Senate Bill sb0214

    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 214

    By Senator Brown-Waite





    10-192-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public-school instruction in

  3         human sexuality; requiring written parental

  4         consent prior to such instruction; requiring

  5         the provision of alternative instruction;

  6         prohibiting schools from penalizing

  7         nonparticipation in such instruction; requiring

  8         recordkeeping; providing an effective date.

  9

10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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12         Section 1.  Sexual-development instruction in public

13  school; parental consent required.--

14         (1)  A student in a public school in this state may not

15  receive instruction in human sexual development or human

16  sexual behavior unless:

17         (a)  The school has mailed to the student's parent or

18  guardian, at least 1 month before the student is to begin

19  instruction in human sexual development or human sexual

20  behavior, a consent form that contains a specific outline of

21  the contents of such instruction, including, but not limited

22  to, a statement of whether or not instruction in methods of

23  birth control will be included;

24         (b)  The student's parent or guardian has given his or

25  her signed, written consent to the student's receiving such

26  instruction; and

27         (c)  The school has received the signed consent form at

28  least 2 days before the instruction in human sexual

29  development or human sexual behavior begins.

30         (2)  Each public school must provide alternative

31  classroom instruction for any student in that school whose

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 214
    10-192-01




  1  parent or guardian declines to have the student receive

  2  instruction in human sexual development or human sexual

  3  behavior, and the school may not award less academic credit to

  4  students who do not participate in such instruction than it

  5  awards to students who do participate, nor may the school

  6  otherwise penalize nonparticipation.

  7         (3)  Each school must keep, for at least 2 academic

  8  years after the academic year to which the record pertains:

  9         1.  A record of the name of each parent or guardian to

10  whom a blank consent form has been sent under paragraph

11  (1)(a), together with the name of that parent or guardian's

12  child or ward, and

13         2.  The signed consent forms.

14         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.

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17                          SENATE SUMMARY

18    Provides that a public-school student may participate in
      instruction pertaining to human sexual development or
19    behavior only if the school has received from the
      student's parent or guardian, before the student begins
20    receiving the instruction, a signed, written consent to
      the student's participation. Prohibits the schools'
21    penalizing students who do not participate in such
      instruction and requires schools to provide alternative
22    classroom instruction for students whose parents do not
      consent to such instruction. Requires schools to keep
23    records relating to such consent.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.