FRANKFORT, Ky. — An act aimed at improving school safety and addressing a shortage of school resource officers in Kentucky has passed the state Senate. Senate Bill 2 would establish the Kentucky Guardian Program and is an expansion of the School Safety and Resiliency Act passed in 2019.

What You Need To Know

  • Senate Bill 2 expands on the 2019 School Safety and Resiliency Act, which sought to strengthen safety training in schools 

  • The bill establishes a Kentucky guardian program for school districts 

  • If a district chooses, a retired Kentucky State Police trooper, retired federal agent or honorably discharged veteran could serve in a role similar to a school resource officer

  • Guardians would not have the power to arrest but could conceal carry a gun

Under the bill, a Kentucky guardian could be a retired KSP trooper, federal agent or honorably discharged veteran serving in a similar role to a traditional school resource officer.

State Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, the bill’s sponsor, said the goal is to have a school resource officer in every Kentucky school. However, due to lack of funding, or lack of officers in the local law enforcement agency Wise said this is not possible. That’s where a Kentucky guardian would step in.

“School boards would have the discretion to hire on if they want a guardian or not or how many guardians they may want,” Wise said.

Under the bill, a Kentucky guardian would not be able to arrest but could conceal carry a gun. Prospective guardians would also undergo active shooter training, SRO training, and must have no criminal history.

“There’s going to be a background investigation to make sure there’s no felonies or misdemeanors but also, on top of that, is a polygraph examination, medical examination by a doctor,” Wise said.

Following a shooting at a Marshall County high school in 2018 which saw two people killed and dozens injured, the General Assembly passed the School Safety and Resiliency Act, which expanded school safety plans. SB 2 is an expansion of that act aimed at preventing future tragedies.

“Lives can be affected in the matter of seconds. If we don’t have an SRO in the school, if we have an honorably discharged veteran or a retired law enforcement officer, let’s put them in charge of helping provide safety if we can be able to do that,” Wise said.

The bill passed through the Senate chamber 28-10 with three Republicans joining the seven Democrats in opposition. State Sen. Reginald Thomas, D-Lexington, said he does not want to see schools become “militarized camps” and adds the bill fails to address the root causes of school violence.

“Rather than look and say how can we deal with the gun problem that we have here in this state and America, our response is let’s put more guns in schools and not less,” Thomas said.

Senate Bill 2 also focuses on a trauma-informed approach team tasked with collecting data about student mental health and which districts need more mental service providers.

“We just don’t know what we don’t know and so let’s find out what’s going on right now with the mental health crisis in our kids,” Wise said.

Individual school districts can decide whether a guardian would be a paid position or a volunteer. Wise said this bill would not replace a traditional SRO.

The bill now heads to the House for concurrence.

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