North Country Rep. Elise Stefanik is praising two bills passed as part of the federal omnibus package that she says will enhance school safety, the STOP School Violence Act and the Fix NICS Act.

The STOP School Violence Act reauthorizes and amends the Secure Our Schools program through the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance, providing local law enforcement, school personnel and students with the tools they need to “proactively prevent a threat,” her office said.

“The legislation authorizes $75 million annually for state and local schools to make evidence-based investments in the development and operation of school threat assessment teams to help schools to intake and triage threats before tragedy strikes; implement anonymous reporting systems for students in coordination with local law enforcement; administer training and technical assistance for students, school personnel and law enforcement to identify signs of violence and intervene early to prevent students from hurting themselves and others; facilitate coordination between schools and local law enforcement; and provide significant improvement in school security,” Stefanik’s office said.

The Fix NICS Act would ensure federal and state authorities comply with existing law and accurately report relevant criminal history records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The bill penalizes federal agencies that fail to properly report relevant records and incentivizes states to improve their overall reporting. The bill also directs more federal funding to the accurate reporting of domestic violence records, Stefanik’s office said.

“This is an important step forward as we work to end incidents of gun violence in our schools, and I thank President Trump for signing these two initiatives I cosponsored into law,” Stefanik said in a prepared statement. “These bills will strengthen our background check system and provide resources for school security. In fact, this appropriations bill provides more than $2.3 billion in new funding to effective mental health, training, and school safety programs. I am a strong supporter of 2nd Amendment rights and will continue to work with my colleagues in Congress on bipartisan solutions to help end tragic incidents of gun violence.”