AUSTIN, Texas – The vast majority of U.S. parents (96%) support a mandate requiring K-12 schools to share their real-time video surveillance footage with 911 communications centers during emergencies, according to a new study released on Thursday by Eagle Eye Networks, a cloud video surveillance solutions provider.
More than half (56%) of the more than 1,000 parents of K-12 students who were surveyed said they prefer a federal camera-sharing mandate, while 29% wanted a community-level requirement, and 11% favored a district mandate. Additionally, taxes to pay for school camera sharing has bipartisan support, with 93% of Democrats and 91% of Republicans saying they support such a tax.
According to a press release from Eagle Eye, some of the study’s other key findings include:
- 90% of those surveyed support allocating existing tax dollars to enable public K-12 schools to activate technology for 911 telecommunicators to access real-time security camera feeds in emergencies
- 86% of parents feel safer with a security system enabled for live video communication with a 911 telecommunicator
- Almost 80% of respondents feel live-feed visibility into schools via security cameras will save lives during active shooter events.
School leaders and public safety officials say camera sharing can help quickly deliver critical information when time is of the essence.
“First responders often approach the scene of an emergency with very little information about the whereabouts of suspects, innocent bystanders, and the physical layout of the scene,” Bill Maverick, a security consultant and retired New York State Police Special Operations Supervisor with expertise in active shooter response training told Eagle Eye. “In addition, emergency situations are not static, they’re dynamic, changing from minute to minute. Having telecommunicators feed ongoing real-time information to first responders during an active shooter incident is a game changer, with the potential to dramatically improve outcomes, and save lives.”
A total of 1,034 parents of K-12 students in the U.S. were surveyed between May 26 and June 5, 2024.
Eagle Eye is the manufacturer of 911 Camera Sharing, which gives emergency communications centers instant access to security cameras during an emergency. The solution received a 2024 Campus Safety BEST Award for video/CCTV surveillance software.
