Augusta lawmaker happy with progress on school safety measures

ATLANTA, Ga. – Georgia lawmakers passed a handful of school and firearm safety bills Tuesday, including one that an Augusta legislator called a good compromise for both Republicans and Democrats.

The bills round out a package of legislation House Speaker Jon Burns had slated as a priority just hours after the Apalachee High School shooting last year.

Tuesday marked six months since the Apalachee High School shooting left two students and two teachers dead. Burns, in a letter to the House Republican Caucus the same week of the tragedy, said more school safety measures were needed.

The speaker got two items on his wish list passed Tuesday, including a bill that would offer tax incentives to Georgians up to $300 for purchases of firearms training courses, gun locks and other safe storage equipment. House Bill 79 passed overwhelmingly by 165-8, enjoying wide support from Democrats.

The bill defines safe storage devices as “any device originally manufactured to securely store or disable a firearm,” including gun locks, fingerprint or biometric identifiers, and gun safes.

While dozens of Democrats in the House threw their support behind the bill, some suggested it was a good step but not nearly enough to make a difference in one of Georgia’s most prevalent causes of death. Some wanted the safe storage program to be mandatory, not voluntarily incentivized.

“HB79 is a start, but what’s it going to take before this body will answer the call of 80% of Georgians who support more impactful common-sense solutions?” said Rep. Shea Roberts, D–Atlanta. “Respectfully, a school safety bill that doesn’t require safe storage isn’t complete.”

Rep. Mark Newton, R-Augusta, said the bill was a good compromise for both parties.

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“We have put some guardrails around it that I think are respectful of your Bill of Rights, your Second Amendment rights, but also allows responsible gun owners the option that they need,” he said.

Burns’ other high priority bill also passed the House on Tuesday. Perhaps a bit more controversial, House Bill 268 would introduce a statewide database accessible to school districts and law enforcement that would allow them to view a student’s academic and disciplinary records.

In a rare move, Burns stepped off the dais and argued his support for the bill himself, calling it “common sense.”

“I believe this legislation will usher in a new culture in our school systems, where we run towards our children facing struggles,” said Burns, addressing concerns over the privacy issues some lawmakers raised.

“It’s very important when a student transfers into a new school, and the receiving school does not have the information on that student,” said Burns. “Not an invasion of privacy, but just information on how you deal with all the issues that young people can face today, that all people can face.”

Rep. Holt Persinger, a Republican who represents the district that includes Apalachee and sponsored HB268, said the database could have prevented the Apalachee shooting by alerting the district that the alleged shooter previously struggled with mental health issues and had run-ins with law enforcement.

“We know that a lack of information sharing occurred with the accused shooter at Apalachee, and this measure directly addresses that breakdown in communication,” he said. “This will help ensure that students who are facing a mental health crisis receive the resources and support they need when they need it most.”

Persinser reiterated that not every student would have their information stored in the system, and that in fact, most won’t. But the legislation immediately raised additional questions about profiling issues.

“What exactly are we doing here?” asked Rep. Mekyah McQueen, D–Smyrna. “We are being asked to create a state-run student surveillance database, a watch list for children readily available for law enforcement access.”

McQueen also asked how long a student would remain on the list, and expressed concern that their presence there could prevent them from getting jobs or even into colleges.

“The talking points meant to be reassuring are, this isn’t a watch list, it’s just a safety tool, we track attendance, we track grades, why not this?” said McQueen. “Because this is different. This isn’t neutral data. This is subjective labeling.”

Both bills passed Tuesday will now move to the state Senate.

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