VA HB 1916

Title: Higher educational institutions, public; threat assessment teams, training, powers and duties.
Author: Amanda E. Batten

Summary
Public institutions of higher education; threat assessment teams; powers and duties. Requires each threat assessment team at each public institution of higher education, upon a preliminary determination that an individual poses an articulable and significant threat of violence to others, to (i) obtain criminal history record information and health records for such individual, if available; (ii) notify the campus police department, local law enforcement, and the local attorney for the Commonwealth in writing within 24 hours; and (iii) disclose any specific threat of violence posed by the individual as part of such notification. The bill permits each such threat assessment team to invite nonmember representatives from campus to participate in individual cases and specifies that no such representative shall be considered a member of the threat assessment team. The bill requires each threat assessment team member to complete basic threat assessment training upon appointment to the threat assessment team. The bill also provides that in the event that a public institution of higher education has knowledge that a student or employee who was determined pursuant to an investigation by the institution's threat assessment team to pose an articulable and significant threat of violence to others is transferring to another institution of higher education or place of employment, the public institution of higher education from which the individual is transferring shall notify the institution of higher education or place of employment to which the individual is transferring of such investigation and determination. Finally, the bill requires the Secretary of Education and Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security to convene a task force to determine best practices and develop model policies and procedures for all threat assessment teams at public institutions of higher education and to consider and make legislative recommendations on the appropriate qualifications of members of such threat assessment teams. The task force is required to submit its findings to the Governor and Chairmen of the House Committee for Courts of Justice, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, the House Committee on Education, and the Senate Committee on Education and Health no later than December 1, 2023.

Status
House: Referred to Committee on Education