[Senate Report 116-193]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 402
116th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 116-193
_______________________________________________________________________
LUKE AND ALEX SCHOOL SAFETY ACT OF 2019
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
to accompany
S. 2779
TO ESTABLISH THE FEDERAL CLEARINGHOUSE ON SCHOOL SAFETY BEST PRACTICES,
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
January 6, 2020.--Ordered to be printed
______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
99-010 WASHINGTON : 2020
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
ROB JOHNSON, Wisconsin, Chairman
ROB PORTMAN, Ohio GARY C. PETERS, Michigan
RAND PAUL, Kentucky THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware
JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire
MITT ROMNEY, Utah KAMALA D. HARRIS, California
RICK SCOTT, Florida KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming JACKY ROSEN, Nevada
JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri
Gabrielle D'Adamo Singer, Staff Director
Joseph C. Folio III, Chief Counsel
Courtney Allen Rutland, Deputy Chief Counsel for Governmental Affairs
William W. Sacripanti, Research Assistant
David M. Weinberg, Minority Staff Director
Zachary I. Schram, Minority Chief Counsel
Roy S. Awabdeh, Minority Counsel
Jeffrey D. Rothblum, Minority Senior Professional Staff Member
Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 402
116th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2nd Session } { 116-193
======================================================================
LUKE AND ALEX SCHOOL SAFETY ACT OF 2019
_______
January 6, 2020.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Johnson, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 2779]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 2779) to establish
the Federal Clearinghouse on School Safety Best Practices, and
for other purposes, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill,
as amended, do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................5
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis......................................6
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................7
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................7
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............8
I. Purpose and Summary
The purpose of S. 2779, the Luke and Alex School Safety Act
of 2019 (LASSA), is to codify the Federal Clearinghouse on
School Safety Best Practices (``Clearinghouse''). The
Clearinghouse will help inform school and community officials
and parents on the best practices for school safety measures,
as well as available resources for implementing such measures
in their schools and specify criteria for best practices and a
process for the clearinghouse. Specifically this bill would
create a codified structure for the Clearinghouse, which would
``be the primary resource of the Federal Government to identify
and publish the best practices and recommendations for school
safety for use by State and local educational agencies,
institutions of higher education, State and local law
enforcement agencies, health professionals, and the general
public.''\1\ The bill also requires the Federal agencies
involved in the development of the Clearinghouse--the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Justice
(DOJ), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and
the Department of Education (Education)--to notify their state
counterparts of the Clearinghouse and to identify available
Federal and state grant programs for implementing Clearinghouse
best practices.
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\1\S. 2779, 116th Cong. (2019).
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II. Background and the Need for Legislation
On February 14, 2018, a former student entered Marjory
Stoneman Douglas High School (MSDHS) in Parkland, Florida and
killed 17 teachers and students and injured 17 others.\2\ After
the attack, then-Florida Governor Rick Scott signed the Marjory
Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act. The Act
established the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public
Safety Commission (the Florida commission).\3\ The Florida
commission was tasked to ``analyze information from the MSDHS
shooting and other mass violence incidents, and provide
recommendations and system improvements to help mitigate the
impacts from and prevent future school shootings.''\4\
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\2\Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Comm'n,
Initial Report 7 (2019), available at http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/
MSDHS/CommissionReport.pdf [hereinafter ``January 2019 Report''].
\3\Id.
\4\Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Comm'n,
Second Report 4 (2019), available at http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/MSDHS/
MSD-Report-2-Public-Version.pdf [hereinafter ``November 2019 Report''].
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The Florida commission issued an initial report on January
2, 2019,\5\ followed by a second report on November 1, 2019.\6\
The 439-page initial report found many causes that contributed
to the magnitude of the MSDHS shooting:
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\5\January 2019 Report, supra note 2.
\6\November 2019 Report, supra note 4 at 2.
The causes include [the shooter's] mental and
behavioral health issues, people not reporting warning
signs or reporting signs that were not acted on by
those whom actionable information was reported, and how
[the shooter's] behavioral and discipline issues were
addressed (or not addressed) by Broward County Public
Schools. Also contributing, was the overall lack of
adequate or effective physical site security and
unenforced or non-existent security measures and
policies at MSDHS, as well as the ineffective
behavioral threat assessment process at MSDHS.\7\
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\7\January 2019 Report, supra note 2 at 4.
In both reports, the Florida Commission recommended a wide
range of safety measures to be implemented in Florida
schools.\8\ These recommendations include physical security
improvements, as well as best practices on community engagement
and threat assessment that, had they been in place at MSDHS,
could have prevented or mitigated the harm of the tragic
attack.\9\
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\8\Id. See also November 2019 Report, supra note 4.
\9\Id.
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Operating concurrently with the Florida commission was the
Federal Commission on School Safety (Federal commission).
President Trump established the Federal commission on March 12,
2018, to ``review safety practices and make meaningful and
actionable recommendations of best practices to keep students
safe.''\10\ The Federal commission was led by Education, HHS,
DHS, and DOJ.\11\ The commission held public field visits,
listening sessions, and full commission meetings in Washington,
D.C., and across the nation.\12\
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\10\Fed. Comm'n on School Safety, Final Report of the Fed. Comm'n
on School Safety 6 (2018), https://www2.ed.gov/documents/school-safety/
school-safety-report.pdf.
\11\Id.
\12\Id. at 6-7.
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The Federal commission released its final report on
December 18, 2018. Like the Florida commission report, the
Federal commission reported its findings and made dozens of
recommendations for school safety measures ranging from
improved mental health services to school building security to
law enforcement training.\13\ Among these findings, the Federal
commission reported:
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\13\Id.
One of the biggest concerns raised by schools and
school districts since the Parkland shooting has been
their inability to easily sift through the multitude of
security options, equipment, technologies, etc., that
are available to their schools. As a way to address
this, many individuals in the school security community
have suggested the establishment of a federal
clearinghouse that could assess, identify, and share
best practices on school security. The federal
government should develop a clearinghouse to assess,
identify, and share best practices related to school
security measures, technologies, and innovations.\14\
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\14\Id. at 126.
The Federal commission report emphasized that local
communities must decide what school safety measures work for
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them:
While Washington has an important role to play, it
can play that role more successfully by acknowledging a
truth understood by people across the country: What
works in Wyoming may not work in New York, and what is
effective in an urban setting may not be effective in
rural communities. One size does not fit all.\15\
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\15\Id. at 155.
On July 25, 2019, the Committee held a hearing titled
``Examining State and Federal Recommendations for Enhancing
School Safety Against Targeted Violence.''\16\ The Committee
heard testimony from three members of the Florida Commission--
Max Schachter, Tom Hoyer, and Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, chair of
the Florida Commission--as well as Dr. Deborah Temkin of
Education Child Trends.\17\ Mr. Schachter's son, Alex, and Mr.
Hoyer's son, Luke, were killed in the MSDHS attack. During the
hearing, Sheriff Gualtieri stated:
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\16\Examining State and Federal Recommendations for Enhancing
School Safety Against Targeted Violence: Hearing before the S. Comm. On
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 116th Cong. (2019).
\17\Id. (statement of Sheriff Gualtieri, Chairman, Marjory Stoneman
Douglas High School Public Safety Commission).
It is debatable whether the incident at [MSDHS] was
entirely avoidable, but what is not debatable, in my
view, based on the evidence, is whether the harm could
have been mitigated. Simply put, the shooting did not
have to be as bad as it was . . . . Missed intervention
opportunities, ineffective safety on the part of the
school, and an ineffective law enforcement response
contributed to the magnitude of this tragedy. At the
time of the shooting, the Broward County Public Schools
did not have an active shooter response policy. There
had been no active shooter drills on the [MSDHS] campus
in the year before the shooting. There had been only
one minimal one hour of training for school staff, and
that occurred just a few weeks before the shooting.
There had been no formal training for the students.
Gates at [MSDHS] campus were left open and unattended,
building and classroom doors unlocked, and teachers and
staff lacked adequate communication infrastructure . .
. . People simply did not know what to do or how to do
it because there were no policies, no drills, and
little to no training. Please keep in mind that this
was the state of school security in Broward County,
Florida, the second largest school district in the
third largest State, 19 years after Columbine and 6
years after Sandy Hook.\18\
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\18\Id. (statement of Sheriff Gualtieri, Chairman, Marjory Stoneman
Douglas High School Public Safety Commission).
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Mr. Schachter shared during his testimony:
After I buried my son, my next priority was to make
sure my other three children were safe in their
schools. I traveled the country and came to realize
that in all of the 139,000 K-12 schools in this
country, each principal has to now become an expert in
door locks, access control, cameras, et cetera. It made
no sense to me that each school had to go and reinvent
the wheel. The idea that crystallized for me was the
need to create National School Safety Best Practices at
the Federal level. Those best practices would be housed
on a clearinghouse website so that all schools had a
one-stop shop for all of the most relevant and
important school safety information.\19\
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\19\Id. (statement of Max Schachter, Founder and Chief Executive
Officer, Safe Schools for Alex).
Mr. Hoyer emphasized the need for a best practices
clearinghouse, stating ``[o]ur schools need a clearinghouse of
best practices that they can use as a tool, and our country
needs Federal minimum school safety standards such as a single
point of entry on a school campus.''\20\ During the hearing,
Ranking Member Gary Peters asked Mr. Schachter what ``specific
aspects that you believe are most critical for us to use as a
tool and you are hoping to see in the best practices.'' Mr.
Schachter answered:
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\20\Id. (statement of Tom Hoyer, Treasurer, Stand with Parkland).
All the stakeholders [mental health, law enforcement,
superintendents] need to be at the table so that we can
sit down and come up with national school safety best
practices. There are common-sense solutions that--you
know lessons learned that came out of Columbine, Sandy
Hook, and now Parkland that need to be implemented. And
so if we have everybody agreeing and have buy-in, I am
hoping that, you know, once we establish these best
practices, it will be put up on a Federal website, and
then that will be implemented through all States and
into school districts across the country.\21\
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\21\Id. (testimony of Max Schachter, Founder and Chief Executive
Officer, Safe Schools for Alex).
This bill acts on the recommendations of the Federal
Commission on School Safety, Mr. Schachter, and Stand with
Parkland by establishing the Federal Clearinghouse on School
Safety Best Practices. The bill requires Education, HHS, DHS,
and DOJ to coordinate in establishing and maintaining the
Clearinghouse to inform the public on the best practices for
school safety measures, as well as ensure the Clearinghouse
contents remain current and responsive to evolving best
practices. The bill also requires the agencies to notify their
state and local level partners about the Clearinghouse and to
survey existing grant programs or resources which can be used
to improve school safety. The Clearinghouse is further required
to develop materials to assist parents seeking to identify the
best practices in place in their schools and how to engage with
appropriate school and community officials for implementing
best practices.
III. Legislative History
Chairman Ron Johnson introduced S. 2779, the Luke and Alex
School Safety Act, on November 5, 2019, with Senators Marco
Rubio and Rick Scott as co-sponsors. The bill was referred to
the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, and the Committee considered S. 2779 at a business
meeting on November 6, 2019.
At the business meeting, Senator Johnson offered an
amendment that clarified the Clearinghouse did not create,
satisfy, or waive any Federal civil rights laws as they apply
to schools.
Senator Hassan and Ranking Member Peters offered an
amendment to require the Clearinghouse publish only evidence-
or research-based best practices. Chairman Johnson offered a
second degree amendment to the Hassan amendment that does not
restrict the best practices the Clearinghouse can publish, but
does require the Clearinghouse to publish any evidence- or
research-based rationales supporting the Clearinghouse's
determination that a safety measure is a best practice.
S. 2779, as amended by the Johnson Amendment 1 and the
Hassan-Peters Amendment as modified by the Johnson Second
Degree Amendment, was approved en bloc by voice vote with
Senators Johnson, Portman, Paul, Lankford, Romney, Scott, Enzi,
Hawley, Peters, Carper, Hassan, Sinema, and Rosen present.
Consistent with Committee rules, the bill is reported with a
technical amendment.
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported
Section 1. Short title
This section establishes the short title of the bill as the
``Luke and Alex School Safety Act of 2019.''
Section 2. Federal Clearinghouse on school safety best practices
This section establishes the Clearinghouse in the Homeland
Security Act of 2002. The Clearinghouse is required to be
developed by DHS, in coordination with Education, DOJ, HHS, and
will serve as the primary resource of the Federal Government to
identify and publish the best practices and recommendations for
school safety. The Clearinghouse best practices and
recommendations must involve comprehensive school safety
measures to improve the safety posture of a school if
implemented, include any evidence or research supporting how
the best practice will improve the safety posture of a school,
and include information on available Federal grants or
resources to help implement the best practice. This section
exempts the Clearinghouse from the Paperwork Reduction Act and
the Federal Advisory Committee Act to increase and facilitate
engagement with non-governmental entities.
The bill allows the Clearinghouse to consult with a variety
of officials, experts, and stakeholders in developing the
Clearinghouse, such as parents, state, local, and Tribal
officials, school security officers, security industry
professionals, psychologists and mental health professionals,
and architects and design professionals. The Clearinghouse is
also required to consider recommendations of past commissions
on school safety.
This section requires the Clearinghouse to continuously
update and improve its contents. To accomplish this, the
Clearinghouse is required to establish an external advisory
board consisting of government, private sector, and
nongovernmental organizations, including school parents. This
board will provide feedback on the implementation of
Clearinghouse best practices, as well as challenges faced in
implementation, and propose additional safety measures for
potential inclusion as a Clearinghouse best practice. This
section also requires the Clearinghouse to create materials
specifically for parents to identify Clearinghouse best
practices in their schools and to engage with relevant school
and government officials on implementation of best practices.
Section 3. Notification of Clearinghouse
This section requires DHS, DOJ, HHS, and Education to issue
written notification to their state and local government
counterparts about the Clearinghouse, as well as to every
appropriate partner that serves a role in school safety.
Section 4. Grant program review
This section requires Education, HHS, DHS, and the Attorney
General to review and report to Congress on all Federal grant
programs that could be used to implement any best practices of
the Clearinghouse. The agencies must also try to identify such
grant programs administered by each state. Additionally, the
Clearinghouse must identify any recommendations for which there
is not a Federal grant program that could be used to implement
a best practice.
Section 5. Rule of construction
This section clarifies that nothing in this bill creates,
satisfies, or waives any requirement under title II of the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973, title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, title IX of
the Education Amendments of 1972, and the Age Discrimination
Act of 1975.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill and determined
that the bill will have no regulatory impact within the meaning
of the rules. The Committee agrees with the Congressional
Budget Office's statement that the bill contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs
on state, local, or tribal governments.
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, November 19, 2019.
Hon. Ron Johnson,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S.
Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2779, the Luke and
Alex School Safety Act of 2019.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Aldo
Prosperi.
Sincerely,
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director.
Enclosure.
S. 2779 would require the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS), in coordination with other federal agencies, to
disseminate information on school safety measures to state and
local education agencies. The bill would direct DHS to work
with other federal agencies to identify existing grant programs
that can support school safety improvements.
The bill also would require DHS to establish an advisory
board to provide external feedback and recommendations for
additional school safety resources.
On the basis of information from DHS about the costs of
similar activities, CBO estimates that staff salaries, travel
costs, and other expenses would be about $1 million each year
and $5 million over the 2020-2024 period; such spending would
be subject to the availability of appropriations.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Aldo Prosperi.
The estimate was reviewed by Leo Lex, Deputy Assistant Director
for Budget Analysis.
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows: (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in brackets, new matter is
printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002
* * * * * * *
SEC. 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) * * *
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. * * *
* * * * * * *
Title XXII--Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
* * * * * * *
2215. Federal Clearinghouse on School Safety and Best Practices.
* * * * * * *
TITLE XXII--CYBERSECURITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE SECURITY AGENCY
* * * * * * *
Subtitle A--Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security
* * * * * * *
SEC. 2215. FEDERAL CLEARINGHOUSE ON SCHOOL SAFETY BEST PRACTICES.
(a) Establishment.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary, in coordination with
the Secretary of Education, the Attorney General, and
the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall
establish a Federal Clearinghouse on School Safety Best
Practices (in this section referred to as the
``Clearinghouse'') within the Department.
(2) Purpose.--The Clearinghouse shall be the primary
resource of the Federal Government to identify and
publish the best practices and recommendations for
school safety for use by State and local educational
agencies, institutions of higher education, State and
local law enforcement agencies, health professionals,
and the general public.
(3) Personnel.--
(A) Assignments.--The Clearinghouse shall be
assigned such personnel and resources as the
Secretary considers appropriate to carry out
this section.
(B) Detailees.--The Secretary of Education,
the Attorney General, and the Secretary of
Health and Human Services may detail personnel
to the Clearinghouse.
(4) Exemptions.--
(A) Paperwork reduction act.--Chapter 35 of
title 44, United States Code (commonly known as
the `Paperwork Reduction Act') shall not apply
to any rulemaking or information collection
required under this section.
(B) Federal advisory committee act.--The
Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.)
shall not apply for the purposes of carrying
out this section.
(b) Clearinghouse Contents.--
(1) Consultation.--In identifying the best practices
and recommendations for the Clearinghouse, the
Secretary may consult with appropriate Federal, State,
local, Tribal, private sector, and nongovernmental
organizations.
(2) Criteria for best practices and
recommendations.--The best practices and
recommendations of the Clearinghouse shall, at a
minimum--
(A) involve comprehensive school safety
measures, including threat prevention,
preparedness, protection, mitigation, incident
response, and recovery to improve the safety
posture of a school upon implementation;
(B) include any evidence or research
rationale supporting the determination of the
Clearinghouse that the best practice or
recommendation has been shown to have a
significant effect on improving the health,
safety, and welfare of persons in school
settings, including--
(i) evidence from an experimental or
quasi-experimental study;
(ii) high-quality research findings
or a positive evaluation that such
activity, strategy, or intervention is
likely to improve the health, safety,
and welfare of persons in school
settings;
(iii) findings and data from previous
Federal or State commissions relating
to school climate, health, safety, and
welfare; and
(iv) any other supporting evidence or
findings relied upon by the
Clearinghouse in determining best
practices and recommendations; and
(C) include information on Federal grant
programs for which implementation of each best
practice or recommendation is an eligible use
for the program.
(3) Past commission recommendations.--To the greatest
extent practicable, the Clearinghouse shall present, as
appropriate, Federal, State, local, Tribal, private
sector, and nongovernmental organization issued best
practices and recommendations and identify any best
practice or recommendation of the Clearinghouse that
was previously issued by any such organization or
commission.
(c) Assistance and Training.--The Secretary may produce and
publish materials on the Clearinghouse to assist and train
educational agencies and law enforcement agencies on the
implementation of the best practices and recommendations.
(d) Continuous Improvement.--The Secretary shall--
(1) collect for the purpose of continuous improvement
of the Clearinghouse--
(A) Clearinghouse data analytics;
(B) user feedback on the implementation of
resources, best practices, and recommendations
identified by the Clearinghouse; and
(C) any evaluations conducted on the best
practices and recommendations of the
Clearinghouse; and
(2) in coordination with the Secretary of Education,
the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the
Attorney General--
(A) regularly assess and identify
Clearinghouse best practices and
recommendations for which there are no
resources provided by Federal Government
programs for implementation; and
(B) establish an external advisory board,
which shall be comprised of appropriate State,
local, private sector, and nongovernmental
organizations, including organizations
representing parents of elementary and
secondary school students, to--
(i) provide feedback on the
implementation of best practices and
recommendations of the Clearinghouse;
and
(ii) propose additional
recommendations for best practices for
inclusion in the Clearinghouse.
(e) Parental Assistance.--The Clearinghouse shall produce
materials to assist parents and legal guardians of students
with identifying relevant Clearinghouse resources and engaging
with appropriate officials to support the implementation of
Clearinghouse best practices and recommendations.
* * * * * * *