Alyssa's Law in New York
In New York, district-wide school safety teams must consider installing a panic alarm system when they review the district-wide safety plan. A building-level emergency response plan may include a panic alarm system among its communication systems. The State Education Department describes the law as authorizing panic alarms in building-level plans, not requiring them.
Every fact checked against the official source by an independent reviewer · Last verified October 25, 2026
What does the New York law require?
The district-wide safety team "shall consider" installing a panic alarm system during its plan review. Building-level plans "may include" one.
The law defines a panic alarm system as a silent signal, set off manually, that calls for a local law-enforcement response. It may be wired buttons, wireless buttons, or a mobile or computer app.
Who is covered?
Section 2801-a applies to school district boards, BOCES, county vocational education and extension boards, and the New York City schools chancellor.
What has the state published?
The Board of Regents amended Commissioner's regulation § 155.17 to match Chapter 227.
Bill and statute history
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Bill | S7132-B (2021-2022), which enacted "Alyssa's law" |
| Signed | June 23, 2022, as Chapter 227 of the Laws of 2022 |
| Effective | Immediately |
| Statute | N.Y. Education Law § 2801-a(2)(f) and (3)(d) |
Is anything pending?
Three 2025-2026 bills would require alarms. All three were re-referred to committee on January 7, 2026, their last recorded action:
- S6410 would require at least one panic alarm in each public elementary and secondary school building, silent inside the building, with costs eligible for building aid and one year for districts to comply.
- S3022 would require a panic button and an extra door security device in every classroom.
- A9290 would require a silent alarm within teachers' reach in every classroom; its sponsor memo says it would also cover charter and nonpublic schools.
How can QuickSecure help?
Panic, the QuickSecure mobile app, lets any staff member raise an Alert from a phone. Schools start with Lockdown, Fire, Medical and Admin Alerts, each with its response workflow already built, and can add their own Alert types with their own workflows.
Schools can also add a physical panic button.
Each school sets how every Alert type behaves: silent or announced, a critical alert or a normal notification, whether it also sends email and text messages, and how it looks, down to its color, icon and wording.
Dispatch sends the Alert straight to 911 through RapidSOS, with one confirmation step. Each school chooses which Alert types call 911.
Mass notifications lets a school choose how each message goes out: app notifications, critical alerts, text messages or email.
Nexus holds campus maps and floor plans, plus details such as where the AEDs are, who is on site, which class each person is in and their status, and responders can see them during an Alert.
Drill management runs practice drills through the same workflow as a real Alert, so in a real emergency every step is already familiar and nobody stops to second-guess it. A drill never sends a real Dispatch.
This is not a statement that any product satisfies New York law.