S 61 Session 109 (1991-1992)
S 0061 General Bill, By M.T. Rose
A Bill to amend Chapter 53, Title 44, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
relating to poisons, drugs, and other controlled substances, by adding Article
15 so as to enact the "Drug-Free Schools Act"; to provide that within one
hundred twenty days of the effective date of this Act, the State Department of
Education, in consultation with the State Drug-Free Schools Advisory
Committee, shall issue administrative guidelines and procedures for the
Drug-Free Schools Program; and to require the submission of a complete and
final draft of the guidelines and procedures, within ninety days of the
effective date of this Act, to the Chairmen of the Judiciary Committees of the
Senate and the House of Representatives.
09/10/90 Senate Prefiled
09/10/90 Senate Referred to Committee on Education
01/08/91 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-41
01/08/91 Senate Referred to Committee on Education SJ-41
A BILL
TO AMEND CHAPTER 53, TITLE 44, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH
CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO POISONS, DRUGS, AND OTHER
CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES, BY ADDING ARTICLE 15 SO AS
TO ENACT THE "DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS ACT"; TO
PROVIDE THAT WITHIN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY DAYS OF
THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS ACT, THE STATE
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, IN CONSULTATION WI TH THE
STATE DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS ADVISORY COMMITTEE, SHALL
ISSUE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES AND PROCEDURES FOR
THE DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS PROGRAM; AND TO REQUIRE THE
SUBMISSION OF A COMPLETE AND FINAL DRAFT OF THE
GUIDELINES AND PROCEDURES, WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF
THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS ACT, TO THE CHAIRMEN OF
THE JUDICIARY COMMITTEES OF THE SENATE AND THE
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Chapter 53, Title 44 of the 1976 Code is amended by
adding:
" Article 15
Drug-Free Schools
Section 44-53-1610. This article is known and may be cited as the
'Drug-Free Schools Act'.
Section 44-53-1620. As used in this article , the term 'drugs'
includes (1) all controlled substances defined in Section 44-53-110, and
(2) alcoholic beverages.
Section 44-53-1630. (A) There is created in the State Department
of Education the Dru g-Free Schools Program. All funds made available
to the State Department of Education for the purposes of this article must
be administered and disbursed by the departm ent in consultation with
the State Drug-Free Schools Advisory Committee established in this
article .
(B) The department, in consultation with the State Advisory
Committee, may allocate and award funds to local law enforcement
agencies and public schools working jointly to develop drug and alcohol
use prevention and drug and alcohol trafficking suppression programs
in substantial compliance with the policies and criteria set forth in this
article .
(C) The allocation and award of funds must be made upon the
joint application by the law-enforcement agency and by the
superintendent and board of the school district as co-applicants. The
joint application must be submitted for review to the Local Drug-Free
Schools Advisory Committee established in this article . After review,
the application must be submitted to the department. Funds disbursed
under this article may enhance, but may not supplant, local funds that
would, in the absence of the Drug-Free Schools Program, be made
available to suppress and prevent drug and alcohol use among
school-age children and to curtail drug and alcohol trafficking in and
near schools, parks, and playgrounds.
(D) The co-applicant local law enforcement agency and the
co-applicant school district shall enter into interagency agreements
between themselves which allow the management and fiscal tasks
cr eated p ursuant to this article and assigned to both the law enforcement
agency and the school district to be performed by only one of them.
(E) After a full year of program operation, the department shall
prepare and submit an annual evaluation report to the General Assembly
describing in detail the operation of the program and the results obtained
from the program receiving funds under this article . The report also
must list the full costs applicable both to the department for processing
and reviewing applications and to the state and local agencies for
obtaining grants, from any source, to support the program. The purpose
of the program evaluation is to identify successful methods of
preventing drug and alcohol trafficking and use in schools. Ongoing
evaluation findings must be used to replicate proven successful methods
and to identify, implement, and refine new methods.
Section 44-53-1640. (A) Law enforcement agencies and school
districts receiving funds under this article sha ll conc entrate enhanced
apprehension, prevention, and education efforts and resources on drug
and alcohol use and drug trafficking in and near schools, parks, and
playgrounds. The enhanced apprehension, prevention, and education
efforts must include, but are not limited to:
(1) drug and alcohol traffic intervention programs;
(2) school and classroom-oriented programs using tested drug
and alcohol education curricula that provide in-depth and accurate
information on drugs and alcohol, which may include the participation
of local law enforcement agencies and qualified drug and alcohol use
prevention specialists and which are designed to increase teachers' and
students' awareness of drugs and alcohol and their effects;
(3) family-oriented programs aimed at preventing drug and
alcohol use, which may include the participation of community-based
organizations experienced in the successful operation of these programs;
(4) the establishment of a Local Drug-Free Schools Advisory
Committee. The Local Advisory Committ ee must be established and
appointed by the school trustees of each school district. The Local
Advisory Committee m ay be a newly created committee or an existing
local drug and alcohol use committee as designated by the appointing
authority. The Local Advisory Committee is composed of, at a
minimum, the following:
(a) local and law enforcement executives;
(b) school district executives;
(c) school site staff, which includes administrators, teachers,
and credentialed personnel;
(d) parents;
(e) students;
(f) school peace officers;
(g) state, county, and local drug and alcohol program
administrators;
(h) drug and alcohol prevention program executives.
The school trustees of the school district shall determine the total
number of members who shall serve on the Local Advisory Committee,
their terms of office, and the manner for filling vacancies and shall
designate the chairman, vice chairman, and any other officers considered
necessary. Members of the Local Advisory Committee may not receive
any compensation for their service on the committee and may receive no
reimbursement for mileage or in the way of subsistence or per diem;
(5) development and distribution of appropriate written and
audio-visual aids for training of school and law enforcement staff for
handling drug-and-alcohol-related problems and offenses. Appropriate
existing aids may be used in lieu of the development of new materials;
(6) development of prevention and intervention programs for
elementary school teachers and students, including utilization of existing
prevention and intervention programs;
(7) development of a coordinated intervention system that
identifies students with chronic drug and alcohol abuse for a treatment
program
(B) Enhanced apprehension, prevention, and education efforts
commenced under this section must be a joint effort between law
enforcement agencies and school districts in cooperation with state and
county drug and alcohol program offices. These efforts must include,
but are not limited to, the concentration of apprehension efforts in
problem areas cooperatively identified by local school and law
enforcement authorities.
(C) Funds appropriated by the General Assembly for the
administration and enforcement of this article may be used in part to
support state-level development and statewide distribution of appropriate
written and audio-visual aids for public awareness and training of school
and law enforcement staff for handling drug-and-alcohol-related
problems and offenses. When existing aids can be identified, these aids
may be used in lieu of the development of new aids.
Section 44-53-1650. (A) Criteria for rating the grant
applications of cooperating pairs or clusters of law enforcement agencies
and school districts to receive Drug-Free Schools Program funding must
be developed by the State Drug-Free Schools Advisory Committee.
(B) The State Drug-Free Schools Advisory Committee is
composed of one police chief, one sheriff, one solicitor, one attorney
primarily engaged in criminal defense, one representative of parent
groups or organizations, one representative of the State Department of
Youth Services, one county drug and alcohol program administrator, a
school peace officer, and a representative of community-based
prevention of drug and alcohol use programs, all of whom are appointed
by the Governor. In addition, the Attorney General shall designate one
member of the State Advisory Committee representing the State
Attorney General's Office, and the State Superintendent of Education
shall designate four members, one drug and alcohol prevention specialist
representing the State Department of Education and three school-site
personnel. The Governor shall designate the chairman, and the members
shall elect other officers they consider necessary. The term of an officer
of the State Advisory Committee is two years, and the term of a member
is four years. Officers may be reelected without limitation, and members
may be re-appointed without limitation. Vacancies must be filled in the
same manner as original appointment. Staff services to the State
Advisory Committee must be provided by the State Department of
Education. Committee members may not be compensated for their
services but are allowed the usual mileage, subsistence, and per diem
authorized by law fo r membe rs of state boards, committees, and
commissions. The State Advisory Committee shall review applications
for grant awards and recommend approval for those applications which
are considered appropriate and are consistent with the guidelines and
administrative procedures established pursuant to this section and
otherwise by law.
(C) Each State Advisory Committee member must be personally
present to cast a vote or to be counted toward a quorum. An appointed
member of the State Advisory Committee unable to attend a meeting
may designate a representative to attend the meeting on his behalf. This
representative must be accorded the privilege to address the State
Advisory Committee on a matter under consideration but does not have
the right to vote on a motion entertained by the State Advisory
Committee.
(D) The State Advisory Committee shall develop specific
guidelines and administrative procedures for the Drug-Free Schools
Program. These guidelines and administrative procedures must set forth
the terms and conditions upon which the State Department of Education
is prepared to offer grants of funds pursuant to statutory authority. The
guidelines and
administrative procedures do not constitute rules, regulations, orders, or
standards of general application.
(E) Administration of the overall program and the evaluation of
monitoring of all grants made under this article must be performed by
the State Department of Education .
(F) The State Department of Education shall, to the extent
possible, coordinate the administration of the Drug-Free Schools
Program with those of agencies of the federal government and other
states.
(G) Funds disbursed under this article may not be used for the
acquisition of equipment.
(H) Funds disbursed under this article may not be used to purchase
information on drugs or alcohol.
(I) In order to maximize the use of funds for program support and
implementation, local law enforcement agencies and school districts
receiving funds under this article may not use Drug-Free Schools
Program funds for personnel costs, except where it is demonstrated that
personnel costs are essential to the success of the program and that
sufficient law enforcement and school personnel are not available to
carry out the program; exceptions may be requested through the State
Department of Education.
(J) Not more than ten percent of the total amount of funds disbursed
under this section may be used for administrative costs."
SECTION 2. Within one hundred twenty days of the effective date
of this act, the State Department of Education, in consultation with the
State Drug-Free Schools Advisory Committee, shall issue administrative
guidelines and procedures for the Drug-Free Schools Program consistent
with the provisions of Article 15, Chapter 53, Title 44 of the 1976 Code
of Laws. In addition to all other requirements that may apply to the
issuance of these guidelines and procedures, a complete and final draft
must be submitted within ninety days of the effective date of this act to
the chairmen of the Judiciary Committees of the Senate and the House
of Representatives.
SECTION 3. Except as otherwise specifically provided in this act,
this act takes effect ninety days after approval by the Governor.
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