A House committee on Tuesday agreed to redirect $5 million from school safety grants to an artificial intelligence program that promises a solution for detecting guns in schools.
The House K-12 Education Budget committee passed a budget proviso designating the money specifically for ZeroEyes, a Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, firm that according to its website was founded in 2018 by a team of Navy SEALS and technology specialists.
The company said it was founded following the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, in 2018.
“We use artificial intelligence to actively detect brandished firearms within view of any camera equipped with our software,” the company says on its website.
“With incredibly fast – often 2–3 seconds – gun detection and police notifications, our technology can decrease response time — which can save lives.”
The company brief lawmakers on its services during a briefing last month and is scheduled to appear the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday.
The proviso, if ultimately passed, would end a program that was started by House Republican leadership following that same high school shooting six years ago.
In 2023, the state Department of Education received proposals from 188 districts totaling about $14.4 million for the program funded by the Legislature.
The money could only be used for security infrastructure, security technology, communications for security, new school resource officers and Narcan kits that can be used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
The safety grants had a dollar-for-dollar match requirement.
Republican state Rep. Kristey Williams, chair of the committee, questioned whether the value of the existing program could be improved upon.
“We have scaled this to the point that districts have been able to prepare, buy cameras, take care of their doors, take care of their windows, take care of their locks, take care of their security,” Williams said.
“We’re now moving to that next level of protection,” Williams said.
She justified writing the name of the company into the legislation, which would provide the firm $5 million over three years.
She said there wasn’t enough time to go through a request-for-proposal process.
“This is about safe and security for our kids,” Williams said.
“This is a proven track record. I believe the Department of Defense utilizes this company. They have a pretty amazing background,” she said.
“Because of the need to expedite safety, we are naming it because sometimes an RFP takes too long and we don’t get the product that we want.
“It’s not always about the cheapest option,” she said. “It’s about the best option. We believe that this is the best option.”
Democratic state Rep. Mari-Lynn Poskin of Leawood, a member of the committee, said she had reservations about writing the company’s name into the legislation.
“It’s a no-bid contact. Not a fan,” she said.
Williams assured lawmakers that the program could be reevaluated before the three-year pilot project ends.
She added that the state was funding the program and matching funds would not be required from the schools like the grants for safety and security.
The proposal, put forward by Republican state Rep. Adam Thomas of Olathe, directs ZeroEyes to add software to existing school cameras to identify guns.
The budget proviso would require the Kansas State Department of Education to select the school districts for the three-year pilot program.
The education department would be required to submit a report to the House K-12 Budget Committee and the Senate Education Committee by Jan. 15, 2026.
Democratic state Rep. Jarrod Ousley of Mission wondered about the wisdom of installing artificial intelligence in schools for security purposes.
“This is artificial intelligence in our schools keeping track of our kids,” he said.
Williams said the software is intended to only identify where there is gun and whether authorities should be called.
She said the technology is not intended to identify people individually.
Thomas said he shared Ousley’s concerns at first.
“That was one of the first things I was concerned about was the privacy of the kids,” he said.
“Once it was confirmed that it was not the case, that sort of eased my heartburn about all of this,” he said.
“This is about the safety and security of our kids and our schools, and I think this is an excellent tool that’s been proven to work.”
