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tricts are considering the idea. Attorney General Marty Jackley, whose office is in charge of writing training rules for school sentinels, said a few school board members have asked about the program but no district has notified him that it's voted to use it.
• The bill's main sponsor, Rep. Scott Craig, R-Rapid City, said he expects school districts will take their time in deciding whether to embrace the program.
• "Some folks are going to watch and see what it looks like the first year," Craig said.
• Also taking effect Monday are new state laws that revamp South Dakota's criminal justice system to treat more nonviolent offenders outside prison walls, prohibit beginning teenage drivers from using cell phones behind the wheel, and extend in some cases the waiting period for a woman seeking an abortion.
• The measure allowing schools to arm teachers and others drew the most attention last legislative session.
• Supporters said the bill could help prevent tragedies such as December's mass shooting at a grade school in Connecticut. Craig said that while law officers are stationed in schools in larger cities, some rural schools may arm volunteers because they are as much as 45 minutes away from the nearest police help. He said just the knowledge that an armed volunteer such as a retired law officer might be in a school could deter a would-be attacker.
• "It's safety. It's the premise, the appearance of safety, that we protect that which we hold most valuable, which is our children," Craig said.
• Associations representing school boards, school administrators and teachers opposed the measure, saying they believe putting more guns in schools just makes them more dangerous.
• "We still believe the schools are extremely safe places," said Rob Monson, executive director of the School Administrators of South Dakota.
• Monson said he hasn't heard of any school district that's adopted the program, but schools are working to make entrances more secure and take other steps to improve safety.
• Under the law, local police have to approve a school's program. Teachers and others taking part would undergo training devised by the same state commission that oversees the training of law enforcement officers. Teachers could not be forced to carry guns.
• A school board must decide in a public meeting whether to arm teachers and others. School district residents could force a public vote on a board's decision.
• The measure that seeks to cut South Dakota's prison costs came about with the support of Gov. Dennis Daugaard, Supreme Court Chief Justice David Gilbertson

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