# Plain Language Summary: Keeping All Students Safe Act

This bill would ban schools from using certain harsh physical and chemical methods to control student behavior. Specifically, it prohibits schools from locking students alone in rooms (called seclusion), using devices to restrain them, giving them drugs to control behavior, or using physical restraint techniques that could harm them—like holding them face-down or restricting their breathing. The ban applies to all school staff, security guards, and police officers working in schools that receive federal funding, which includes virtually every public school in the country.

The bill recognizes that some physical contact might occasionally be necessary in emergencies—like gently guiding a student to safety—but it draws a clear line at practices that could cause injury or trauma. It also prevents schools from using restraint methods that contradict a student's documented medical needs or disability. For example, if a student's medical plan says they shouldn't be restrained in a certain way, schools can't use that method. The law allows schools to continue using "time out," which is when a student sits separately from the class in an unlocked space, as long as they can leave whenever they want.

To help schools comply, the bill requires states to create plans for reducing restraint and seclusion, provides funding to help schools implement better approaches, and mandates training for school staff in crisis prevention and de-escalation techniques. Schools would need to track and report when restraint or seclusion happens, and independent advocacy groups would have the authority to investigate complaints. The bill also applies to Head Start programs and private schools that serve students with disabilities, ensuring consistent protections across different types of educational settings.

Keeping All Students Safe Act

Beyer, Donald S.

Keeping All Students Safe Act This bill prohibits the use of seclusion and limits the use of physical restraint in schools and Head Start programs that receive federal funding. Specifically, the bill prohibits the use of seclusion, which is the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room or area from which the student is physically prevented from leaving. The term does not include a time out, which may involve separating the student from others in a non-locked setting. The bill prohibits the use of mechanical or chemical restraints or physical restraints that restrict breathing or are life threatening. The bill outlines the requirements for the use of physical restraint, including that the student's behavior must pose an imminent danger of serious physical injury to the student or other individual. Each state must ensure that a sufficient number of program personnel are trained and certified by a state-approved crisis intervention training program. Additionally, each program must establish procedures to follow after an incident involving physical restraint. Further, the bill establishes enforcement provisions, including a private right of action for a student who has been subjected to unlawful seclusion or restraint. The Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services must withhold payments from a program for unlawful seclusion or restraint. Finally, the bill requires each state educational agency (SEA) to establish, implement, and enforce policies and procedures required by the bill. It also creates a grant program to assist SEAs with these activities.