Committee Reverses Edits to Sex Ed Bill, Restores Requirement to Teach Consent

A last-minute attempt to remove requirements for schools to teach consent in sex ed classes has been blocked, ensuring that students will still learn about the importance of consent to sexual activity. The reversal comes after a committee report was revised on Tuesday morning.

The original edits, announced by bill author Sen. Gary Byrne (R – Byrneville) on Monday, would have eliminated the requirement for schools to teach about consent in their human sexuality curriculum. Earlier versions of the legislation required school boards to approve materials used to teach human sexuality and include instruction on the importance of consent.

However, the new committee report retains the language, requiring schools to teach about the importance of consent to sexual activity in an age-appropriate way.

The primary goal of Senate Bill 442 is to promote transparency in sexual education curriculum by requiring that curriculum to be approved by school boards and posted publicly online. The new conference committee report, which I approved yesterday morning, will also retain language added by the House of Representatives, which would require schools to teach about the importance of consent to sexual activity in an age-appropriate way and teach about fetal development during pregnancy. I look forward to shepherding this bill through the rest of the legislative process.