Sponsors (2)
The bill preserves and makes transparent school resource officer funding—helping maintain on-site policing and accountability—while restricting districts' flexibility to shift funds to non-policing supports and risking increased criminalization of students, with financial penalties for states that try to cut SRO spending.
Students, teachers, and schools will keep SRO staffing/funding at or above recent levels, maintaining on-site law enforcement presence in schools.
Families and school staff receive annual public reporting on SRO funding and headcounts, increasing transparency about policing levels in schools.
State education agencies can obtain a waiver for extraordinary financial circumstances, allowing temporary flexibility after disasters or downturns.
Students—especially marginalized youth—may face expanded policing and increased risk of school-based criminalization because the bill entrenches or encourages higher SRO headcounts.
States that cut SRO funding will lose a proportional share of federal ESEA funds the following year, reducing money available for other education programs and services.
Mandating minimum SRO spending may limit SEAs' ability to reallocate funds to non-policing alternatives (counselors, mental-health services, restorative justice) that some communities prefer.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires SEAs to maintain SRO funding at or above recent historical levels, certify and report annually, and face proportional ESEA funding cuts for unwaived reductions.
Official title: To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require maintenance of State funds for school resource officers in elementary schools and secondary schools, and for other purposes.
Introduced May 15, 2025 by John Bergman · Last progress May 15, 2025
Requires state education agencies to keep funding for school resource officer (SRO) programs at or above recent historical levels, report SRO funding and headcounts annually, and face proportional reductions in ESEA funding if they cut SRO funding without an approved waiver. Allows the Secretary of Education to waive the requirement for extraordinary financial circumstances.