The fourth time was the charm for a bill that places restrictions on the teaching of sexual education in Alaska schools.
In a 21-18 vote, the House on Thursday evening approved House Bill 156, a measure originally intended to give school districts a break in standardized testing. After a controversial amendment in the Senate, the original purpose of the bill was shoved to the side amid a debate over local control of sex-ed courses.
HB 156 was drafted by Rep. Wes Keller, R-Wasilla, after the total failure of the state’s vaunted Alaska Measures of Progress exam.
After years of development, the exam failed to deliver the data administrators sought, and this year’s tests were cancelled when a backhoe severed a fiber-optic cable in Kansas, home to the testing center, just as Alaska students were preparing to take the test.
The bill gives school districts a two-year break from standardized testing, but the testing is mandated by the federal government, and there is a risk that the funding could be revoked if districts take advantage of the “breather,” a term used by Keller.
In the Senate, the bill was amended to contain an escape clause restoring the testing mandate if the federal government threatens.
The bill also contains various other school-related measures, including a repeal of the requirement that school districts spend no more than 30 percent of their budget on administration, and new rules regarding the training of teachers and administrators in how to properly restrain unruly students.
It was an amendment added by Sen. Mike Dunleavy, R-Wasilla, however, that garnered much of the opposition to the bill.
That amendment added portions of Dunleavy’s SB 89, a controversial measure that passed the Senate but failed in a House committee.
SB 89 would have prohibited sex education by anyone but a certified teacher employed at the local school hosting the sex ed course, and it was written to specifically forbid lessons provided by organizations that also provide abortion services. This was seen as specifically targeting Planned Parenthood.
Dunleavy’s amendment was subsequently watered down: The final version of HB 156 requires only that sex ed instructors be overseen by a local teacher. Instead of prohibiting Planned Parenthood and any similar organizations, the bill requires sex ed materials and instructors be approved by a local school board.
The amended HB 156 passed the Senate and returned to the House, where lawmakers rejected it by one vote on April 17. After the initial vote, they re-voted on the same day, again turning it down by a single vote.
With different versions passed by the House and Senate, the bill was sent to a conference committee to reconcile the differences. That committee met earlier this week and recommended the Senate version, an act that returned the bill to the House for consideration.
On Wednesday, the House again rejected HB 156 by a single vote, albeit with some changes from the first two votes.
Rep. Benjamin Nageak, D-Barrow, voted against it, and Rep. Cathy Muñoz, R-Juneau, voted for it.
Speaking after the vote, Muñoz said she was weighing the advantages and disadvantages of the bill. She is adamantly opposed to the Dunleavy amendment but supports the other parts of the bill, particularly after the superintendent of the Juneau School District sent her a letter saying he supported them.
Rep. Sam Kito III, D-Juneau, consistently voted against the bill.
The House’s third vote lasted less than 24 hours, however, as after intense discussion, Nageak was persuaded to change his mind. Lawmakers rescinded their Wednesday vote and re-voted, getting the 21 votes they needed to pass the measure.
In a series of social media posts following the vote, the political-action branch of Planned Parenthood in the Pacific Northwest asked Gov. Bill Walker to veto the bill.
“This is especially disheartening in a state that already leads the country in several poor indicators of reproductive health.,” one post said.
“It will only get worse under HB 156. @AkGovBillWalker, please veto this bill. Our students deserve better,” another added.
Under the Alaska Constitution, Walker has 15 days ─ Sundays excluded ─ to make his decision.
- Contact Empire reporter James Brooks at james.k.brooks@juneauempire.com
