Sponsored by:
Senator ROBERT W. SINGER
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
Senator ANTHONY M. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Requires school districts to provide instruction on water safety as part of New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Comprehensive Health and Physical Education.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the provision of water safety instruction in public school curriculum and supplementing chapter 35 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, each school district shall incorporate instruction on water safety into the health education curriculum for students in grades K through 12 as part of the district’s implementation of the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Comprehensive Health and Physical Education.
b. The instruction shall provide students with information on:
(1) the proper use of flotation devices;
(2) how to become aware of water conditions;
(3) the danger of rip currents and how to respond if caught in one; and
(4) the importance of swimming in areas monitored by a lifeguard.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires each school district to incorporate instruction on water safety into the health education curriculum for students in grades K through 12 as part of the district’s implementation of the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Comprehensive Health and Physical Education, beginning with the 2023-2024 school year. The instruction must provide information on: the proper use of flotation devices; how to become aware of water conditions; the danger of rip currents and how to respond if caught in one; and the importance of swimming in areas monitored by a lifeguard.
Drownings are the fifth leading cause of accidental death in the United States according to the Centers for Disease Control. While New Jersey students participate in drills for fire and active shooter crises, they do not receive instruction on what to do if you are drowning or see someone drowning.