Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman ROSAURA "ROSY" BAGOLIE
District 27 (Essex and Passaic)
Assemblyman LOUIS D. GREENWALD
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Simonsen
SYNOPSIS
Establishes School Security Pilot Program in DOE; appropriates $15 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Education Committee on September 14, 2026, with amendments.
An Act establishing the 1[County-Based]1 School Security Pilot Program, supplementing chapter 41 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and making an appropriation.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. As used in this act:
“Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Education.
1[“Pilot county” means Essex, Mercer, and Camden counties.]
“Participating district” means a school district selected by the commissioner to participate in the pilot program.1
“Pilot program” means the “1[County-Based]1 School Security Pilot Program,” established pursuant to subsection b. of this section.
1“Rolling mobile ballistic shield system” means a wheeled or rolling, maneuverable ballistic protection system designed to provide substantially full-body ballistic coverage, from approximately head level to lower-extremity level, to one or more persons while permitting protected movement during an active-threat response, rescue, evacuation, or other emergency operation. The system shall:
(1) meet or exceed the ballistic performance requirements associated with National Institute of Justice Level III protection, or an equivalent or successor ballistic-resistance standard recognized by the National Institute of Justice;
(2) incorporate a transparent ballistic viewing component sufficient to permit forward observation while maintaining ballistic protection; and
(3) be configured to permit deployment and maneuverability through standard school building corridors and doorways.1
b. There is established in the Department of Education a three-year “1[County-Based]1 School Security Pilot Program,” which shall 1[establish county-based] supplement1 mental health services for 1[public school]1 students 1enrolled in school districts1 and provide security infrastructure to 1[public schools] school districts1. 1[The pilot program shall be established in the counties of Essex, Mercer, and Camden.] A school district wishing to participate in the pilot program shall submit an application to the commissioner in a manner and on such forms as determined by the commissioner. The commissioner shall select school districts for participation in the program pursuant to a methodology established by the commissioner.1
c. The commissioner shall work in collaboration with the Commissioner of Human Services, the Commissioner of Children and Families, and the Director of the State Office of Emergency Management in the Division of State Police in the Department of Law and Public Safety to implement the pilot program which shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) a 1[county-based] supplemental1 mental health program available to students 1[residing in a pilot county and attending a public school] enrolled in a participating district1 that incorporates the following: individual and group clinical mental health services; referrals to community-based mental health care providers; evidence-based interventions; mental health screenings; and crisis intervention; and
(2) additional security supports for 1[school] participating1 districts 1[within a pilot county]1 including, but not limited to, expanded access to training for active shooter scenarios; 1[bullet-resistant mobile ballistic shields] rolling mobile ballistic shield systems1 ; and other protective equipment as deemed necessary by the commissioner.
d. In selecting school districts to receive additional security supports pursuant to subsection c. of this section, the commissioner shall consider the security needs of 1[the district] districts applying to participate in the pilot program1 as reflected in the data reported in the commissioner’s annual report on violence, vandalism, and harassment, intimidation, or bullying in the school district, as required pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1982, c.163 (C.18A:17-48).
2. The commissioner shall submit a report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), not more than one year after the implementation of the pilot program, and annually thereafter for a total of three years. The report shall contain information on the implementation of the pilot program, an evaluation of the mental health services available to students in a 1[pilot county] participating district1, and the recommendations of the commissioner on the advisability of continuing, expanding, or modifying the program.
3. There is appropriated 1[$15 million] $15,000,0001 from the General Fund to the Department of Education to implement the provisions of 1[section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)] this act1.
4. This act shall take effect in the first full school year following the date of enactment, but the Commissioner of Education may take anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.