83S20093 MEW-F
By: Ellis, et al. S.B. No. 26
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to health education curriculum and instruction in public
schools.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Texas Education
Works Act.
SECTION 2. Section 28.004, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsection (o) to read as
follows:
(e) Any course materials and instruction relating to human
sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases, or human
immunodeficiency virus or acquired immune deficiency syndrome
shall be selected by the board of trustees with the advice of the
local school health advisory council and [must]:
(1) must present abstinence from sexual activity as
the preferred choice of behavior in relationship to all sexual
activity for [unmarried] persons of school age;
(2) must devote sufficient [more] attention to
abstinence from sexual activity to emphasize the importance of
abstinence from sexual activity [than to any other behavior];
(3) must emphasize that abstinence from sexual
activity, if used consistently and correctly, is the only method
that is 100 percent effective in preventing pregnancy, sexually
transmitted infections [diseases], sexually transmitted infection
with human immunodeficiency virus, [or] acquired immune deficiency
syndrome resulting from sexual activity, and the emotional distress
that may be [trauma] associated with adolescent sexual activity
that results in a sexually transmitted infection or an unintended
pregnancy;
(4) must direct adolescents to a standard of behavior
in which abstinence from sexual activity [before marriage] is the
most effective way to prevent pregnancy, sexually transmitted
infections [diseases], sexually transmitted [and] infection with
human immunodeficiency virus, and [or] acquired immune deficiency
syndrome resulting from sexual activity; [and]
(5) must present age-appropriate information;
(6) must be evidence-based;
(7) must provide information about the effectiveness
of methods approved by the United States Food and Drug
Administration for reducing the risk of contracting sexually
transmitted infections, including human immunodeficiency virus,
and preventing pregnancy;
(8) must include strategies to promote effective
communication between adolescents and their parents and other
family members about values and healthy relationships;
(9) must encourage students to develop healthy life
skills, including goal setting, responsible decision making,
refusal and negotiation, and effective communication;
(10) must teach skills for making responsible
decisions about sexual activity, including how to avoid unwanted
verbal or physical sexual advances and how to avoid making unwanted
verbal or physical sexual advances; and
(11) may not promote bias against:
(A) students of any race, gender, sexual
orientation, or ethnic or cultural background;
(B) sexually active students; or
(C) children with disabilities [teach
contraception and condom use in terms of human use reality rates
instead of theoretical laboratory rates, if instruction on
contraception and condoms is included in curriculum content].
(o) In this section:
(1) "Age-appropriate information" means information,
including topics, messages, and teaching methods, that is suitable
for the particular ages or age groups of children and adolescents to
whom the information is to be presented based on the developing
cognitive, emotional, and behavioral capacity of children or
adolescents of that age or age group.
(2) "Evidence-based" means:
(A) verified or supported by research that is:
(i) in compliance with accepted scientific
methods;
(ii) published in peer-reviewed journals,
if appropriate; and
(iii) recognized as medically accurate,
objective, and complete by mainstream professional organizations
and agencies with expertise in the relevant field, including the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the United States
Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Adolescent
Health; and
(B) proven, through rigorous scientific
evaluation, to achieve positive outcomes concerning sexually risky
behavior or negative health consequences of sexually risky
behavior.
SECTION 3. (a) A school district that uses instructional
materials that do not reflect the requirements prescribed by
Section 28.004(e), Education Code, as amended by this Act, shall
also use appropriate supplemental instructional materials as
necessary to comply with those requirements.
(b) A school district that permits a person not employed by
the district to present one or more components of the district's
human sexuality instruction must require the person to comply with
the requirements prescribed by Section 28.004(e), Education Code,
as amended by this Act.
SECTION 4. This Act applies beginning with the 2013-2014
school year.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the
legislative session.