(*6*)
Sponsors: : Reps. DJ Swearingen (R-Huron) and Sara Carruthers (R-Hamilton)
What would this bill do?: : If passed, the bill would force all teachers and school staff – including social workers and school counselors – to report LGBTQ+ students to their parents. Under the bill’s language, schools must “notify a student’s parents of any changes in student services or monitoring related to the student’s mental, emotional or physical health or well-being.” In April, the bill was amended to add “counseling services,” now requiring parents to be notified of everything a student shares during confidential counseling sessions.
The bill also requires parents to be notified about “sexually explicit content” in the curriculum, with only a vague definition of “sexually explicit.” In June, further changes were made to the bill, replacing the word “sexuality” with the word “sexually explicit.” With this change, the language now explicitly includes LGBTQ+ identity, meaning parents must be notified for any representation of LGBTQ+ identity. This may include depictions of same-sex parents in children’s books, a student showing a napkin from a same-sex wedding to a sibling, or screening of a fresh Disney movie. LGBTQ+ advocates call it the “Dangerous Students Act” and the “Don’t Say You’re Gay/Trans” Act.
Read the text of the bill Here.
Account status: :
– HB 8 had five hearings in the Committee on Elementary and Secondary Education and passed out of it on June 13.
– The bill passed the House on June 21 by a vote of 65 to 29, with one Republican voting against the bill: Rep. Jamie Callendar (R-Concord).
– It was submitted to the Senate Education Committee on September 13 and was held there on June 26 for the fourth time.