§ 79-3108. Security-related infrastructure projects; competitive grant program; application; report.
The education commissioner must run a competitive grant program for school security infrastructure, and the state education department must grant funds to eligible applicants when appropriations are available.
(1) The Commissioner of Education shall create and administer a competitive grant program to provide funding to school districts and to educational service units on behalf of approved or accredited nonpublic schools for security-related infrastructure projects. Such qualifying projects may include, but are not limited to, surveillance equipment, door-locking systems, and double-entry doors for school buildings. Subject to available appropriations, the State Department of Education shall provide a grant to any school district or educational service unit that applies for such grant for use in funding qualifying projects. (2)(a) A school district may apply to the State Department of Education for a grant on forms and in a manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Education. A school district receiving a grant under this section shall divide the use of grant funds as evenly as possible among all eligible school buildings within such district. (b) An educational service unit may apply to the State Department of Education for a grant on forms and in a manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Education for use in funding qualifying projects at approved or accredited nonpublic schools which contract with such educational service unit on such qualifying projects. An approved or accredited nonpublic school may apply to and contract with the appropriate educational service unit in the school's area in a manner prescribed by the educational service unit for purposes of funding qualifying projects pursuant to this section. (3)(a) On or before December 1 of each year that grants were issued pursuant to this section, the State Department of Education shall provide a report electronically to the Clerk of the Legislature relating to such grants, which shall include, but need not be limited to: (i) The number of schools that received grant funding, including whether a school was public or nonpublic, the grades of students served by such school, the number of students that attend such school, and the geographic location of such school; (ii) How the grant funds were used; (iii) The average amount of grant funds received by schools broken down by school student population size; (iv) The number of schools that were denied grant funding and why; and (v) Any other information the State Department of Education deems necessary. (b) The report provided pursuant to subdivision (a) of this subsection shall not identify any particular school. (4) The State Board of Education may adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to carry out this section. (5) It is the intent of the Legislature to appropriate ten million dollars from the School Safety and Security Fund to the State Department of Education to administer the grant program pursuant to this section. History: Laws 2023, LB705, § 124.