A Bill for an Act
Page 1, Line 101Concerning the use of trauma-informed practices to address
Page 1, Line 102school safety.
Bill Summary
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://leg.colorado.gov.)
On or before September 1, 2025, the bill requires the office of school safety (office) to convene and oversee a work group to develop best practices for the use of trauma-informed practices to conduct school safety drills.
No later than June 30, 2026, the bill requires the work group to develop recommendations to support schools in training school personnel on the use of trauma-informed practices in conducting school safety drills, how to best conduct school safety drills in a trauma-informed manner, and how to best respond to a school safety incident. The recommendations must be submitted to the office and the house and senate education committees, or their successor committees; the governor; the state board; the commissioner of education; and the department of education.
This Unofficial Version Includes Committee
Amendments Not Yet Adopted on Second Reading
Page 2, Line 1Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
Page 2, Line 2SECTION 1. Legislative declaration. (1) The general assembly finds and declares that:
Page 2, Line 3(a) Colorado is facing a growing mental health crisis among its
Page 2, Line 4youth, with increasing rates of anxiety, depression, and other mental
Page 2, Line 5health issues that significantly impact students' ability to learn and thrive in school environments;
Page 2, Line 6(b) The rise in school shootings and climate-related disasters have
Page 2, Line 7increasingly disrupted the lives of Colorado youth, which contributes to
Page 2, Line 8the mental health challenges and trauma students face, and the long term
Page 2, Line 9effects of these events can impair a youth's emotional well-being, ability to focus, and academic success;
Page 2, Line 10(c) The safety and well-being of students and school personnel in Colorado is a paramount concern;
Page 2, Line 11(d) School safety drills are an essential part of school safety
Page 2, Line 12protocols to prepare students and school personnel for emergency situations;
Page 2, Line 13(e) Traditional school safety drills can be distressing and
Page 2, Line 14traumatizing for students and educators, thereby necessitating a more considerate approach;
Page 2, Line 15(f) Trauma-informed practices have been shown to reduce the
Page 2, Line 16psychological impact of school safety drills on participants, fostering a safer and more supportive school environment;
Page 3, Line 1(g) Recognizing the unique vulnerabilities of students, it is
Page 3, Line 2essential to include their perspectives and representation in efforts to create a safe and supportive school environment; and
Page 3, Line 3(h) Implementing trauma-informed school safety drills helps
Page 3, Line 4maintain the mental health and emotional stability of students and school personnel during and after the school safety drills.
Page 3, Line 5SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 24-33.5-2705 as follows:
Page 3, Line 624-33.5-2705. Trauma-informed practices for school safety
Page 3, Line 7drills - work group - creation - purpose - membership - fund -
Page 3, Line 8definitions. (1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
Page 3, Line 9(a) "Parent" means a parent, legal guardian, or any other person having legal custody of a student.
Page 3, Line 10(b) "School safety drill" means an operations-based
Page 3, Line 11exercise that is designed to prepare students and school
Page 3, Line 12personnel to respond to specific emergencies in an effort to
Page 3, Line 13reinforce safety protocols, nurture readiness, and reduce panic during a school safety incident.
Page 3, Line 14(c) "School safety incident" means an event that occurs
Page 3, Line 15on school grounds that puts property or the health, safety, or
Page 3, Line 16well-being of students, school staff, or visitors in danger and requires an immediate response.
Page 3, Line 17(d) "Trauma-informed practices" means a systematic
Page 3, Line 18approach that recognizes the prevalence of adverse and
Page 3, Line 19traumatic experiences of school safety drills and equips school
Page 4, Line 1personnel with knowledge to recognize trauma and strategies
Page 4, Line 2to support students and school personnel who experience trauma.
Page 4, Line 3(2) On or before September 1, 2025, the office shall
Page 4, Line 4convene and oversee a work group as described in this section.
Page 4, Line 5The purpose of the work group is to develop best practices for
Page 4, Line 6the use of trauma-informed practices to conduct school safety drills.
Page 4, Line 7(3) The work group shall obtain input from parents and
Page 4, Line 8students who reflect the diversity of the state with regard to
Page 4, Line 9race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, geography, and disability.
Page 4, Line 11 (4) (a) (I) The work group consists of the following nonvoting members:
Page 4, Line 12(A) A representative from the department of public safety, appointed by the governor;
Page 4, Line 13(B) A representative from the office, appointed by the governor;
Page 4, Line 14(C) A representative from the office of gun violence
Page 4, Line 15prevention created in section 25-20.5-1202, appointed by the
Page 4, Line 16executive director of the department of public health and environment;
Page 4, Line 17(D) The commissioner of the department of education, or the commissioner's designee; and
Page 4, Line 18(E) A student who attends a Colorado public school,
Page 4, Line 19appointed by the governor;".
Page 5, Line 1(II) The work group consists of the following voting members:
Page 5, Line 2(A) A school district superintendent who represents
Page 5, Line 3either a rural or suburban school district, appointed by the president of the senate;
Page 5, Line 4(B) A school principal, or the principal's designee,
Page 5, Line 5appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives;
Page 5, Line 6(C) Two teachers, one of whom must represent an urban
Page 5, Line 7school district, appointed by the president of the senate, and one
Page 5, Line 8of whom must represent an urban school district, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;
Page 5, Line 9(D) A school nurse or pediatrician, appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives;
Page 5, Line 10(E) Two mental health professionals, one of whom must
Page 5, Line 11specialize in child development or trauma-informed care,
Page 5, Line 12appointed by the minority leader of the senate, and one of whom
Page 5, Line 13must specialize in behavioral health, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;
Page 5, Line 14(F) A school resource officer or local law enforcement
Page 5, Line 15representative with experience in rural or urban school settings, appointed by the minority leader of the senate;
Page 5, Line 16(G) A professional expert in public health or school safety, appointed by the president of the senate;
Page 5, Line 17(H) A parent of a student currently attending a
Page 5, Line 18Colorado public school, appointed by the speaker of the house
Page 5, Line 19of representatives; and
(I) An at-large member, appointed by the governor.
Page 6, Line 1(b) The appointing authorities shall appoint the members of the work group by July 31, 2025.
Page 6, Line 2(c) Any vacancy occurring in the membership of the work
Page 6, Line 3group must be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.
Page 6, Line 4(d) A majority of the members appointed to the work group
Page 6, Line 5constitutes a quorum. If the work group is unable to reach a
Page 6, Line 6quorum due to unforeseen circumstances, the work group may
Page 6, Line 7proceed with a reduced quorum of no fewer than six voting members.
Page 6, Line 8(e) The chairperson of the work group shall convene the
Page 6, Line 9first meeting of the work group no later than September 1, 2025.
Page 6, Line 10The work group shall meet at least four times in 2025 and at
Page 6, Line 11least three times in 2026. The work group shall establish
Page 6, Line 12procedures to allow members of the work group to participate in the meetings remotely.
Page 6, Line 13(f) The members of the work group serve without
Page 6, Line 14compensation but may be reimbursed for expenses directly relating to their service on the work group.
Page 6, Line 15(g) Upon the request of the chairperson of the work
Page 6, Line 16group, the office shall provide staff assistance, meeting space,
Page 6, Line 17or audio-visual communication technology resources to the work group as necessary for the performance of its duties.
Page 6, Line 18(5) The work group shall:
Page 6, Line 19(a) Identify the intended outcomes of the
Page 6, Line 20trauma-informed practices;
Page 7, Line 1(b) Identify best practices for incorporating
Page 7, Line 2trauma-informed practices into school safety drills to respond to different types of school safety incidents;
Page 7, Line 3(c) Use the best practices identified in subsection (5)(b) of
Page 7, Line 4this section to determine how to best implement trauma-informed practices for schools to:
Page 7, Line 5(I) Plan and execute different types of school safety drills;
Page 7, Line 6(II) Immediately respond to a school safety incident; and
Page 7, Line 7(III) Best respond to students who have an emotional reaction as a result of school safety drills;
Page 7, Line 8(d) Determine the skills and knowledge necessary to
Page 7, Line 9train school personnel to adequately implement and use
Page 7, Line 10trauma-informed practices when conducting school safety drills;
Page 7, Line 11(e) Determine the necessary frequency of school
Page 7, Line 12personnel training to ensure the adequate use of trauma-informed practices during school safety drills;
Page 7, Line 13(f) Determine the necessary frequency of school safety
Page 7, Line 14drills to adequately prepare students and school personnel for school safety incidents;
Page 7, Line 15(g) Determine the amount of advance notice given to parents before conducting a school safety drill;
Page 7, Line 16(h) Provide guidance for parents on talking to students about school safety drills;
Page 7, Line 17(i) Identify state and local resources needed to support
Page 7, Line 18schools in implementing trauma-informed practices for conducting school safety drills; and
Page 8, Line 1(j) Identify possible funding sources to support schools in
Page 8, Line 2incorporating trauma-informed practices into school safety drills to respond to different types of school safety incidents.
Page 8, Line 3(6) The work group shall create a report containing
Page 8, Line 4findings and recommendations created pursuant to subsection
Page 8, Line 5(5) of this section. The report must account for the different needs of elementary and secondary schools.
Page 8, Line 6(7) No later than June 30, 2026, the work group must
Page 8, Line 7submit a report containing the findings and recommendations
Page 8, Line 8developed pursuant to subsection (6) of this section to the office
Page 8, Line 9and to the education committees of the house of representatives
Page 8, Line 10and the senate, or any successor committees; the governor; the
Page 8, Line 11state board; the commissioner of education; and the department of education.
Page 8, Line 12(8) The office may seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants,
Page 8, Line 13or donations from private or public sources for the purposes of
Page 8, Line 14this section. The office shall transmit all money received
Page 8, Line 15through gifts, grants, or donations to the state treasurer, who
Page 8, Line 16shall credit the money to the trauma-informed practices for
Page 8, Line 17school safety drills fund created in subsection (9) of this section.
Page 8, Line 18(9) The trauma-informed practices for school safety
Page 8, Line 19drills fund is created in the state treasury. The
Page 8, Line 20trauma-informed practices for school safety drills fund
Page 8, Line 21consists of gifts, grants, or donations credited to the fund
Page 8, Line 22pursuant to subsection (8) of this section and any other money
Page 9, Line 1that the general assembly may appropriate or transfer to the
Page 9, Line 2fund. The state treasurer shall credit all interest and income
Page 9, Line 3derived from the deposit and investment of money in the
Page 9, Line 4trauma-informed practices for school safety drills fund to the fund.
Page 9, Line 5SECTION 3. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-33.5-2702, amend (2)(g); and add (2)(g.5) as follows:
Page 9, Line 624-33.5-2702. Office of school safety - created - duties - grants manager - crisis response unit. (2) The office has the following duties:
Page 9, Line 7(g) To administer the youth violence prevention grant program;
andPage 9, Line 8(g.5) To oversee the work group created in section 24-33.5-2705; and
Page 9, Line 9SECTION 4. Safety clause. The general assembly finds,
Page 9, Line 10determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate
Page 9, Line 11preservation of the public peace, health, or safety or for appropriations for
Page 9, Line 12the support and maintenance of the departments of the state and state institutions.