimate a year's contract is going to be somewhere between 1.1 and 3.75 million dollars for the weapons-detector staffing," Kearsley said, and offered an estimated cost of just under $2,000,000 to contract armed guards at every school for an 8-hour day.
Several board members and presenters emphasized the need for evidence. Corporal Anderson told the board he was concerned about the lack of data supporting detector efficacy and urged that the district prioritize evidence-based interventions and threat-assessment efforts such as the CSTAG threat assessments.
"Absent willingness of state and federal policy makers, I really only want to support data-driven solutions," Corporal Anderson said, adding that investments should be measured against other district priorities.
Board members asked whether existing School Resource Officers at high schools would meet the law's requirement if they could be guaranteed for the full school day; staff said that could meet the requirement in some instances but that safety assessments will determine specifics. Staff also explained that the safety assessments must be completed by Dec. 31, 2024, and that the state security chief will publish rules that will shape compliance timelines for physical improvements, panic buttons and guardianship implementation.
Several board members expressed concern that the state provided only a portion of the funding for new requirements. Kearsley noted a one-time $100 million statewide security allocation will be available for districts to apply to but said "a $100,000,000 statewide doesn't go very far and once it's gone, it's gone," leaving districts to identify long-term funding.
No final decision was made May 7. Board members asked staff to prepare FAQs, clarify timing tied to the state security chief's rules, and bring back cost and evidence summaries in coming meetings so the board can take action before the start of next school year if required.
Sources: staff presentation and extended Q&A during the May 7 board meeting.
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