House Republicans on Friday passed the Parents' Bill of Rights, a sweeping bill that would force school districts to provide greater transparency about students' education as parents raise alarm about woke and sexualized curricula.
The bill, which passed 213-208, would require schools to publish curricula publicly and provide parents a list of all books available to students. The legislation would also require schools to receive parental consent before "changing a minor child's gender markers, pronouns, or preferred name on any school form" or "allowing a child to change the child's sex-based accommodations."
Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) said the bill is an answer to the problems parents have raised at school board meetings across the country.
"For nearly two years, frustrated parents across this country have been trying to voice their concerns and often found themselves denied at nearly every turn," McCarthy said at a Friday press conference.
The bill is the latest action by Republicans on the hot-button education issue, which Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R.) brought to the national forefront when his state passed the Parental Right in Education law last spring. The law, which the DeSantis administration announced this week it wants to expand, prohibited classroom discussion on sexual orientation and gender identity up to third grade. The proposed expansion would extend the ban until 12th grade with some exceptions.
New polling found a large majority of voters think schools should be required to tell parents when their child wants to change gender identities or require parental permission in aiding a transition, according to data from Parents Defending Education.
The U.S. House bill "is not complex or complicated," said Republican Rep. Julia Letlow (La.), who sponsored the bill.
"Nor should it be partisan or polarizing and, contrary to what you may hear from my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, it is not an attack on our hard-working teachers, who will always be the heroes in my eyes," Letlow said.
The Biden administration used the Department of Justice to investigate parents who criticized school boards, an effort that found no legitimate threats, the Washington Free Beacon reported on Wednesday.