Amendment ASA1-AB542

ASSEMBLY SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1, TO ASSEMBLY BILL 542

November 29, 2023 - Offered by Representative Callahan.

AB542-ASA1,1,4 An Act to repeal 165.88 (3m) (d); to amend 165.88 (4); and to create 165.88 (3p) of the statutes; relating to: grants to schools to acquire proactive metallic and nonmetallic threat detection equipment and software and making an appropriation.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, the Department of Justice awards grants to schools to improve school safety. Currently DOJ awards grants to fund eligible expenditures such as training; safety-related upgrades to buildings, equipment, and facilities; and expenditures to provide blueprints or mapping data to law enforcement.

This bill requires DOJ to award grants of up to $325,000 to school boards or governing bodies of private schools to acquire proactive metallic and nonmetallic threat detection equipment and software and provides $4,000,000 in the 2023-25 fiscal biennium for the grants. Under the bill, the school board or governing body must apply for the grants jointly with a local law enforcement agency. To be eligible for a grant, an applicant must demonstrate that a school covered by the application had a firearm-related incident that occurred on or after January 1, 2014. The bill also requires a grant recipient to provide matching funds that equal at least 25 percent of the grant.

Under the bill, DOJ is limited to awarding grants to no more than 10 applicants per fiscal biennium. If more than 10 applicants are qualified, the bill requires DOJ to consider geographic variation and the order of applications received when awarding the grants.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB542-ASA1,1 Section 1 . 165.88 (3m) (d) of the statutes is repealed.

AB542-ASA1,2 Section 2 . 165.88 (3p) of the statutes is created to read:

AB542-ASA1,2,7 165.88 (3p) Grants to schools for metallic and nonmetallic threat detection equipment and software. (a) From the appropriation under s. 20.455 (2) (f), the department of justice shall award grants to school boards and governing bodies of private schools to acquire proactive metallic and nonmetallic threat detection equipment and software.

AB542-ASA1,2,17 (b) The department shall accept applications for the grants under this subsection from school boards, or governing bodies of private schools, that are working jointly with local law enforcement agencies with jurisdiction over the school. To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a school board must demonstrate that a school in the school district had a firearm-related incident that occurred on or after January 1, 2014, or a governing body of a private school must demonstrate that the private school had a firearm-related incident that occurred on or after January 1, 2014. The firearm-related incident must satisfy all of the criteria under s. 118.124 (2) (b). Beginning in the 2025-26 school year, the department shall consider the statistics reported under s. 118.124.

AB542-ASA1,2,20 (c) Grant moneys awarded under par. (a) shall be used to acquire proactive metallic and nonmetallic threat detection equipment or software that complies with all of the following:

AB542-ASA1,2,21 1. The equipment or software is developed in the United States.

AB542-ASA1,3,2 2. The equipment or software is designed to integrate with existing school security cameras or other school security alert systems.

AB542-ASA1,3,7 3. The artificial intelligence software is written and programmable to follow authorized protocol autonomously, or the equipment or software is managed directly by the school or law enforcement or by the contracted vendor onsite or though a constantly monitored operations center that is staffed by highly trained analysts, to rapidly communicate possible seen or unseen threats to end users.

AB542-ASA1,3,10 4. The equipment or software has been successfully deployed in other facilities, such as airports, courthouses, classified or unclassified facilities for state governments or the federal government, or school districts, or to a commercial user.

AB542-ASA1,3,13 (d) A grant awarded under par. (a) may not exceed $325,000, and a recipient of a grant under this subsection shall provide matching funds that equal at least 25 percent of the grant.

AB542-ASA1,3,17 (e) The department may award grants under this subsection to no more than 10 applicants per fiscal biennium. If more than 10 applicants are qualified under par. (b), the department shall consider geographic variation and the order of applications received when awarding grants.

AB542-ASA1,3 Section 3 . 165.88 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB542-ASA1,3,22 165.88 (4) Report. The department of justice shall submit an annual report to the cochairpersons of the joint committee on finance providing an account of the grants awarded under sub. subs. (2), (3m), and (3p) and the expenditures made with the grant moneys.

AB542-ASA1,4 Section 4 . Fiscal changes.

AB542-ASA1,4,2 (1) Grant funding. In the schedule under s. 20.005 (3) for the appropriation to the department of justice under s. 20.455 (2) (f), the dollar amount for the 2023-24 fiscal year is increased by $4,000,000 to implement the grant program under s. 165.88 (3p).

AB542-ASA1,4,3 (End)