The Department of Education’s insurance policy doesn’t provide coverage for armed staff if they make a mistake while handling a firearm.
Spurred by the deadly Valentine’s day shooting at a Parkland high school, the Republican-controlled Florida House passed gun control legislation which also allows for a program to arm school personnel — but employees may still want to hold off on bringing their guns to class.
Despite the legislation, the state Department of Education’s insurance policy currently would not provide coverage for an armed staff member should they make a mistake while handling their firearm.
Approved by a 67-50 vote late Wednesday, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act raises the minimum age to purchase a firearm to 21, creates a three-day waiting period for most gun purchases and grants authorities additional power to confiscate firearms and ammunition from those considered a threat.
Its most controversial measure, however, calls for the creation of a so-called “guardian program” that would permit eligible staff as well as those willing to go through a training program to carry a gun on school property.
Employees are allowed to volunteer for the program unless they are teachers who exclusively provide classroom instruction, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.
But insurance offered by the DOE won’t cover willing staff members should things go awry in an emergency situation — presenting the first of many potential logistical road blocks for the measure.
The Florida Department of Education – which covers “all full-time instructional personnel employed by the district’s school boards”– utilizes Connecticut-based AIX Specialty Insurance Company to provide its employees’ professional liability policy.
Listed among the policy’s exclusions is “any actual or alleged breach of duty, negligent act, error, omission, misstatement, or misleading statement committed by the insured while acting within the scope of their law enforcement activities.”
That includes “the educational institution’s law enforcement and security guard personnel” as well as “full-time instructional personnel.”
After gunman Nikolas Cruz killed 17 students and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, President Trump vowed “ATTACKS WOULD END” if “gun adept teachers with military or special experience” were armed.
In championing such a program, government officials and lawmakers have cited a similar initiative in Polk County run in partnership with the county sheriff’s office.
Southeastern University last year swore in its first batch of trained and armed staff members, who they have dubbed “sentinels.”
The “sentinels” are appointed by the Sheriff as volunteer “special deputies” for the “limited purpose of providing security on Southeastern University’s campus during an active assailant incident.”
The Lakeland-based university currently boasts eight deputized teachers, while Webber International — a private school in the county — signed on for the program at the end of last month, according to a press release from the police department.
The Special Deputy Sheriff Sentinel Program requires 132 hours of training — including 100 hours specifically designated for firearm instruction — based on the Criminal Justice Standards & Training Commission training model.
Despite the fact that the training hours are a mere fraction of the required 770 hours for Florida police officers, the Polk County Sheriff’s office said participants involved in their program receive “25% more [firearm] instruction” than aspiring cops.
The bill passed by the both the Florida House and Senate this week also calls for a $500 stipend for completing the training — which breaks down to about $3.79 an hour.
Gov. Rick Scott, who recently expressed reservations about arming school personnel, has 15 days to sign the bill into law.
He told the Tallahassee Democrat he intends to speak with family of those killed in the Parkland massacre before he decides whether to sign or veto the measure.
“I’m going to take time to read the bill,” he said. “I have been clear. I don’t believe we should be arming teachers.”
