Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today announced new legislation to authorize grants to school districts to vastly improve security at school sites.

Boxer said, “The President wants to hold a summit on violence in schools, and that’s fine. But we don’t need a summit to tell us that our schools need better security now, and that they don’t have the funds to do it.”

Boxer’s legislation, the School Safety Fund Act of 2006, would authorize the Attorney General to award grants for security enhancements at elementary and secondary schools. The grants could be used to establish hotlines or tiplines, hire community police officers or safety personnel, purchase surveillance cameras or metal detectors, and for capital improvements to make school facilities more secure.

Boxer said, “Do we want to live in a world where our children go through metal detectors to get to their classrooms? Of course not. But until we get to the root of the problem of violence in our schools, we have to act to protect our kids.”

Boxer introduced similar legislation in spring of 2001 after a series of school shootings in California and across the country.

Boxer plans to introduce the legislation along with Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) as soon as the Senate returns to session.

“Gun violence has struck again in another school in this country. This government must step up and do all it can to increase the security in our classrooms so a parent’s first thoughts don’t turn to worry when their children head into school,” said Senator Lautenberg.