Tennessee passes fire alarm bill regarding active school shooters

Bill requires schools to have a plan to determine cause of fire alarm

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WDEF) — Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill on Monday requiring schools to have a safety policy regarding active shooters and fire alarms.

House Bill 1644 unanimously passed the Senate on February 26.

The bill requires schools to develop a procedure to determine what caused a fire alarm to be activated. This includes the potential of an active shooter situation.

All Tennessee schools, including charter schools, private schools and church schools, must implement this procedure by July 1, 2024, according to the bill.

It says these procedures must be reviewed and updated yearly to ensure the safety of everyone in the school.

Next steps include the bill being signed into law by the governor.

This bill comes in response to the Covenant School shooting that took place in 2023.

The Associated Press reported that the activation of the fire alarm during the school shooting caused confusion that resulted in student deaths.

The House passed an amendment to the bill on February 8, but the amendment was withdrawn on February 26.