The Senate Select Committee on Children and families met for the first time today at 10:00 AM to discuss two bills and the priorities the committee has for this year’s session.
The first bill presented was SB 230, which discusses suicide prevention in schools. The bill would require the Board of Education to provide instruction to school staff on suicide awareness and prevention. The guidelines would be determined by the state board. The Committee adopted the bill and it is to be referred to the Senate Education Committee before being reported to the full Senate.
The Committee also discussed SB 236, which discusses online privacy for children. The bill would prohibit the online marketing of products or services to minors if they are only legally allowed to pe purchased by a person 18 years of age or older. The bill would also prohibit the personal data collection of minors, restrict the collection of personal data for marketing purposes, and allow minors to remove personal data from the internet. This bill has been moved to a subcommittee composed of senators Rucker, Roberts, and Hardesy for technical cleanup.
The committee also discussed its priorities for this year’s session, and seemed to agree that the main focus for the committee was foster care and the provision of homes and necessities for children born into underprivileged homes or those affected by the current opioid crisis in the state.
