Chenette’s bill to review bullying laws gains full support from Legislature

                   The bill forms a stakeholder group to overhaul laws regarding bullying in schools

​AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, the Maine House voted in support of a bill introduced by Sen. Justin Chenette, D-Saco, to review and overhaul Maine’s bullying laws. The Senate voted in support of LD 1306, “An Act To Promote Safe Schools through the Creation of the Safe School Climate Council,” last Thursday.
 
“As someone who was bullied all throughout school, I know the long-lasting pain that bullying can cause,” said Sen Chenette. “I want to do everything I can to ensure young people feel safe in school, feel accepted, and feel like they can be true to themselves without fear of retribution from their peers.”
 
LD 1306 directs the Department of Education to create a stakeholder group to recommend improvements to Maine’s bullying laws for schools. By February 2020, the Commissioner of the Department of Education will report the findings of the stakeholder group and its specific recommendations to the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee and the rest of the Legislature for further legislative action.
 
The goal of this bill is to obtain data, analyze issues and report on solutions to comprehensively address how school districts across the state are responding to bullying in their schools. The bill is supported by the Maine Education Association.
 
LD 1306 has received strong bipartisan support in the Maine Legislature. It now faces enactment votes in the Senate and the House