Office of School Safety extended funding bill passes with bipartisan support

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On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Senate voted to continue funding the Office of School Safety (OSS), prompting immediate praise from Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, who had long been advocating for funds.

Kaul complimented Republican and Democrat legislators in both houses who passed the measure.

“Our Office of School Safety is making a difference in an area of paramount importance: the safety of our kids. That office works to proactively prevent violence in schools and trains educators, students and staff to recognize and mitigate crises and trauma,” said Kaul.

As previously reported by the Wisconsin Law Journal, Wisconsin has once again been cast into the national spotlight — this time calling upon Wisconsin legislators to fund the Office of School Safety.

Kaul noted, if Evers signs the measure, the Office of School Safety will be able to operate through the next state budget and the entirety of the 2024-25 school year.

“We look forward to continuing to work with legislators to secure long-term funding for this office,” Kaul added.

According to Kaul, the office’s tip line has attracted national attention as it has received more than 11,000 contacts, resulting in opportunities to intervene early, assist youth, and prevent violence.

The tipline creates “a trusted avenue for students, parents and community members to contribute to the safety of their schools,” Kaul noted Tuesday.

According to Kaul, students have used the tipline to seek help for the wellness and safety of themselves or others, reporting concerns such as potential threats of violence, concerns of planned school attacks, incidents of weapons, bullying, suicidal ideation, depression and self-harm.

Kaul noted the Office of School Safety was created back in 2018 to keep students safe at school and has become a critical resource for students, teachers, school administrators and communities throughout Wisconsin, with the intent to prevent violence in schools and respond quickly to promote recovery, should events occur.

Assembly Bill 1050, authored by Sen. Romaine Quinn (R-Cameron) and Rep. Todd Novak (R-Dodgeville), has now passed both the Assembly and Senate on overwhelmingly bipartisan votes, Kaul said.

The bill extends funds for operations of the Office of School Safety through September 2025.

“This short-term, bridge funding will give the state the opportunity to provide stable, ongoing funding for the OSS as part of the 2025-2027 biennial budget,” Kaul said.

Also as previously reported by the Wisconsin Law Journal, both Republican and Democrat Wisconsin officials stood in solidarity earlier in June 2023, advocating for additional funds for Wisconsin’s Crime Lab. The Criminal Justice Coalition gathered in Madison expressing support for critical investments needed to be made in Wisconsin’s criminal justice system. Among those investments, Fond du Lac County District Attorney Eric Toney made a case for additional toxicologists.