Bill Seeks Snow-Load Rules For Schools

School buildings would have to meet strict standards for snow loads, under legislation introduced Monday.

Sen. Gary Schroeder, R-Moscow, said he worries that disastrous school roof cave-ins like those in Bonner County this year could happen again, and next time, children could be hurt or killed.

“If that happens, I’d wish I would have done something. This is one approach,” he said.

Schroeder was joined by Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, in proposing the legislation.

“When we talk about having schoolchildren in a building, we need to make sure that safety is a consideration,” Keough said in an interview. “My understanding is it’s not uniform across the state of Idaho how school buildings are to be built. This provides some uniformity, and sets a higher standard for construction.”

The bill repeats newly developed rules for operating Idaho’s public schools, by saying that school buildings should comply with building codes. But it goes a step further by also requiring them to meet standards for withstanding snow loads set by a 1986 University of Idaho report.

Sen. Jack Riggs, R-Coeur d’Alene, questioned whether the measure would require all school roofs that don’t meet that standard to be replaced immediately.

Schroeder and Keough said that wasn’t their intention. But the bill does say all school buildings should be inspected, and if they don’t comply, either deficiencies should be corrected within 20 days, or a written plan for correcting structural deficiencies should be filed by the start of the next school year.

Said Schroeder, “I’m no expert on this, but I am concerned that the potential that children will get seriously hurt or killed is real. Perhaps we’ll come up with a better plan. This is a start.”

The Senate Education Committee voted unanimously to introduce the bill. A hearing will be scheduled within the coming weeks.

In other action Monday, the Education Committee:

Unanimously agreed to introduce Keough’s bill expanding a law that makes it a misdemeanor to insult a teacher in front of students. Her measure expands the law to also cover insults to school bus drivers, other staff, and volunteers.

Agreed to introduce a measure adding a college student as a full voting member of the state Board of Education.

Agreed to introduce Schroeder’s bill raising Idaho’s compulsory school attendance age from 16 to 18. Students who have received a diploma, an equivalency certificate or are in the military would be exempt.

Killed a bill that would have set a maximum class size of 20 students per teacher for kindergarten through the sixth grade. The Idaho Education Association proposal failed to win introduction on a 4-4 tied vote.

, DataTimes