SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 4102

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  OCTOBER 1, 2026

      The Senate Education Committee reports favorably Senate Bill No. 4102.

This bill requires school districts to establish procedures for the online reporting of acts of harassment, intimidation, or bullying.

     Under the “Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act,” school districts are required to adopt a policy prohibiting harassment, intimidation, or bullying.  Current law requires this policy to contain a procedure for the reporting of acts of harassment, intimidation, or bullying, including a provision that permits a person to anonymously report these acts.

     This bill amends the “Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act” to provide that, beginning on the 120th day following the enactment of the bill, each school district’s policy will also include a procedure that permits a person to electronically report an act of harassment, intimidation, or bullying using an online reporting form, which will be accessible through the official Internet website of the school district.  In addition, the bill requires a link to the online reporting form to be prominently posted on the home page of the school district's website and distributed annually to parents and guardians who have children enrolled in the district.

     Under current law, the Commissioner of Education is required to develop a model policy to assist school districts in developing policies for the prevention of harassment, intimidation, or bullying.  This bill also requires the commissioner to adopt amendments to the model policy to establish procedures for the electronic reporting of harassment, intimidation, or bullying using online reporting forms.