Washington State bill wants clear policy on school cameras

A new bill in the state of Washington wants to tackle the issue of video surveillance inside schools. Introduced last week by Mike Sells, a state legislator and vice chair of the Washington House Higher Education Committee, the bill would make clear school policies on video surveillance.

According to KHQ-TV, the bill was prompted by a previous incident where video from a camera inside a school classroom was used as part of the basis for firing a teacher who helped students publish and underground publication.

The proposed bill, Washington HB-1262, would require written notification to all staff that video surveillance was being used, and it would also require clear signage indicating areas where video
surveillance systems were being installed.

Additional commentary on the bill from Rep. Mike Sells, the bill’s author, is available from KHQ-TV (read original story).