SB468: Bill Text

SB468,16,8 1. Other less intrusive interventions, including positive behavioral interventions and supports, constructive, non-physical deescalation, and restructuring of the pupil's school environment, have failed or been deemed inappropriate.

SB468,16,13 2. a. For a child with a disability, the child's individualized education program includes a behavioral intervention plan, the child's individualized education program permits the use of timeout, and the child's parent has consented in writing to the use of timeout in the circumstances under which timeout is proposed to be used.

SB468,16,16 b. For a pupil who is not a child with a disability, the pupil's parent has consented in writing to the use of timeout in the circumstances under which timeout is proposed to be used.

SB468,16,23 (c) A school employee certified under sub. (4) (c) may, after reviewing and considering any known medical, developmental, or psychological limitations of a pupil, use timeout on that pupil without the written consent of the pupil's parent in an emergency if other less intrusive interventions, including positive behavioral interventions and supports, constructive, non-physical deescalation, and restructuring of the pupil's school environment have failed or been deemed inappropriate.

SB468,17,8 (d) No school employee may use a room as a timeout room unless the room has been approved for that use by the school district if the room is located in a school operated, or a charter school established, by the school district, or the state superintendent if the room is located in a charter school established under s. 118.40 (2r), a private school in which a child with a disability is enrolled as provided in s. 115.77 (1m) (d), or a private school participating in the program under s. 119.23. The school district or department of public instruction shall require as a condition for approval that a photograph of the room be submitted with the request for approval. No room may be approved as a timeout room unless the room satisfies all of the following:

SB468,17,11 1. It is free of fixtures, electrical outlets, exposed wiring or other objects that could be used by the pupil to harm himself or herself or others and is designed so that the pupil cannot climb up or upon the walls.

SB468,17,13 2. It has an area of at least 48 square feet and a ceiling height that is comparable to the height of the surrounding room or rooms.

SB468,17,15 3. It complies with all state and county fire and safety codes and is equipped with adequate lighting and ventilation.

SB468,17,17 4. It affords the school employee with the means to hear and see the pupil at all times.

SB468,17,19 5. If the timeout room is fitted with a door, the door either has a solid, wood core construction or is constructed of steel.

SB468,17,22 (e) 1. Except as provided in subd. 2., a school employee who uses timeout on a pupil shall ensure that timeout is stopped as soon as the purpose for which it is being used is achieved but is used for no more than 15 minutes total in any day.

SB468,18,5 2. If the school employee determines that the use of timeout on a pupil may need to exceed 15 minutes, he or she shall, before the end of the 15 minutes authorized under subd. 1., communicate with the school-based resource person identified under sub. (2), who shall evaluate the need for the use of timeout for more than 15 minutes and obtain the approval of the school principal or his or her designee prior to authorizing the school employee to use a timeout for more than 15 minutes. The school employee shall comply with any directives issued by the school principal or his or her designee concerning continued use of the timeout.

SB468,18,9 (7) Parental notification and reporting following use of physical restraint or timeout. (a) The school principal or his or her designee shall make reasonable efforts to orally notify the parent of a pupil when any of the following occur as soon as practicable but in no event later than the end of the day of the occurrence:

SB468,18,10 1. Physical restraint has been used on the pupil.

SB468,18,12 2. For a pupil who does not have an individualized education program, the pupil has been placed in a timeout room.

SB468,18,13 3. The pupil has been placed in a timeout room for more than 15 minutes.

SB468,18,15 4. The pupil has been placed in a timeout room 2 or more times within any 3-hour period.

SB468,18,20 (b) The school employee who uses physical restraint or timeout in any of the occurrences identified in par. (a) shall, within 24 hours after the occurrence, submit a written report containing the following information to the school principal or his or her designee, which report shall be retained by the school for review by the department:

SB468,18,21 1. The date, time, and duration of the use of physical restraint or timeout.

SB468,18,24 2. A description of the actions of the pupil before, during, and after the occurrence, including a discussion of the pupil's feelings about and reactions to the occurrence.

SB468,19,3 3. A description of any other relevant events preceding the use of the physical restraint or timeout, including the justification for initiating the use of physical restraint or timeout.

SB468,19,4 4. The names of the school employees involved in the occurrence.

SB468,19,7 5. A description of the actions of the school employees under subd. 4. before, during, and after the occurrence, including a discussion of the reactions of the school employees to the occurrence.

SB468,19,9 6. A description of any interventions used prior to the use of the physical restraint or timeout.

SB468,19,11 7. If physical restraint was used, a description of the physical restraint used, including any hold used and the reason the hold was necessary.

SB468,19,14 8. A log of the pupil's behavior during the use of the physical restraint or timeout, including a description of any interaction between the pupil and the school employees.

SB468,19,17 9. A description of any injuries sustained by, and any medical care administered to, the pupil, school employees, or others before, during, or after the use of the physical restraint or timeout.

SB468,19,18 10. A description of any property damage associated with the occurrence.

SB468,19,20 11. A description of future actions to be taken to control the pupil's problem behaviors.

SB468,19,21 12. The name and position of the school employee completing the report.

SB468,20,2 (c) The school principal or his or her designee shall, within 24 hours after the occurrence of any of the events identified under par. (a), send or transmit by 1st class mail or electronic mail or facsimile transmission to the pupil's parent the information contained in the report prepared under par. (b). Each report prepared under this paragraph shall be retained by the school for review by the department.

SB468,20,11 (d) Annually and upon the request of the department, each school district, each operator of a charter school, the governing body of each private school in which a child with a disability is enrolled as provided in s. 115.77 (1m) (d), the governing body of each private school participating in the program under s. 119.23, each county children with disabilities education board that operates a school, and each local educational agency shall submit to the department a written report containing a summary of the occurrences identified in par. (a) for which a report was prepared under par. (b). The information reported under this paragraph shall include all of the following:

SB468,20,12 1. The name of the school at which the occurrence occurred.

SB468,20,14 2. The name of the school employees present before, during, and after the occurrence.

SB468,20,15 3. The number of occurrences involving a child with a disability.

SB468,20,17 4. The duration of the use of physical restraint for each occurrence involving the use of physical restraint.

SB468,20,19 5. The number of timeouts for which a report was required and the duration of each such timeout.

SB468,20,20 6. The number and a description of any injuries related to each occurrence.

SB468,20,22 7. Evidence that the parent of each pupil on whom physical restraint or timeout was used was notified as required under this subsection.

SB468,21,7 (8) Procedures for review of use of physical restraint and timeout. (a) Each school district, each local educational agency, each operator of a charter school, the governing body of each private school in which a child with a disability is enrolled as provided in s. 115.77 (1m) (d), each county children with disabilities education board that operates a school, and the governing body of each private school participating in the program under s. 119.23 shall establish a procedure for reviewing each occurrence identified in sub. (7) (a). The parent of a pupil on whom physical restraint or timeout was used shall be notified in writing of the date, time, and location of the review at least 10 days before the review is to be held and invited to attend the review.

SB468,21,11 (b) A review conducted under this subsection shall be attended by the school-based resource person identified under sub. (2), school employees involved in the occurrence, and other persons identified by the school-based resource person. The review shall include all of the following:

SB468,21,14 1. The review by school employees involved in the occurrence of the circumstances before, during, and after the use of physical restraint or timeout to determine all of the following:

SB468,21,16 a. Whether proper procedures were followed and whether procedures need to be modified in future occurrences.

SB468,21,17 b. Whether alternative strategies for controlling the situation were utilized.

SB468,21,18 c. Whether the parent of the pupil was notified as required under sub. (7) (a).

SB468,21,20 d. The need for communication with or counselling of any pupil who witnessed the use of physical restraint or timeout.

SB468,21,21 2. For a pupil who is not a child with a disability, all of the following:

SB468,22,2 a. A review of the effectiveness of the use of the physical restraint or timeout. Upon completion of the review under this subd. 2. a., the school employees involved in the occurrence shall work with the parent of the pupil, the school-based resource person, and other appropriate persons to prepare a written individual behavior plan for the pupil that provides for the use of other, specified interventions or the continued use of the intervention used previously.

SB468,22,4 b. A determination as to whether the pupil should be evaluated under s. 115.782.

SB468,22,12 (c) The individualized education program team of any child with a disability on whom physical restraint or timeout was used in an occurrence described in sub. (7) (a) shall, within 21 days after the occurrence, convene in the manner provided under s. 115.787 (4) to review the pupil's individualized education program and behavioral intervention plan. The pupil's parent shall be notified in writing of the date, time, and place of a meeting required under this paragraph at least 10 days prior to the meeting. A meeting required under this paragraph shall include all of the following:

SB468,22,14 1. A review of the pupil's written progress, monitoring, and incident reports and the report prepared under sub. (7) (b) following the occurrence.

SB468,22,15 2. If appropriate, interviews with the pupil.

SB468,22,17 3. Concerns regarding the individualized education program and behavioral intervention plan of the pupil's parent.

SB468,22,20 4. A review and discussion of any indirect or collateral effects of the use of aversive interventions on the pupil, including increases in aggressive or escapist behaviors, health-related effects, or emotional reactions.

SB468,22,23 5. If a functional behavioral assessment has not been prepared for the pupil within the preceding 12 months, the completion of a functional behavioral assessment.

SB468,22,25 (9) Complaints. (a) A parent of a child with a disability, or the attorney representing the child, may do any of the following:

SB468,23,2 1. File a written request for a hearing regarding the use of physical restraint or timeout on the child in the manner provided under s. 115.80 (1) (a) 1m. and 2.

SB468,23,12 2. Within one year after the parent learns of the use of physical restraint or timeout on the child, file a written complaint regarding the school's compliance with this section with the local educational agency. The parent, or the attorney representing the child, shall provide a copy of the written complaint to the department. The local educational agency shall respond to the complaint within 15 days after receiving the complaint. The parent, or the attorney representing the child, may, within 30 days after the determination of the matters in the complaint under this subdivision, appeal the determination of the local educational agency to the state superintendent. The state superintendent shall review the local educational agency's compliance with this section.

SB468,23,14 (b) The parent of a pupil who is not a child with a disability, or the attorney representing the pupil, may do any of the following:

SB468,24,7 1. Within one year after the parent learns of the use of physical restraint or timeout on the pupil, file a written request for a hearing with the school district or, in the case of a pupil enrolled in a charter school under s. 118.40 (2r), with the operator of the charter school or, in the case of a pupil enrolled in a private school participating in the program under s. 119.23, with the governing body of the private school. The parent, or the attorney representing the pupil, shall include in the request the name of the pupil, the address of the residence of the pupil, the name of the school the pupil is attending, a description of the nature of the problem of the pupil relating to the use of physical restraint or timeout, including facts relating to the problem, and a proposed resolution of the problem to the extent known and available to the parents at the time. The parent or attorney representing the pupil shall provide the department with a copy of the request. The school district, operator of the charter school, or governing body of the private school shall hold a hearing on the matters contained in the written request in the manner established by the department by rule. The parent or attorney representing the pupil may appeal a determination received under this subdivision to the state superintendent. The state superintendent shall review the compliance of the school district, operator of the charter school, or governing body of the private school with this section.

SB468,24,21 2. Within one year after the parent learns of the use of physical restraint or timeout on the pupil, file a written complaint regarding the use of physical restraint or timeout on the pupil with the school district or, in the case of a pupil enrolled in a charter school under s. 118.40 (2r), with the operator of the charter school or, in the case of a pupil enrolled in a private school participating in the program under s. 119.23, with the governing body of the private school. The parent, or the attorney representing the pupil, shall provide a copy of the written complaint to the department. The school district, operator of the charter school, or governing body of the private school shall respond to the complaint within 15 days after receiving the complaint. The parent or attorney representing the pupil may, within 30 days after a determination of the matters in the complaint under this subdivision, appeal the determination to the state superintendent. The state superintendent shall review the compliance of the school district, operator of the charter school, and governing body of the private school with this section.

SB468,25,4 (10) Remedies. (a) If a local educational agency, school district, operator of a charter school under s. 118.40 (2r), or governing body of a private school participating in the program under s. 119.23, in its response to a complaint received under sub. (9) (a) 2. or (b) 2. or at a hearing held under sub. (9) (b) 1., finds that the school in which the pupil or child with a disability is enrolled has failed to comply with the requirements of this section, the agency, school district, operator, or governing body shall take corrective action that is appropriate to the needs of the pupil or child with a disability and to achieve compliance with this section.

SB468,25,13 (b) If the state superintendent, in his or her review under sub. (9) (a) 2. or (b) 1. or 2. of the compliance with this section of a local educational agency, school district, operator of a charter school, or governing body of a private school, finds that the school in which the pupil or child with a disability is enrolled has failed to comply with the requirements of this section, the state superintendent shall require the agency, school district, operator, or governing body to achieve compliance and shall prescribe corrective action that is appropriate to the needs of the pupil or child with a disability that the agency, school district, operator, or governing body must take to achieve compliance.

SB468,25,18 (11) Civil liability exemptions. (a) Any school principal or his or her designee or school-based resource person identified under sub. (2), who authorizes a school employee certified under sub. (2) or (4) to use physical restraint or timeout on a pupil as authorized in this section is immune from civil liability for the act of authorization unless it constitutes a high degree of negligence.

SB468,25,24 (b) Any school principal or his or her designee, school employee, or school-based resource person identified under sub. (2) who is certified under sub. (2) or (4) and who uses physical restraint or a timeout on a pupil as authorized in this section is immune from civil liability for his or her act or omission in the use of physical restraint or timeout unless the act or omission constitutes a high degree of negligence.

SB468,26,2 (12) Rule-making authority. The department may promulgate rules to administer and implement this section.

SB468, s. 12 Section 12. 118.40 (5) of the statutes is renumbered 118.40 (5) (a).

SB468, s. 13 Section 13. 118.40 (5) (bm) and (cm) of the statutes are created to read:

SB468,26,8 118.40 (5) (bm) A charter may be revoked by the entity under sub. (2r) (b) that contracted with the charter school if the state superintendent finds that a charter school established under sub. (2r) has failed to comply with the requirements of s. 118.305.

SB468,26,12 (cm) The charter of a charter school established and operated by an entity under sub. (2r) (b) may be revoked by the state superintendent if the state superintendent finds that the charter school has failed to comply with the requirements of s. 118.305.

SB468, s. 14 Section 14. 119.23 (10) (a) 8. of the statutes is created to read:

SB468,26,14 119.23 (10) (a) 8. Failed to comply with the requirements under s. 118.305.

SB468,26,15 (End)