California legislators introduced a bill Feb. 14 that would require schools serving grades 1–12 to install interior locks on each door in the building or facility.

Currently, state law requires any school applying for funding for modernization to also install interior locks—but it’s only applicable to interior renovations and repairs.

If passed, Assembly Bill 2565, introduced by Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, would require new buildings or those undergoing construction to install such locks on all classroom doors, libraries, gymnasiums, and auditoriums.

Mr. McCarty said he introduced the bill to ensure student and teacher safety amid the threat of gun violence.

“Schools should be safe havens for learning, not sites of violence. Simple safety measures like interior locks can save lives during a crisis, making our schools safer,” he said in a press release the day he introduced the bill.

He also noted that currently, one in four classroom doors can only be locked from the outside—which means that during a school emergency when classrooms need to be locked, an individual must put themselves in potential danger to lock the door.

Mr. McCarty’s press release also cited the Sandy Hook Advisory Commission’s 2015 report on school safety, which strongly encouraged the installment of interior locks on classroom doors as a practical and effective safety measure.

“The testimony and other evidence presented to the commission revealed that there has never been an event in which an active shooter breached a locked classroom door,” the commission’s report stated.

Last year, California and Ohio tied for the highest number of school shootings in the nation, reporting 25 incidents each, according to Mr. McCarty’s office.

The state would be required to reimburse local agencies and school districts for the costs of installing locks, of which fees have not yet been estimated.

Mr. McCarty was not immediately available for comment.