South Lancaster News

The Legislative Budget and Finance Committee (LBFC) has released a report highlighting progress in Pennsylvania's school safety since the enactment of Act 44 in 2018. The report, commissioned by Senator Scott Martin, evaluates the state's school safety initiatives and suggests potential improvements.

Act 44 led to the creation of several programs, including the School Safety and Security Grant Program and the Safe2Say Something (S2SS) anonymous threat reporting system. The LBFC report states that these initiatives have "undoubtedly improved school safety in Pennsylvania."

Senator Martin expressed satisfaction with the findings: “It is extremely encouraging to hear that our focus on school safety over the past several years has yielded positive results in terms of equipping schools with the tools they need to keep kids safe.”

Since its inception, more than $600 million has been allocated to school entities through the School Safety and Security Committee under the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. Participation in the grant program increased by 44 percent over three years. Funding was primarily used for improving student behavioral and mental health services (54 percent) and enhancing security measures (19 percent).

The S2SS program received praise for its success, having processed over 146,000 tips about potential dangers to students. The number of tips continues to rise, reflecting growing awareness among students about how to use the tip line effectively.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday noted that student-submitted tips helped prevent more than 120 weapons from entering schools.

The LBFC report also includes recommendations for further safeguarding schools. These suggestions include strengthening safety assessments, ensuring timely resolution of threats reported through Safe2Say, establishing performance metrics for school safety, developing annual reporting requirements, and creating a youth/student advisory board.