Bill · S. 5468· Senate(119-S-5468)
Counseling Not Criminalization in Schools Act
- Introduced
- 9/23/2026
- Last activity
- 9/23/2026 — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- Sponsored by
- Christopher Murphy
- Cosponsors
- - 4 - 0
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
This bill is called the Counseling Not Criminalization in Schools Act. It stops the use of Federal funds for hiring, maintaining, or training police officers in schools. The bill also creates a grant program through the Department of Education to help local school agencies remove police and replace them with mental health professionals and trauma-informed personnel. Schools that want these grants must agree to terminate existing police contracts and not establish new ones during the grant period. The bill sets aside money to prioritize schools with high numbers of economically disadvantaged students and those that engage with their communities. Finally, schools receiving these grants must report annually on their use of funds, arrest demographics, and surveillance technologies.
Yes· 3 of 15
Does this change how police departments operate?+8
The bill prohibits federal funding for police in schools and incentivizes local educational agencies to terminate school police contracts.
Would children be better off under this?+7
Students will benefit from increased access to school-based mental health professionals and reduced exposure to the criminal justice system.
Would Black Americans be better off under this?+7
Black students face disproportionately high rates of school arrests and severe discipline, which this bill seeks to mitigate.
The opposite
Does this reduce what the federal government spends?-3
The bill authorizes $5,000,000,000 in new federal appropriations for school mental health grants.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Mental Health Support in Schools: Under Section 6(d)(1), schools are required to use grant funds to hire and train school counselors, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and trauma-informed personnel, which helps address the lack of these professionals in schools.
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Reduced Disparities in Discipline: Under Section 6(d)(2)(B), schools can provide ongoing professional development focused on anti-bias practices and the proper implementation of behavior plans, which aims to reduce the disproportionate punishment experienced by students of color and students with disabilities.
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Community Engagement: Under Section 6(c)(3), priority is given to schools that base their funding uses on meaningful community engagement and establish ongoing stakeholder oversight, ensuring that parents and students have a voice in shaping school safety.
Potential Negative Impacts for People
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Restrictions on School Safety Options: Under Section 5(a) and Section 6(e), the bill permanently prohibits the use of Federal funds for police in schools and bans grant recipients from using funds for surveillance equipment or arming school personnel, which may be viewed negatively by communities that prefer having armed officers or security hardware for protection.
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Loss of Existing Law Enforcement Funding: Under Section 5(b), the bill removes specific authorizations for school resource officers within existing federal grant programs, meaning schools currently relying on these funds will no longer be able to use them for law enforcement purposes.
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Good For African Americans+7Good For Children+7Good For Students+7Good For People With Disabilities+6Good For Immigrants+5Good For Low Income Households+5
- Social Issues And Justice
- Improves Policing Reform+8Improves Racial Equity+7Improves Disability Rights+6
- Governance And Ideology
- Improves Government Transparency+5Improves Privacy Rights+4Increases Federal Power+3
- Healthcare
- Improves Mental Health Access+7Improves Healthcare Access+5
- Education And Technology
- Increases Public School Funding+7
- Economy And Finance
- Reduces Government Spending-3
- 9/23/2026
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- 4 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
3 bills Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
Cory BookerDemocrat · New Jersey
Edward MarkeyDemocrat · Massachusetts
Jeff MerkleyDemocrat · Oregon
Chris Van HollenDemocrat · Maryland