Bill Text: HI HB1778 | 2014 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Sexuality Health Education Program; Department of Education

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-21 - Referred to EDN, FIN, referral sheet 3 [HB1778 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2014-HB1778-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	1778
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2014
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to Sexuality health education.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  Chapter 302A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Part   .  SEXUALITY HEALTH EDUCATION

     §302A-A  Definitions.  As used in this part, unless the context otherwise requires:

     "Abstinence" means not participating in any activity that puts an individual at risk for pregnancy or a sexually transmitted disease.

     "Abstinence-centered" means that the majority of the content of a curriculum promotes sexual risk avoidance as the primary goal, and supplemental topics in the curriculum, such as healthy relationships and substance abuse, reinforce the goal of primary prevention.

     "Age-appropriate" means designed to teach concepts, information, and skills based on the social, cognitive, emotional, and experience level of most students at a particular age level.

     "Evidence-based approach" means an approach that:

     (1)  Has a clear theoretical base that integrates research findings with practical implementation expertise that is relevant to the field;

     (2)  Matches the needs and desired outcomes for the intended audience; and

     (3)  Demonstrates improved outcomes for the intended audience.

     "Gateway sexual activity" means sexual contact that encourages an individual to engage in a non-abstinent behavior.

     "Medically accurate" means information that is grounded in evidence-based, peer-reviewed science and research.

     "Risk avoidance" means an approach that encourages the prevention of participation in risk behaviors as opposed to merely reducing the consequences of those risk behaviors.

     "Sexual activity" means sexual penetration, sexual contact, or both.

     "Sexual contact" means the intentional touching of another person's covered or uncovered genitalia area, groin, inner thigh, buttock, or female breast, if the intentional touching can be reasonably construed as being for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification.

     "Sexuality health education program" means a medically accurate sexuality health education funded by the State, subject to section 321-11.1, and presented to public schools governed by chapter 302A.

     "Sexually transmitted disease" means a disease or infection that is caused by bacteria, virus, or parasite and is transmitted from one person to another through sexual contact.

     §302A-B  Sexuality health education program.  (a)  The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 for the implementation, evaluation, and periodic review of each sexuality health education program.

     (b)   Prior to adopting a sexuality health education program, the department shall conduct at least one public hearing in each county to present the proposed sexuality health education program.  Prior to rendering a decision, the department shall provide the general public with an opportunity to testify at its decision-making hearing.

     (c)  Each June, the department shall schedule at least one public hearing in each county on each sexuality health education program.  The public shall have the opportunity to testify at the hearing.

     (d)  The department shall undertake appropriate measures, whether in a public hearing or in parent conferences, to ensure and maintain the highest level of community and parental support for each sexuality health education program.

     §302A-C  Teaching; prohibitions.  A sexuality health education program shall not use the services of any individual or organization to assist in teaching if that individual or organization endorses student non-abstinence as an appropriate or acceptable behavior, or if that individual or organization promotes, encourages, urges, advocates, or condones gateway sexual activity.

     §302A-D  Sexuality health education program curriculum.  (a)  A sexuality health education program curriculum shall promote abstinence-centered sex education that builds a foundation of knowledge and skills relating to character development, human development, decision-making, abstinence, contraception, and disease prevention, to the extent that the topic and the manner of communication is age-appropriate.  Specifically, the curriculum shall:

     (1)  Exclusively and emphatically promote sexual risk avoidance through abstinence, regardless of a student's current or prior sexual experience;

     (2)  Encourage sexual health by helping students understand how sexual activity affects the whole person including the physical, social, emotional, psychological, economic, and educational consequences of non-marital sexual activity;

     (3)  Teach the:

         (A)  Positive results of avoiding sexual activity;

         (B)  Skills needed to make healthy decisions;

         (C)  Advantages of and skills for student success in pursuing educational and life goals;

         (D)  Components of healthy relationships; and

         (E)  Social science research supporting the benefits of reserving the expression of human sexual activity for marriage;

     (4)  Provide factually and medically accurate information;

     (5)  Teach students how to form pro-social habits that enable them to develop healthy relationships, create strong marriages, and form safe and stable future families;

     (6)  Encourage students to communicate with a parent, guardian, or other trusted adult about sex or other risk behaviors;

     (7)  Assist students in learning and practicing refusal skills that will help them resist sexual activity;

     (8)  Address the benefits of raising children within the context of a marital relationship and the unique challenges that unmarried teenage parents encounter in relation to educational, psychological, physical, social, legal, and financial factors;

     (9)  Discuss the interrelationship between teen sexual activity and exposure to other risk behaviors such as smoking, underage drinking, drug use, criminal activity, dating violence, and sexual aggression;

    (10)  Educate students on the age of consent, puberty, pregnancy, childbirth, sexually transmitted diseases, and the financial and emotional responsibilities of raising a child; and

    (11)  Teach students to identify and form healthy relationships, and to identify and avoid unhealthy relationships.

     (b)  Instruction of a sexuality health education program curriculum shall not:

     (1)  Promote, encourage, urge, advocate, or condone, either implicitly or explicitly, any gateway sexual activity or health message that encourages students to experiment with non-coital sexual activity;

     (2)  Provide or distribute materials on school grounds that condone, encourage, or promote student sexual activity among unmarried students;

     (3)  Display or conduct demonstrations with devices specifically manufactured for sexual stimulation; or

     (4)  Distribute contraception or condoms on school property; provided that medically accurate information about contraception and condoms may be provided only if the information:

         (A)  Is presented in a manner consistent with the preceding provisions of this part; and

         (B)  Clearly informs students that contraception or condoms may reduce the risk of sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancy and abstinence removes all risk.

     §302A-E  Opt-out; parent or guardian option.  (a) Not less than thirty days prior to commencing instruction of a sexuality health education program curriculum, each principal shall notify the parents or legal guardians of each student whom the sexuality health education program anticipates will be present for instruction that:

     (1)  The school is using a sexuality health education program curriculum that meets the requirements of state law; and

     (2)  The parent or legal guardian shall have the right to examine the grade level instructional materials and confer with the student's instructor, school counselor, or principal regarding any portion of the sexuality health education program curriculum.

     (b)  A parent or guardian who wishes to excuse a student from any or all portions of a sexuality health education program shall submit a request in writing to the student's principal.  A student who is excused from any or all portions of a sexuality health education program shall not be penalized for grading purposes if the student satisfactorily performs alternative health lessons as determined by the student's principal.

     §302A-F  Parent or legal guardian complaints.  (a)  A parent or legal guardian of a student enrolled in a sexuality health education program may file a complaint with the student's principal if the parent or legal guardian believes that a teacher, instructor, or representative of an organization has not complied with the requirements of this part. 

     (b)  The principal shall investigate the complaint and report findings, along with any recommendations for disciplinary action, to the complex area superintendent for further action. 

     (c)  The complex area superintendent shall file, in a timely manner, a report with the superintendent of education regarding any action or inaction taken.

     (d)  The superintendent of education shall transmit copies of all documents submitted pursuant to this section, with personally identifiable information redacted, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of each regular session.

     §302A-G  Cause of action; defense.  (a)  The parent or legal guardian of any student who receives instruction by an instructor or organization that promotes gateway sexual activity or demonstrates sexual activity, as prohibited under this part, shall have a cause of action against that instructor or organization for actual damages plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs; provided that this section shall not apply to:

     (1)  Employees of the State acting in their official capacity; and

     (2)  The State, including any department, agency, or school.

     (b)  If the parent or legal guardian is the prevailing party to the action, the court may impose a civil fine in an amount not to exceed $500.

     (c)  This section shall not apply to instruction by any teacher, instructor, or organization, who, with respect to a course or class otherwise offered in accordance with the requirements of this part, verbally answers in good faith any question, or series of questions, germane and material to the course, asked of the instructor and initiated by a student or students enrolled in the course."

     SECTION 2.  Section 321-11.1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

     "(a)  Sexuality health education programs funded by the State shall provide medically accurate and factual information that is age appropriate and includes education on abstinence, contraception, and methods of disease prevention to prevent unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease, including human immunodeficiency virus.  No sexuality health education program shall include the term "anus", "anal opening", or similar term within the definition of the term "genital", "genitalia", "intimate part", "sexual organ", or similar term."

     SECTION 3.  In codifying the new sections added by section 1 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

     SECTION 4.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

Report Title:

Sexuality Health Education Program; Department of Education

 

Description:

Establishes procedures for establishing the sexuality health education program in public schools.  Prohibits sexuality health education programs funded by the State from including the term "anus", "anal opening", or similar term from the definition of genitalia.

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.