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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 3141
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE SMITH (68).
6914H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o repeal section 160.261, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to
school attendance data.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 160.261, RSMo, is repealed and one new section enacted in lieu
2 thereof, to be known as section 160.261, to read as follows:
160.261. 1. The local board of education of each school district shall clearly establish
2 a written policy of discipline, including the district's determination on the use of corporal
3 punishment and the procedures in which punishment will be applied. A written copy of the
4 district's discipline policy and corporal punishment procedures, if applicable, shall be
5 provided to the pupil and parent or legal guardian of every pupil enrolled in the district at the
6 beginning of each school year and also made available in the of fice of the superintendent of
7 such district, during normal business hours, for public inspection. No pupil shall be subject to
8 corporal punishment procedures outlined in the discipline and corporal punishment policy
9 without a parent or guardian being notified and providing written permission for the corporal
10 punishment. All employees of the district shall annually receive instruction related to the
11 specific contents of the policy of discipline and any interpretations necessary to implement
12 the provisions of the policy in the course of their duties, including but not limited to approved
13 methods of dealing with acts of school violence, disciplining students with disabilities and
14 instruction in the necessity and requirements for confidentiality .
15 2. The policy shall require school administrators to report acts of school violence to
16 all teachers at the attendance center and, in addition, to other school district employees with a
17 need to know . For the purposes of this chapter or chapter 167, "need to know" is defined as
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
18 school personnel who are directly responsible for the student's education or who otherwise
19 interact with the student on a professional basis while acting within the scope of their
20 assigned duties. As used in this section, the phrase "act of school violence" or "violent
21 behavior" means the exertion of physical force by a student with the intent to do serious
22 physical injury as defined in section 556.061 to another person while on school property ,
23 including a school bus in service on behalf of the district, or while involved in school
24 activities. The policy shall at a minimum require school administrators to report, as soon as
25 reasonably practical, to the appropriate law enforcement agency any of the following crimes,
26 or any act which if committed by an adult would be one of the following crimes:
27 (1) First degree murder under section 565.020;
28 (2) Second degree murder under section 565.021;
29 (3) Kidnapping under section 565.1 10 as it existed prior to January 1, 2017, or
30 kidnapping in the first degree under section 565.1 10;
31 (4) First degree assault under section 565.050;
32 (5) Rape in the first degree under section 566.030;
33 (6) Sodomy in the first degree under section 566.060;
34 (7) Burgl ary in the first degree under section 569.160;
35 (8) Burgl ary in the second degree under section 569.170;
36 (9) Robbery in the first degree under section 569.020 as it existed prior to January 1,
37 2017, or robbery in the first degree under section 570.023;
38 (10) Distribution of drugs under section 195.21 1 as it existed prior to January 1, 2017,
39 or manufacture of a controlled substance under section 579.055;
40 (1 1) Distribution of drugs to a minor under section 195.212 as it existed prior to
41 January 1, 2017, or delivery of a controlled substance under section 579.020;
42 (12) Arson in the first degree under section 569.040;
43 (13) V oluntary manslaughter under section 565.023;
44 (14) Involuntary manslaughter under section 565.024 as it existed prior to January 1,
45 2017, involuntary manslaughter in the first degree under section 565.024, or involuntary
46 manslaughter in the second degree under section 565.027;
47 (15) Second degree assault under section 565.060 as it existed prior to January 1,
48 2017, or second degree assault under section 565.052;
49 (16) Rape in the second degree under section 566.031;
50 (17) Felonious restraint under section 565.120 as it existed prior to January 1, 2017,
51 or kidnapping in the second degree under section 565.120;
52 (18) Property damage in the first degree under section 569.100;
53 (19) The possession of a weapon under chapter 571;
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54 (20) Child molestation in the first degree pursuant to section 566.067 as it existed
55 prior to January 1, 2017, or child molestation in the first, second, or third degree pursuant to
56 section 566.067, 566.068, or 566.069;
57 (21) Sodomy in the second degree pursuant to section 566.061;
58 (22) Sexual misconduct involving a child pursuant to section 566.083;
59 (23) Sexual abuse in the first degree pursuant to section 566.100;
60 (24) Harassment under section 565.090 as it existed prior to January 1, 2017, or
61 harassment in the first degree under section 565.090; or
62 (25) Stalking under section 565.225 as it existed prior to January 1, 2017, or stalking
63 in the first degree under section 565.225;
64
65 committed on school property , including but not limited to actions on any school bus in
66 service on behalf of the district or while involved in school activities. The policy shall require
67 that any portion of a student's individualized education program that is related to
68 demonstrated or potentially violent behavior shall be provided to any teacher and other
69 school district employees who are directly responsible for the student's education or who
70 otherwise interact with the student on an educational basis while acting within the scope of
71 their assigned duties. The policy shall also contain the consequences of failure to obey
72 standards of conduct set by the local board of education, and the importance of the standards
73 to the maintenance of an atmosphere where orderly learning is possible and encouraged.
74 3. The policy shall provide that any student who is on suspension for any of the
75 of fenses listed in subsection 2 of this section or any act of violence or drug-related activity
76 defined by school district policy as a serious violation of school discipline pursuant to
77 subsection 9 of this section shall have as a condition of his or her suspension the requirement
78 that such student is not allowed, while on such suspension, to be within one thousand feet of
79 any school property in the school district where such student attended school or any activity
80 of that district, regardless of whether or not the activity takes place on district property unless:
81 (1) Such student is under the direct supervision of the student's parent, legal guardian,
82 or custodian and the superintendent or the superintendent's designee has authorized the
83 student to be on school property;
84 (2) Such student is under the direct supervision of another adult designated by the
85 student's parent, legal guardian, or custodian, in advance, in writing, to the principal of the
86 school which suspended the student and the superintendent or the superintendent's designee
87 has authorized the student to be on school property;
88 (3) Such student is enrolled in and attending an alternative school that is located
89 within one thousand feet of a public school in the school district where such student attended
90 school; or
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91 (4) Such student resides within one thousand feet of any public school in the school
92 district where such student attended school in which case such student may be on the property
93 of his or her residence without direct adult supervision.
94 4. Any student who violates the condition of suspension required pursuant to
95 subsection 3 of this section may be subject to expulsion or further suspension pursuant to the
96 provisions of sections 167.161, 167.164, and 167.171. In making this determination
97 consideration shall be given to whether the student poses a threat to the safety of any child or
98 school employee and whether such student's unsupervised presence within one thousand feet
99 of the school is disruptive to the educational process or undermines the ef fectiveness of the
100 school's disciplinary policy . Removal of any pupil who is a student with a disability is subject
101 to state and federal procedural rights. This section shall not limit a school district's ability to:
102 (1) Prohibit all students who are suspended from being on school property or
103 attending an activity while on suspension;
104 (2) Discipline students for of f-campus conduct that negatively af fects the educational
105 environment to the extent allowed by law .
106 5. The policy shall provide for a suspension for a period of not less than one year , or
107 expulsion, for a student who is determined to have brought a weapon to school, including but
108 not limited to the school playground or the school parking lot, brought a weapon on a school
109 bus or brought a weapon to a school activity whether on or off of the school property in
110 violation of district policy , except that:
111 (1) The superintendent or , in a school district with no high school, the principal of the
112 school which such child attends may modify such suspension on a case-by-case basis; and
113 (2) This section shall not prevent the school district from providing educational
114 services in an alternative setting to a student suspended under the provisions of this section.
115 6. For the purpose of this section, the term "weapon" shall mean a firearm as defined
116 under 18 U.S.C. Section 921 and the following items, as defined in section 571.010: a
117 blackjack, a concealable firearm, an explosive weapon, a firearm, a firearm silencer , a gas
118 gun, a knife, knuckles, a machine gun, a projectile weapon, a rifle, a shotgun, a spring gun or
119 a switchblade knife; except that this section shall not be construed to prohibit a school board
120 from adopting a policy to allow a Civil W ar reenactor to carry a Civil W ar era weapon on
121 school property for educational purposes so long as the firearm is unloaded. The local board
122 of education shall define weapon in the discipline policy . Such definition shall include the
123 weapons defined in this subsection but may also include other weapons.
124 7. All school district personnel responsible for the care and supervision of students
125 are authorized to hold every pupil strictly accountable for any disorderly conduct in school or
126 on any property of the school, on any school bus going to or returning from school, during
127 school-sponsored activities, or during intermission or recess periods.
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128 8. T eachers and other authorized district personnel in public schools responsible for
129 the care, supervision, and discipline of schoolchildren, including volunteers selected with
130 reasonable care by the school district, shall not be civilly liable when acting in conformity
131 with the established policies developed by each board, including but not limited to policies of
132 student discipline or when reporting to his or her supervisor or other person as mandated by
133 state law acts of school violence or threatened acts of school violence, within the course and
134 scope of the duties of the teacher , authorized district personnel or volunteer , when such
135 individual is acting in conformity with the established policies developed by the board.
136 Nothing in this section shall be construed to create a new cause of action against such school
137 district, or to relieve the school district from liability for the negligent acts of such persons.
138 9. Each school board shall define in its discipline policy acts of violence and any
139 other acts that constitute a serious violation of that policy . "Acts of violence" as defined by
140 school boards shall include but not be limited to exertion of physical force by a student with
141 the intent to do serious bodily harm to another person while on school property , including a
142 school bus in service on behalf of the district, or while involved in school activities. School
143 districts shall for each student enrolled in the school district compile and maintain records of
144 any serious violation of the district's discipline policy . Such records shall be made available
145 to teachers and other school district employees with a need to know while acting within the
146 scope of their assigned duties, and shall be provided as required in section 167.020 to any
147 school district in which the student subsequently attempts to enroll.
148 10. Spanking, when administered by certificated personnel and in the presence of a
149 witness who is an employee of the school district, or the use of reasonable force to protect
150 persons or property , when administered by personnel of a school district in a reasonable
151 manner in accordance with the local board of education's written policy of discipline, is not
152 abuse within the meaning of chapter 210.
153 1 1. Upon receipt of any reports of child abuse by the children's division pursuant to
154 sections 210.1 10 to 210.165 which allegedly involve personnel of a school district, the
155 children's division shall notify the superintendent of schools of the district or , if the person
156 named in the alleged incident is the superintendent of schools, the president of the school
157 board of the school district where the alleged incident occurred.
158 12. (1) In order to ensure the safety of all students, should a student be expelled for
159 bringing a weapon to school, violent behavior , or for an act of school violence, that student
160 shall not, for the purposes of the accreditation process of the Missouri school improvement
161 plan, be considered a dropout or be included in the calculation of that district's educational
162 persistence ratio.
163 (2) For the 2026-27 school year and all subsequent school years, if a student is
164 suspended, expelled, or unilaterally rem oved to an interim educational setting for an act
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165 of school violence as re quir ed under a school district's discipline policy , such student's
166 suspension, expulsion, or r emoval shall not be r eported for any calculations of the school
167 district's attendance or enrol lment data for the purposes of the accredi tation pro cess of
168 the Missouri school improvement pr ogram or its successor accr editation pr ogram.
✔
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