A former educator in the state legislature has reintroduced a bill she believes will help keep Arizona schools safe in an active shooter situation.
House Bill 2032, introduced by Rep. Laura Terech, D-Scottsdale, aims to make it more difficult for those targeting schools to get a lay of the land by exempting school blueprints from public records requests.
Currently, Arizona’s public records law requires all government-owned records to be available to the public, including “maps, photographs, or other documentary materials.” In 2012, the legislature passed an exemption similar to Terech’s proposal for student records.
“It’s important for us to stay one step ahead of those with nefarious intent, and that’s what this bill does,” said Terech. “A nightmare scenario is someone using blueprint information to not only harm children, but potentially to harm first responders as they navigate the crisis.”
In March, a former student at an elementary school in Nashville planned and executed an attack on the school, resulting in the deaths of three students and three adults. As part of their preparation for the attack, the shooter studied maps of the school and surveilled the premises.
Terech introduced this same bill in 2023 and received overwhelming bipartisan support. It passed by way of unanimous vote in the House Government Committee, and Terech received written support from 12 House Republicans and 29 Democrats.
But Republican leaders refused to bring the bill to a vote, pointing to an unofficial policy where they would only bring bills to a vote if it had support from a majority of Republicans, leaving Terech’s bill short by four.
The bill will be considered by lawmakers during the 2024 legislative session, which begins January 8.
RELATED: ‘Legalizing Rocket Launchers’: A Look Back at Arizona Republicans’ Gun Reform Efforts
Author
Support Our Cause
Thank you for taking the time to read our work. Before you go, we hope you'll consider supporting our values-driven journalism, which has always strived to make clear what's really at stake for Arizonans and our future.
Since day one, our goal here at The Copper Courier has always been to empower people across the state with fact-based news and information. We believe that when people are armed with knowledge about what's happening in their local, state, and federal governments—including who is working on their behalf and who is actively trying to block efforts aimed at improving the daily lives of Arizona families—they will be inspired to become civically engaged.
‘Gilbert Goons’ use of weapons could lead to reform
In the past two months, Gilbert has gone from being known as “the second-safest city in America” to home of the Gilbert Goons, a violent gang made...
Biden Announces First-Ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention
The Biden administration on Friday announced the creation of the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention to help address the...
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
