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H 7680School Safety

Relating Education - The Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act

This bill sets staffing mandates for School Resource Officers based on school size for districts seeking state reimbursement.

Held for study
Population
Affected
35
Email Legislator
Introduced Feb 11, 2026Committee House Finance

Plain-English Summary

This legislation amends the state's education funding laws to establish specific requirements for the funding of School Resource Officers (SROs). It mandates that if schools choose to employ SROs and seek state reimbursement, they must adhere to specific staffing ratios based on student population: schools with fewer than 1,200 students require one officer, while those with 1,200 or more require two. The state will reimburse municipalities for 50% of the salaries and benefits for these qualified positions, provided the officers complete authorized training and are not hired to replace existing positions simply to capture funding.

For younger readers

This law changes the rules for how the state helps pay for police officers who work inside schools, known as School Resource Officers. It says that if a school wants the state to pay for half of the officer's salary, the school must follow specific rules on how many officers they hire. Smaller schools need to have one officer, but big schools with 1,200 students or more must have two officers. It also makes sure these officers have special training to work in schools before they start the job.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
StudentsSchool AdministratorsPolice DepartmentsTaxpayersParents
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Mandates that School Resource Officers complete at least 40 hours of specialized training in school policing, which may help reduce aggressive tactics and improve interactions with students.
  • Explicitly defines the role as "community-oriented policing," which attempts to shift the focus from strict enforcement to relationship-building within the school environment.
  • Provides state funding to cover half the cost of these positions, ensuring that lower-income districts are not financially disadvantaged if they determine a need for security personnel.
  • Incentivizes and subsidizes the presence of police in schools, which many progressives argue contributes to the "school-to-prison pipeline" and disproportionately affects minority students.
  • Mandates that larger schools (over 1,200 students) must hire two officers to be eligible for funding, potentially doubling the police presence and surveillance in large, often diverse, public high schools.
  • Allocates state revenue toward policing salaries that could otherwise be invested in mental health counselors, social workers, or academic resources for students.
For Conservatives
  • Strengthens security measures in schools by incentivizing the hiring of sworn law enforcement officers, promoting law and order and the safety of students and staff.
  • Provides significant financial relief to local municipalities by having the state government reimburse 50% of the costs for salaries and benefits of these officers.
  • Establishes clear, objective standards (student population thresholds) for security staffing, ensuring that larger schools have adequate police coverage.
  • Imposes a "one-size-fits-all" government mandate on local school districts regarding staffing levels, stripping local boards of the freedom to decide how many officers are appropriate for their specific schools.
  • Increases state government spending and taxpayer liability by committing state funds to reimburse local municipal salaries and benefits.
  • Creates bureaucratic hurdles by requiring specific "accredited" training and state oversight in order for towns to receive their own tax dollars back in the form of aid.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 7 additions

SECTION 1. Section 16-7.2-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-7.2 entitled "The Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 16-7.2-6. Categorical programs, state funded expenses. In addition to the foundation education aid provided pursuant to § 16-7.2-3, the permanent foundation education-aid program shall provide direct state funding for:

(a) Excess costs associated with special education students. Excess costs are defined when an individual special education student’s cost shall be deemed to be “extraordinary.” Extraordinary costs are those educational costs that exceed the state-approved threshold based on an amount above four times the core foundation amount (total of core instruction amount plus student success amount). The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding appropriated in any fiscal year; and the department of elementary and secondary education shall also collect data on those educational costs that exceed the state-approved threshold based on an amount above two (2), three (3), and five (5) times the core foundation amount;

(b) Career and technical education costs to help meet initial investment requirements needed to transform existing, or create new, comprehensive, career and technical education programs and career pathways in critical and emerging industries and to help offset the higher- than-average costs associated with facilities, equipment maintenance and repair, and supplies necessary for maintaining the quality of highly specialized programs that are a priority for the state. The department shall develop criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all career and technical education funds as may be determined by the general assembly on an annual basis. The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year;

(c) Programs to increase access to voluntary, free, high-quality pre-kindergarten programs for three (3) and four (4) year-old children, including the state pre-kindergarten program model developed pursuant to chapter 87 of this title and the federal Head Start Program 42 U.S.C. § 9801 et seq. The department shall work with the department of human services’ childcare office and Head Start collaboration office to recommend criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all early childhood categorical program funds as may be determined by the general assembly;

(d) Central Falls, Davies, and the Met Center Stabilization Fund is established to ensure that appropriate funding is available to support their students. Additional support for Central Falls is needed due to concerns regarding the city’s capacity to meet the local share of education costs. This fund requires that education aid calculated pursuant to § 16-7.2-3 and funding for costs outside the permanent foundation education-aid formula, including, but not limited to, transportation, facility maintenance, and retiree health benefits shall be shared between the state and the city of Central Falls. The fund shall be annually reviewed to determine the amount of the state and city appropriation. The state’s share of this fund may be supported through a reallocation of current state appropriations to the Central Falls school district. At the end of the transition period defined in § 16-7.2-7, the municipality will continue its contribution pursuant to § 16-7-24. Additional support for the Davies and the Met Center is needed due to the costs associated with running a stand-alone high school offering both academic and career and technical coursework. The department shall recommend criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all stabilization funds as may be determined by the general assembly;

(e) Excess costs associated with transporting students to out-of-district non-public schools. This fund will provide state funding for the costs associated with transporting students to out-of- district non-public schools, pursuant to chapter 21.1 of this title. The state will assume the costs of non-public out-of-district transportation for those districts participating in the statewide system. The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year;

(f) Excess costs associated with transporting students within regional school districts. This fund will provide direct state funding for the excess costs associated with transporting students within regional school districts, established pursuant to chapter 3 of this title. This fund requires that the state and regional school district share equally the student transportation costs net any federal sources of revenue for these expenditures. The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year;

(g) Public school districts that are regionalized shall be eligible for a regionalization bonus as set forth below:

(1) As used herein, the term “regionalized” shall be deemed to refer to a regional school district established under the provisions of chapter 3 of this title, including the Chariho Regional School district;

(2) For those districts that are regionalized as of July 1, 2010, the regionalization bonus shall commence in FY 2012. For those districts that regionalize after July 1, 2010, the regionalization bonus shall commence in the first fiscal year following the establishment of a regionalized school district as set forth in chapter 3 of this title, including the Chariho Regional School District;

(3) The regionalization bonus in the first fiscal year shall be two percent (2.0%) of the state’s share of the foundation education aid for the regionalized district as calculated pursuant to §§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-7.2-4 in that fiscal year;

(4) The regionalization bonus in the second fiscal year shall be one percent (1.0%) of the state’s share of the foundation education aid for the regionalized district as calculated pursuant to §§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-7.2-4 in that fiscal year;

(5) The regionalization bonus shall cease in the third fiscal year;

(6) The regionalization bonus for the Chariho regional school district shall be applied to the state share of the permanent foundation education aid for the member towns; and

(7) The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible regionalized school districts if the total, approved costs for which regionalized school districts are seeking a regionalization bonus exceed the amount of funding appropriated in any fiscal year;

(h) [Deleted by P.L. 2024, ch. 117, art. 8, § 1.]

(i) State support for school resource officers. For purposes of this subsection, a school resource officer (SRO) shall be defined as a career law enforcement officer with sworn authority who is deployed by an employing police department or agency in a community-oriented policing assignment to work in collaboration with one or more schools. School resource officers should have completed at least forty (40) hours of specialized training in school policing, administered by an accredited agency, before being assigned. Beginning in FY 2019, for a period of three (3) years, school districts or municipalities that choose to employ school resource officers shall receive direct state support for costs associated with employing such officers at public middle and high schools. Districts or municipalities shall be reimbursed an amount equal to one-half (½) of the cost of salaries and benefits for the qualifying positions. Funding will be provided for school resource officer positions established on or after July 1, 2018, provided that:

(1) Each school resource officer shall be assigned to one school:

(i) Schools with enrollments below one thousand two hundred (1,200) students shall require one school resource officer;

(ii) Schools with enrollments of one thousand two hundred (1,200) or more students shall require two school resource officers;

(2) School resource officers hired in excess of the requirement noted above shall not be eligible for reimbursement; and

(3) Schools that eliminate existing school resource officer positions and create new positions under this provision shall not be eligible for reimbursement; and

(j) Categorical programs defined in subsections (a) through (g) shall be funded pursuant to the transition plan in § 16-7.2-7.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.