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House to take up school safety bill after Florida shooting

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican leaders say the House will vote on a school safety bill next week as Congress struggles to respond to the deadly assault on a Florida high school.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Tuesday that the GOP-controlled chamber will vote on a bill creating a federal grant program to train students, teachers and school officials how to identify and intervene early when signs of violence arise. The bill would implement federal school-threat assessment protocols designed to prevent school shootings.

The measure is sponsored by Florida Rep. John Rutherford, a former Jacksonville sheriff. Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch has sponsored a similar bill in the Senate, although senators are expected to turn first to a bill strengthening the federal background checks system.

No gun votes are scheduled in the Senate.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., speaks at the 2018 American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference, at Washington Convention Center, Monday, March 5, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) The Associated Press
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