Michigan school mapping law

Does Michigan require schools to share maps with police?

Yes, for public school boards. A school board must cooperate with local law enforcement so that detailed and accurate building plans, blueprints or critical incident mapping data, and site plans, as appropriate, for each school building it runs are provided to the appropriate local law enforcement agency. Critical incident mapping data means information in an electronic or digital format that helps law enforcement or emergency first responders in an emergency. This provision sets no deadline for providing the plans or mapping data.

Which schools are covered?

The duty falls on a "school board," which includes an intermediate school board and the board of directors of a public school academy (a Michigan charter school). This provision names no duty for nonpublic schools.

What must the mapping data show?

It must include accurate floor plans overlaid on current aerial imagery of the school building. It must include building labels such as room labels, hallway names, external door or stairwell numbers, hazards, key utility locations, key boxes, AEDs (defibrillators) and trauma kits. It must include grounds labels such as parking areas, athletic fields, surrounding roads and neighboring properties. It must include a gridded overlay with x/y coordinates.

What format must the mapping data be in?

Mapping data provided under the law must work with software platforms used by local, state or federal public safety agencies that provide emergency services. It must be provided in a printable format. It must be checked for accuracy through a walkthrough of the school building and grounds. It must be oriented to true north.

Do school emergency plans include maps?

The state's school emergency operations plan law lists the required plan contents, and that list does not include building maps, floor plans, blueprints or site plans. That emergency plan law was amended in 2026 (2026 PA 1, effective February 10, 2026), and its current text still has no mapping or floor-plan requirement. A school's emergency operations plan is confidential and exempt from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Are school maps confidential?

Michigan's FOIA lets a public body withhold certain records; this is allowed, not required. Its security exemption covers building designs to the extent they relate to a public body's ongoing security measures. It also covers emergency response plans, risk planning documents, threat assessments and domestic preparedness strategies. The exemption does not apply where release would not impair security, or where the public interest in release outweighs keeping the record private.

Has the state paid for school mapping?

The FY2025-26 budget (2025 PA 22, effective October 7, 2025) made a one-time $400,000 appropriation for a Michigan public safety critical incident mapping grant. Under that budget, the Department of State Police had to run a competitive grant program to help counties develop critical incident mapping, with grants of no more than $25,000 each and no more than 3 grants per county. Mapping paid for with the county grant must not require buying more software, must be checked by a walk-through of the building and grounds, and must include floor plan information overlaid on current aerial imagery. The State Police said the county grant was funded by the FY2026 budget, and the application deadline was March 4, 2026. The FY2026-27 budget (2026 PA 21, effective July 21, 2026) does not renew the State Police critical incident mapping grant. Its $5,000,000 State Police one-time item is for security infrastructure and services, not critical incident mapping. A former State School Aid Act section on payments to carry out critical incident mapping was repealed effective October 1, 2023.

How has the law changed?

The mapping provision's section was last amended by 2022 PA 257 (House Bill 6042), effective March 29, 2023. HB 5619 of 2026, the House version of the FY2026-27 budget, passed the House and was referred to the Senate Committee of the Whole on April 28, 2026, its last action; the enacted budget is SB 878 (2026 PA 21).