BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 517
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 8, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Patrick O'Donnell, Chair
AB
517 (Gallagher) - As Introduced February 23, 2015
SUBJECT: The California Comprehensive Sexual Health and
HIV/AIDS Prevention Education Act: outside consultants: parental
consent.
SUMMARY: Prohibits the participation of a student in
comprehensive sexual health education or HIV/AIDS prevention
education which is taught by outside consultants or through
guest speakers at assemblies unless prior written permission of
the student's parent or guardian has been provided.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires that a school district may provide comprehensive
sexual health education or HIV/AIDS prevention education, to
be taught by outside consultants or through guest speakers at
assemblies, only with written prior permission of the parent
or guardian of each student present.
2)Requires that school districts choosing to provide this
instruction through outside consultants or guest speakers
include in their notices to parents a request for written
permission for students to participate in that instruction and
notice that written permission is necessary to authorize
students' participation.
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3)Requires that students not be subject to disciplinary action,
academic penalty, or other sanctions if the students' parents
do not provide permission for students to attend instruction
given by outside consultants or guest speakers at assemblies.
4)Requires that an alternative educational activity be made
available to students who do not have permission to attend
instruction by outside consultants or guest speakers at
assemblies.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Permits school districts to provide comprehensive sexual
health education, and places a number of requirements on
districts choosing to provide that instruction.
2)Requires school districts to provide HIV/AIDS prevention
education, and specifies what is to be included in that
instruction.
3)States that a parent or guardian of a student has the right to
excuse their child from all or part of comprehensive sexual
health education, HIV/AIDS prevention education, and related
assessments.
4)Requires that school districts, at the beginning of each
school year, notify parents about instruction in comprehensive
sexual health education and HIV/AIDS prevention education, as
well as research on student health behaviors which is planned
for the coming year. The notice must:
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a) Advise the parent or guardian that written and
audiovisual educational materials used in comprehensive
sexual health education and HIV/AIDS prevention education
are available for inspection.
b) Advise the parent or guardian whether the comprehensive
sexual health education or HIV/AIDS prevention education
will be taught by school district personnel or by outside
consultants.
c) Provide information on outside consultants and guest
speakers, including the date of the instruction, the name
of the organization or affiliation of each guest speaker.
d) Advise the parent or guardian that the parent or
guardian may request in writing that his or her child not
receive comprehensive sexual health education or HIV/AIDS
prevention education.
1)Permits, for students in grades 7-12, the administration of
anonymous, voluntary, and confidential research and evaluation
tools to measure students' health behaviors and risks.
Requires that these tools be used only if a parent or guardian
is notified in writing that this tool is to be administered
and they are given the opportunity to review them and to
request in writing that his or her child not participate.
2)Requires that students not be subject to disciplinary action,
academic penalty, or other sanctions if the students' parents
do not provide permission for students to attend this
instruction or participate in tests, questionnaires, or
surveys on student health behaviors and risks.
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3)Requires that, while comprehensive this instruction is being
held or these tools are being administered, an alternative
educational activity be made available to students whose
parents or guardians have requested that they not participate.
FISCAL EFFECT: Legislative Counsel has keyed this bill as a
state mandated local program.
COMMENTS:
Need for the bill. The author states that "when sexual health
and HIV/AIDS prevention instruction is conducted by a school
teacher, the lessons are largely responsible and
age-appropriate" but that at times instruction provided by
outside consultants has been "controversial and inappropriate
for children." The author points to several instances in which
outside consultants provided instruction to students which, in
the author's view, promoted sexual activity or a political
agenda.
Outside consultants and guest speakers must follow requirements
as teachers. As noted above, the author's office indicates that
instruction provided by teachers is largely appropriate, but
that instruction provided by outside consultants is at times
"controversial and inappropriate."
Current law (Education Code Sec. 51933) requires outside
consultants to abide by the same instructional requirements as
teachers. Among many requirements, this instruction must be age
appropriate, medically accurate and objective, teach respect for
committed relationships and marriage, encourage students to
speak with their parents or guardians about human sexuality, be
appropriate and accessible for use with students with
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disabilities, and be appropriate for students of all races,
genders, sexual orientations, and ethnic and cultural
backgrounds.
Opt-in excludes students whose families have no objection to the
instruction. In approving prior legislation, most notably SB 71
(Kuehl, Chapter 650, Statutes of 2003), this Legislature chose
to require passive ("opt out") rather than active ("opt in")
parental consent. This decision was made after reviewing data
that showed that very few parents object to their children
learning about sexual health, and that requiring active parental
consent would result in many students not receiving this
instruction when their parents had no objection to it.
A California study conducted by the RAND Corporation followed up
with parents who did not return permission forms and found that
87% had no objection to their children's participation,
demonstrating that a significant number of parents fail to
return school forms for reasons other than opposition to the
activity for which consent is sought. Active parental consent
would mean that the vast majority of students who would miss
this instruction would have parents who had no objection to it.
Passive parental consent allows parents with objections to
exempt their children, while allowing those who do not object to
receive the instruction.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 35
states and the District of Columbia allow parents to opt-out on
behalf of their children, and three states require parental
consent before a child can receive instruction.
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CDE interpretation allows districts to adopt "opt in" policies
for sexual health instruction. Contrary to significant
Legislative history on this issue, the CDE has advised school
districts that the law permits them to adopt an "opt in" policy
regarding comprehensive sexual health instruction. The CDE
website states, "Districts shall not adopt an active consent or
"opt-in" policy for parental consent for required HIV/AIDS
prevention instruction. Districts may use either a passive
consent ("opt-out") or active consent ("opt-in") policy for
comprehensive sexual health education."
AB 329 (Webber) of this Session would, among other provisions,
expressly prohibit active parental consent ("opt-in") policies
for HIV prevention education and comprehensive sexual health
education
Related legislation this session: AB 329 (Webber) of this
Session would consolidate and revise the requirements for
comprehensive sexual health education and HIV/AIDS prevention
education, and would expressly prohibit active parental consent
("opt-in") policies for HIV prevention education and
comprehensive sexual health education.
Prior legislation. AB 1348 (Mansoor) of the 2011-12 Session
would have prohibited students from receiving sexual health
education or taking surveys about gender or sexual orientation
without parental consent. That bill died in this Committee.
AB 2086 (Huff) of the 2007-08 Session would have required that
parents be notified and be able to excuse their children from
discussions of sexual orientation which occur outside of
comprehensive sexual health education. That bill died in this
Committee.
AB 629 (Brownley), Chapter 602, Statutes of 2007, enacted the
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Sexual Health Education Accountability Act and requires sexual
health education programs to provide information that is
medically accurate, current, and objective, include content that
is age appropriate for its targeted population, be culturally
and linguistically appropriate for its targeted populations, and
provide information about the effectiveness and safety of at
least one or more drug or device approved by the federal Food
and Drug Administration for preventing pregnancy and for
reducing the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases.
AB 2891 (La Malfa) of the 2005-06 Session, would have required
parental permission before students could participate in tests,
questionnaires, surveys, or examinations containing any
questions regarding gender, or sexual orientation. That bill
died in this Committee.
AB 349 (Mountjoy) of the 2005-06 Session would have required
parental permission before students in grades 7-12 could receive
instruction or counseling in specified sexual health education
topics, and would have prohibited the discussion of those topics
in grades K-6. That bill died in this Committee.
SB 71 (Kuehl), Chapter 650, Statutes of 2003, established the
California Comprehensive Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention
Education Act which consolidated various provisions relating to
the instruction in the public schools on AIDS prevention,
venereal disease and other sexually transmitted diseases, sex,
and abstinence from sexual activity, and the manner in which
parents or guardians may excuse their child from this
instruction.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
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California Catholic Conference
California Nurses for Ethical Standards
California Right to Life Committee
Capitol Resource Institute
Concerned Women of America of California
Faith and Public Policy
NOISE Coalition
1 individual
Opposition
Equality California
American Academy of Pediatrics, California
American Civil Liberties Union of California
California Communities United Institute
California Medical Association
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National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California
California Association for Health, Physical Education,
Recreation and Dance
1 individual
Analysis Prepared
by: Tanya Lieberman/ED./(916) 319-2087