The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) is currently assaulting many states with laws that will eradicate abstinence education. These laws hide under ambiguous and even friendly names. They tease the legislative representatives with promises of streamlining education and mandating consistent education across the state. Often the supporters claim the new law will not cost money, and could even save cash-strapped states money since they will no longer have to spend state funds to match federal abstinence education dollars. Many of the laws are being passed through the state houses quietly, before family groups and abstinence educators notice the actions. The time to act is now. Become educated and find out if your state is passing sex education reform laws.

 

Target States: NM, AZ, FL, CA, MN, ME, MA, NJ, NY, DC, WA

 

Law Titles: Health and Human Development Education, Medical Accuracy, Family Life Education, Human Sexuality Education

 

True Costs: If these laws pass in your state, the new statute will force the state to turn down TANF, Title V and Title XX abstinence education funds and SPRANS grantees will not be allowed to teach abstinence education in public schools. Combined, the loss of these programs will cost some states millions of dollars annually in teen pregnancy prevention funds.

 

Attached is a copy of the law being pushed in New Mexico (see NM House Bill 554). The NM statute is an all-encompassing law to ban all abstinence education. It takes curricula and educational decisions out of the hands of parents and local educators and gives the decisions to the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG). ACOG is in favor of the type of sex education described by the SIECUS sex education guidelines (http://www.siecus.org/policy/NCSSE/ncsse0001.html). Most parents do not support the SIECUS guidelines for their children's education. (See the SIECUS sex education guidelines at http://www.siecus.org/pubs/guidelines/guidelines.pdf. The results of a Zogby study on parent opinions on SIECUS's guidelines versus abstinence education guidelines are available at www.whatparentsthink.com.)