ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A bill installing weapons detection systems in all Georgia public schools is one step closer to becoming law.

The House Education Committee passed House Bill 1023 Thursday.

“Having as many layers for our students and our teachers, that’s the most important thing,” said Layla Renee Contreras, the lead organizer with Change for Chee and an Apalachee High School alumna.

Georgia public schools are one step closer to safer entrances with HB 1023, which cleared the House Education Committee. Contreras said, “It’s kind of ridiculous this hasn’t been implemented.”

Contreras has been at the forefront of increased school safety since the deadly attack at Apalachee High School in 2024 that took the lives of two teachers and two students.

“Anything we can do to deter these people from bringing harm to our children. This is one step closer to bringing them safety,” Contreras said.

Barrow County schools installed weapons detectors at all middle and high schools in January 2025. The Barrow County School System has also equipped all schools with school resource officers.

Apalachee High School shooting survivor Kyra Mcconatha said it was not the shooting but another student bringing a gun on campus afterward when the detectors came into play.

“It’s very needed. It feels like a burden is lifted off your shoulders after you have safety,” Kyra Mcconatha, an Apalachee High School shooting survivor, said.

Gwinnett County schools will have the weapons detection systems in all middle and high schools by the end of March.

The vote on the bill was split. Representatives said the systems could play a vital role in safety, while others expressed concerns about funding and liability.

The bill’s sponsor, House Majority Leader Rep. Chuck Efstration, said the detection system is part of his everyday routine when he reports to the Capitol.

“There is nothing more important than the safety and futures of our children,” Rep. Chuck Efstration, the House majority leader, said.

Efstration said, “I believe that this is a reasonable measure of the circumstances of wanting to ensure every Georgia parent that when they drop their children off at school they’re gonna be able to pick them up safely at the end of the day.”

Rep. Karen Lupton, a Democrat, raised some concern about the bill.

“I have a concern: what sort of liability does this put our school systems in if we say you have to have every entrance covered?” Rep. Karen Lupton said.

“I don’t see that this in any way changes liability; it’s just my opinion on that,” Efstration said. “That issue hasn’t been raised with me since I introduced this bill.”

The bill will still need to pass the House and Senate before it becomes law. Schools will be able to pay for the systems through state-funded grants to meet the requirements.

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