House creates special subcommittee to deal with school safety in light of school shootings

Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo created a new subcommittee to explore whether Kentucky schools are taking “every precaution to be safe.”

Stumbo, D-Prestonsburg, named Rep. Richard Henderson, D-Jeffersonville, the chairman of the committee which will hold its inaugural meeting Thursday afternoon.

“In the wake of last month’s tragedy in Newtown, Conn., every state is taking a fresh look at this issue,” said Stumbo in a statement.

Henderson has filed legislation to make the committee permanent, and Stumbo is co-sponsoring the measure. It will be considered by the General Assembly when they reconvene in early February.

“Kentucky, unfortunately, is no stranger to school shootings, given what happened in Paducah in the late 1990s,” said Henderson. “We’ve made a lot of strides in the years since then, but the time has come to see what other steps may need to be taken. I’m proud to lead this committee, and I will work hard this session to make sure it becomes permanent.”

The inaugural meeting will include testimony from the Kentucky State Police and the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department; a school resource officer from Estill County High School; and Jon Akers, the Director of the Kentucky Center for School Safety.