A 5373: Prohibits immigration enforcement in school settings; prohibits all public and charter schools from allowing law enforcement officials inside school property to access a student, except to address an imminent safety situation or if they have an appropriate judicial warrant or judicial order.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5373 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY February 13, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. CRUZ -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the civil rights law and the education law, in relation to protecting students, faculty, and staff from civil arrest while attending or participating in school activities The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "protect our schools act". 3 § 2. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section 29 to 4 read as follows: 5 § 29. Civil arrest; protection in school settings. 1. A person attend- 6 ing, employed at, or otherwise lawfully present at a school, including 7 students, teachers, school staff, volunteers, and visitors, is privi- 8 leged from civil arrest while: 9 (a) traveling to and from school; 10 (b) attending classes or school-related activities; 11 (c) participating in extracurricular or educational programs on school 12 grounds or are affiliated with the school, including but not limited to 13 after school programs. 14 2. No civil arrest shall be executed on school premises unless 15 supported by a judicial warrant authorizing such an arrest or detain- 16 ment. 17 3. No other document shall be sufficient for the execution of any 18 civil arrest including an administrative warrant or immigration detain- 19 er. 20 4. It shall be considered unlawful and constitute false imprisonment 21 for any person to willfully violate this section by executing or assist- 22 ing in an arrest prohibited under this section. 23 5. A person whose rights under this section are violated may bring a 24 civil action for equitable and declaratory relief. Additionally, the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD09018-01-5 
 A. 5373 2 1 attorney general may bring a civil action in the name of the state to 2 enforce compliance. 3 6. Any successful action pursuant to this section may result in the 4 recovery of costs and reasonable attorney's fees. 5 7. As used in this section: 6 (a) "Judicial warrant or order" shall mean a warrant or order that is 7 signed by a United States district judge or federal magistrate judge and 8 demonstrates probable cause to believe an individual has committed a 9 crime or offense. 10 (b) "Administrative warrant" shall mean a warrant that is prepared and 11 issued by federal immigration authorities and directs federal officials 12 to arrest a noncitizen for removal or removal proceedings. 13 (c) "Immigration detainer" shall mean a request, typically issued by 14 federal immigration authorities to local law enforcement agencies, to 15 keep an individual in custody for up to forty-eight hours beyond when 16 the individual is scheduled for release. 17 § 3. The education law is amended by adding a new section 409-o to 18 read as follows: 19 § 409-o. Authority of schools to maintain a safe educational environ- 20 ment. 1. School administrators shall take appropriate action to prevent 21 unauthorized law enforcement activity on school grounds, to protect 22 students' rights to a secure learning environment. 23 2. All public and charter schools are prohibited from allowing law 24 enforcement officials inside school property to access a student, except 25 to address an imminent safety situation or if they present any of the 26 documents stated in paragraph (b) of subdivision three of this section. 27 3. Every law enforcement official entering school property with the 28 intent to conduct a civil immigration arrest shall: 29 (a) Identify themselves to school administration; 30 (b) Provide a judicial warrant or judicial order authorizing an 31 arrest; and 32 (c) Obtain permission from school administrators unless responding to 33 an imminent safety threat. 34 4. Before taking any other action, a school shall provide the school's 35 superintendent and school district attorney with the documentation 36 provided pursuant to paragraph (b) of subdivision three of this section, 37 which such superintendent and school district attorney shall assess in 38 the context of the law enforcement request, and await guidance before 39 proceeding. 40 5. A school shall immediately notify the parent or guardian of the 41 student who is the subject of a judicial warrant or judicial order 42 authorizing an arrest unless specifically prohibited by such warrant or 43 order. 44 6. Schools shall establish and publicly post protocols to ensure 45 students, staff, and parents are aware of their rights under the 46 provisions of this section. 47 7. No school resource officer or any law enforcement official acting 48 on behalf of an immigration authority shall detain, interrogate, or 49 remove a student for the purpose of ascertaining immigration status. 50 8. Law enforcement officials shall not utilize school facilities for 51 immigration enforcement actions unless required by law or a judicial 52 order. 53 9. Student resource officers shall be prohibited from accessing or 54 redisclosing student records containing immigration status or related 55 information except when a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena is 
 A. 5373 3 1 provided and after consultation with the school's superintendent and 2 school district attorney. 3 10. (a) The commissioner shall promulgate all rules and regulations 4 necessary to ensure compliance with the provisions of this section, 5 including but not limited to, training for school personnel on handling 6 law enforcement requests. 7 (b) The department shall publish an annual report on enforcement 8 actions affecting schools, detailing the number and nature of civil 9 arrests attempted or conducted on school premises. 10 11. As used in this section "judicial warrant or order" shall mean a 11 warrant or order that is signed by a United States district judge or 12 federal magistrate judge and demonstrates probable cause to believe an 13 individual has committed a crime or offense. 14 § 4. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part 15 of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to 16 be invalid and after exhaustion of all further judicial review, the 17 judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, 18 but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, para- 19 graph, section or part of this act directly involved in the controversy 20 in which the judgment shall have been rendered. 21 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.