PA Weighs Mandating Armed School Security Guards

HARRISBURG, PA — Citing the rise in school shootings and ascribing America's gun violence crisis to mental health issues, some Pennsylvania lawmakers argue that armed security guards should be mandated in all public schools.

Officials said that while some schools have adopted a full time school resource officer or security officer, not all schools have done so.

"The time has come for all to recognize that this is a must in today’s world," State Sen. Mike Regan (R-Cumberland/York) wrote in a co-sponsorship memorandum.

Regan cited both the Sandy Hook shooting and the recent tragedy in Nashville, which led to the deaths of three children and three adults, as events that made the legislation pressing.

"My perspective on this issue comes from my law enforcement career, in which part of my responsibilities was to secure federal courthouses," Regan said. "I have also relied on other credentialed experts in the field of school and building security as I crafted legislative proposals over the years, and they have all said with uniformity that the hiring of trained and vetted armed officers should be every school’s first step when implementing security measures."

Under the proposed law, security guards would go through background checks, special training, and certifications which they would be required to maintain.

It's a far cry from midterm gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano's proposal to arm teachers, especially considering that many schools already have an armed guard or designated resource officer. However, some schools do not have the funding, which Regan's bill — though more specific details have not been released — would presumably provide.

The bill would appear likely to have majority Republican support to pass through the state Senate, and enough bipartisan appeal to pass through the Democratic House as well. Indeed, Gov. Josh Shapiro's administration has awarded grants for hiring school resource officers (who are typically armed) to schools around the state.

Chief barriers could be whatever symbolic and ideological differences are inherent in the bill, which ascribes the gun crisis to what Republicans typically blame: security and mental health. Democrats, meanwhile, could be hesitant to give credence to legislation that doesn't address what they view as the main cause of gun violence, which is access to deadly weapons.