Idaho Legislature: Ask Legislators to VOTE NO on H0179 - Education, sexuality, permission (posted 02/12/25)

• Bill: legislature.idaho.gov/s…

• Contact Legislators (link below):

(Check the linked page or use My Bill Tracker for the bill’s current status.)

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H0179 introduces more stringent requirements and restrictions around sex education and instruction in human sexuality in schools. This bill has good intentions, but the implementation could be onerous for schools and parents and possibly lead to discrimination and bullying against students.

The best solution is for schools to stay out of the sex education business and leave the very personal job of sex education to parents. The slope is very slippery and every defined term could be shaded cleverly to bypass the bill’s intentions. Moreover, schools around the country have lied repeatedly about the content of their curriculum, and this bill might not stop such practices. Finally, how do you address English literature, from Chaucer to D.H. Lawrence? Even the Bible contains sexual passages.

Specifics:

• Expands the definition of "human sexuality" to include a broad range of sexual and gender-related concepts, such as sexual conduct, sexual orientation, gender identity, and sexual abuse.

• Establishes a comprehensive parental consent process for any instruction related to human sexuality.

• Requires schools to provide parents with at least two weeks' notice before such instruction, including a description of the content and materials.

• Prevents schools from allowing a child to attend without a signed, written permission form from their parent or legal guardian.

• Requires schools to provide alternative educational instruction to any child that does not participate

• Allows parents to provide retroactive permission or seek rectification from the school board if a child receives instruction without proper parental consent. (Will kids tell their parents about this?)

• Enables parents to file a cause of action against the school district, allowing them to recover $250 in statutory damages plus actual damages if the school fails to comply with these new requirements.