{"id":725421,"date":"2024-04-16T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-16T12:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/?post_type=article&p=725421"},"modified":"2024-04-15T12:19:20","modified_gmt":"2024-04-15T16:19:20","slug":"parents-of-slain-parkland-students-applaud-utah-for-100m-school-safety-bill","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/article\/parents-of-slain-parkland-students-applaud-utah-for-100m-school-safety-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"Parents of Slain Parkland Students Applaud Utah for $100M School Safety Bill"},"content":{"rendered":"

The mother of Alyssa Alhadeff, a student who was killed in her English class during the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, stood before a room full of lawmakers and state officials on Wednesday. <\/span><\/p>\n

Lori Alhadeff held a portrait of her daughter in her arms as she applauded Utah for becoming the sixth state to pass \u201cAlyssa\u2019s Law,\u201d legislation mandating silent panic alarms in classrooms that are directly linked to law enforcement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are taking momentous steps forward in safeguarding our children\u2019s well-being,\u201d Alhadeff said, adding the bill represents \u201cour collective commitment to providing a secure learning environment for every child in Utah.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Anti-school shooting bill<\/h3>\n

The 2024 Utah Legislature last month passed HB84<\/a>, and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed it into law on March 12. The sweeping school safety and security bill<\/a> includes not only \u201cAlyssa\u2019s Law,\u201d but also creates a set of uniform, minimum safety standards all Utah schools must adhere to. It designates armed school employees as guardians, requires threat reporting if employees are aware of a particular safety concern, and links the state\u2019s SafeUT Crisis Line to Utah\u2019s intelligence database.<\/p>\n

To enact HB84, the Utah Legislature approved $100 million one-time money and $2.1 million in ongoing funding.<\/p>\n

To highlight HB84 \u2014 along with seven other bills packaged together as legislation that will benefit Utah\u2019s future generations \u2014 Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson ceremoniously signed the bills on Wednesday at the University of Utah\u2019s Bennion Center.<\/p>\n

HB84\u2019s sponsor, Rep. Ryan Wilcox, R-Ogden, said his bill is meant to address a reality in the U.S. that \u201cisn\u2019t going away for us.\u201d School shootings, he said, are not a tragedy that \u201cwe can pretend isn\u2019t happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

He thanked the parents of the Parkland, Florida shooting victims for helping craft Utah\u2019s legislation and ensuring \u201cwhen our kids go to school, all they\u2019re worried about is learning rather than catastrophic violence.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat isn\u2019t something that they should have to worry about. But it is something that we do,\u201d Wilcox said. \u201cIt is a responsibility of parents, the schools, of the adults who can do a lot more to prepare and make sure that they don\u2019t have to worry about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Henderson stood in for Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, who originally was expected to attend the signing but was unable to due to a family emergency. His wife, first lady Abby Cox, underwent spinal surgery<\/a> on Wednesday to remove degenerative discs in her neck after \u201cweeks of debilitating pain,\u201d according to the governor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n

Henderson applauded HB84 and other bills aimed at improving opportunities for Utah\u2019s youth and parents.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are a family friendly state,\u201d Henderson said. \u201cWe care about our children, our educators, our education system. We care about the future. And this is an opportunity that we put our money where our mouth is.\u201d<\/p>\n