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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to notice to parents of public school students regarding |
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human sexuality instruction to reduce the demand for abortion. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. The legislature finds that: |
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(1) Texas led the nation in 2010 in the rate of teenage |
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girls who had second children, according to the Centers for Disease |
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Control and Prevention; |
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(2) approximately 22 percent of births in Texas and |
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18.3 percent of births in the United States by girls age 15 to 19 |
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were repeat births in 2010, compared to 19.5 percent in the United |
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States in 2007; |
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(3) an estimated 80 percent of teen births are |
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unintended and cost American taxpayers approximately $11 billion a |
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year and cost Texas taxpayers $1.2 billion in 2008, according to the |
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National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy; |
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(4) the only certain way to avoid the termination of an |
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unwanted pregnancy is to prevent the unwanted pregnancy; |
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(5) the state has a compelling state interest in |
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ensuring that there is appropriate knowledge of how a pregnancy |
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occurs and how a pregnancy can be avoided; |
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(6) according to the Centers for Disease Control and |
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Prevention, effective strategies to reduce teen pregnancy include |
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evidence-based sex education that provides accurate information |
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and supports the needs of teens throughout their development; and |
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(7) the state has a compelling state interest in |
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ensuring that parents are informed of the type of human sexuality |
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instruction their child is receiving in school. |
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SECTION 2. Section 28.004, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (i) and adding Subsection (p) to read as |
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follows: |
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(i) Before each school year, a school district shall provide |
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written notice to a parent of each student enrolled in the district |
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of the board of trustees' decision regarding whether the district |
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will provide human sexuality instruction to district students. If |
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instruction will be provided, the notice must include: |
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(1) a summary of the basic content of the district's |
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human sexuality instruction to be provided to the student, |
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including a statement informing the parent that the instruction is |
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required by [of the instructional requirements under] state law to: |
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(A) present abstinence from sexual activity as |
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the preferred choice of behavior in relationship to all sexual |
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activity for unmarried persons of school age; and |
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(B) devote more attention to abstinence from |
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sexual activity than to any other behavior; |
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(2) a statement of whether the instruction is |
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considered by the district to be abstinence-only instruction or |
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comprehensive instruction, including an explanation of the |
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difference between those types of instruction and a specific |
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statement regarding whether the student will receive information on |
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contraception; |
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(3) [(2)] a statement of the parent's right to: |
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(A) review curriculum materials as provided by |
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Subsection (j); and |
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(B) remove the student from any part of the |
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district's human sexuality instruction without subjecting the |
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student to any disciplinary action, academic penalty, or other |
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sanction imposed by the district or the student's school; and |
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(4) [(3)] information describing the opportunities |
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for parental involvement in the development of the curriculum to be |
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used in human sexuality instruction, including information |
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regarding the local school health advisory council established |
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under Subsection (a). |
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(p) In this section, "abstinence-only instruction" means |
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instruction that does not include information about preventing |
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pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, infection with human |
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immunodeficiency virus, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome |
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through any means other than total abstinence from sexual activity. |
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SECTION 3. This Act applies beginning with the 2013-2014 |
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school year. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the |
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legislative session. |