FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) -- Two Kentucky education bills are almost through to Gov. Andy Beshear's desk.
One is a move to expand school resource officers, House bill 63, and the other focuses on mental health, House bill 44.
Rep. Kevin Bratcher, R-Louisville, has been pushing for House Bill 63. The bill redefines how school resource officers, or SROs, are assigned and clarifies a mandate for them to be at every Kentucky public school campus. It also requires schools to report to the state's school security marshal if they cannot comply.
Announced Thursday morning, senators added a provision to Bratcher's bill that would allow school districts to have police departments, previously incorporated in Senate Bill 120.
Senators said these departments will allow for SROs to have extended jurisdiction off campus, like university police departments do. It could also allow for school districts with police departments to be eligible for federal grants.
"It opens up resources that they might not have to help them comply with exactly what we want to do and that's to have an officer at every school," Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Benton, said.
The other bill heard before the Senate Education Panel passed unanimously. House Bill 44 would allow school districts the option to adopt mental health days as an excused absence. The bill would still require a parent to be involved in calling the school before it would be excused.
Both bills would next be heard before the full Senate.
Also on the Senate floor Thursday afternoon, senators passed Senate Bill 121, that would mandate at least 15 minutes of public comment at all public school board meetings.
The bill had push back from both Democrats and Republicans because there was concern it was an overstep into local school district control.
It passed the floor 25 to 10.
Senate Bill 121 would next head to the House to be heard before a panel.
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