The N.C. House of Representatives passed HB 1682 Corporal Punishment and Children with Disabilities by a vote of 113-0 on June 10th. Should this bill pass the Senate as well, parents of students with disabilities will have the right to prevent their child from being struck at school. Currently there is no North Carolina law that affords parents or students the ability to remove themselves from being subject to corporal punishment.

Importantly, this bill also includes extensive reporting requirements. Currently, schools are only required to keep track of how often they use corporal punishment, but under law they do not have to report that data to their school district, let alone the State Department of Public Instruction (DPI). If this bill passes, local school boards will have to report to DPI the number of students subject to corporal punishment; the number of students with disabilities who received corporal punishment; the grade level of students who received corporal punishment; the race and ethnicity of students who received corporal punishment; the reason for the administration of corporal punishment. This will allow local districts, parents, and DPI to better monitor and respond to concerns over the use of corporal punishment locally.