Boxer proposes federal grants to place law enforcement officers in schools

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) on Thursday proposed legislation that would provide federal grants to local governments that want to place law enforcement officers in their schools.

Boxer's new bills are a response to last month's shooting at a Connecticut elementary school that left 20 children dead.

"We owe it to our children and our grandchildren to ensure that they are safe when they are at school," Boxer said. "This legislation would give local communities and schools that want to strengthen security the opportunity for new resources and tools to help keep students safe."

One of her new bills, the School Resource and Safety Officer Act, would provide federal grants to local governments to help place law enforcement officials in schools. Grants as high as $200,000 per officer would be available.

Another bill she introduced, the Save Our Students (SOS) Act, would let the federal government reimburse states that use National Guard Troops to ensure school safety. Boxer said this bill is modeled after a current program that allows states to use National Guard troops to help with drug interdiction activities.

Boxer on Thursday also proposed the School Safety Enhancements Act. Under this proposal, the Justice Department's COPS Secure Our Schools grant program could give more aid to schools to install surveillance equipment and secured entrances.

Today, this program requires a 50 percent local match in funds, but Boxer's bill would allow the local share to fall to 20 percent for schools with limited resources. It would also increase the size of the federal program to $100 million per year, up from $30 million.

In addition to these ideas, Boxer has said she supports the assault-weapons ban that President Obama has proposed, as well as expanded background checks and a ban on high-capacity ammunition clips.

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