School safety bill calls for more surprise intruder audits on schools
DALLAS (CBSNewsTexas.com) — Thousands of Texas schools underwent a surprise intruder audit this year. These random checks are meant find security weak points on campuses.
Next year, Texas schools could face even more safety inspections.
Under Senate Bill 11, passed this week by the Texas Senate, every school campus in the state would undergo an unannounced intruder audit next year. By the end of this school year, state officials hope to have conducted a surprise inspection at 75% of campuses.
Next year, under the school safety bill, 25% of school districts will get a more in-depth audit from the newly created Office of School Safety and Security. These safety vulnerability inspections will rotate on a four-year cycle.
On the Senate floor, State Senator Robert Nichols, Jacksonville (R), who authored the bill said, "We got to have stricter control and it's important to have somebody go by those schools and check on them."
A CBS News Texas I-Team investigation found most intruder audits of North Texas schools this year found no safety issues. However, at one out of every seven North Texas schools checked, inspectors noted an issue that required a corrective action. The state calls it a "finding."
Local school districts told the I-Team that most of the time the findings were not the result of exterior door being left unlocked. According to a recent report from the Texas School Safety Center, inspectors have only gained unauthorized access to a school in the north region of Texas (ESC 7,8,10,11), in less than 4% of schools tested.
Eagle Mountain Saginaw Police Chief Charles Ramirez said having outside inspections has helped make his district safer.
"It's a great idea because unless you have someone from the outside checking, you may not know what you are missing," he said.