1.1    .................... moves to amend H. F. No. 615 as follows:
1.2Delete everything after the enacting clause and insert:

1.3    "Section 1. [121A.231] RESPONSIBLE FAMILY LIFE AND SEXUALITY
1.4EDUCATION PROGRAMS.
1.5    Subdivision 1. Definitions. (a) "Responsible family life and sexuality education"
1.6means education in grades 7 through 12 that:
1.7    (1) respects community values and encourages family communication;
1.8    (2) develops skills in communication, decision making, and conflict resolution;
1.9    (3) contributes to healthy relationships;
1.10    (4) provides human development and sexuality education that is age-appropriate
1.11and medically accurate;
1.12    (5) includes an abstinence-first approach to delaying initiation of sexual activity that
1.13emphasizes abstinence while also including education about contraception and disease
1.14prevention; and
1.15    (6) promotes individual responsibility.
1.16    (b) "Age-appropriate" refers to topics, messages, and teaching methods suitable to
1.17particular ages or age groups of children and adolescents, based on developing cognitive,
1.18emotional, and behavioral capacity typical for the age or age group.
1.19    (c) "Medically accurate" means verified or supported by research conducted in
1.20compliance with scientific methods and published in peer-reviewed journals, where
1.21appropriate, and recognized as accurate and objective by professional organizations
1.22and agencies in the relevant field, such as the federal Centers for Disease Control
1.23and Prevention, the American Public Health Association, the American Academy of
1.24Pediatrics, or the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
1.25    Subd. 2. Curriculum requirements. (a) A school district must offer and may
1.26independently establish policies, procedures, curriculum, and services for providing
2.1responsible family life and sexuality education that is age-appropriate and medically
2.2accurate for grades 7 through 12.
2.3    (b) A school district must consult with parents or guardians of enrolled students
2.4when establishing policies, procedures, curriculum, and services under this subdivision.
2.5    Subd. 3. Notice and parental options. (a) It is the legislature's intent to encourage
2.6pupils to communicate with their parents or guardians about human sexuality and to respect
2.7rights of parents or guardians to supervise their children's education on these subjects.
2.8    (b) Parents or guardians may excuse their children from all or part of a responsible
2.9family life and sexuality education program.
2.10    (c) A school district must establish policies and procedures consistent with
2.11paragraph (e) and this section for providing parents or guardians reasonable notice with
2.12the following information:
2.13    (1) if the district is offering a responsible family life and sexuality education program
2.14to the parents' or guardians' child during the course of the year;
2.15    (2) how the parents or guardians may inspect the written and audiovisual educational
2.16materials used in the program and the process for inspection;
2.17    (3) if the program is presented by school district personnel or outside consultants,
2.18and if outside consultants are used, who they may be; and
2.19    (4) parents' or guardians' right to choose not to have the child participate in the
2.20program and the procedure for exercising that right.
2.21    (d) A school district must establish policies and procedures for reasonably restricting
2.22the availability of written and audiovisual educational materials from public view of
2.23students who have been excused from all or part of a responsible family life and sexuality
2.24education program at the request of a parent or guardian, consistent with paragraph (e)
2.25and this section.
2.26    (e) A school district may develop a policy for a parent, guardian, or adult student
2.27age 18 or older to review the content of the instructional materials under this section. If a
2.28school district develops a policy, it must make reasonable arrangements with school
2.29personnel for alternative instruction for those pupils whose parents or guardians object to
2.30the content of the instruction, and must not impose an academic or other penalty upon a
2.31pupil for arranging the alternative instruction. School personnel may evaluate and assess
2.32the quality of the pupil's work completed as part of the alternative instruction.
2.33    Subd. 4. Assistance to school districts. (a) The Department of Education may offer
2.34services to school districts to help them implement effective responsible family life and
2.35sexuality education programs. In making these services available, the department may
2.36provide:
3.1    (1) training for teachers, parents, and community members in the development of
3.2responsible family life and sexuality education curriculum or services and in planning
3.3for monitoring and evaluation activities;
3.4    (2) resource staff persons to provide expert training, curriculum development and
3.5implementation, and evaluation services;
3.6    (3) technical assistance to promote and coordinate community, parent, and youth
3.7forums in communities identified as having high needs for responsible family life and
3.8sexuality education; and
3.9    (4) technical assistance for issue management and policy development training for
3.10school boards, superintendents, principals, and administrators across the state.
3.11    (b) Technical assistance in accordance with National Health Education Standards
3.12provided by the department to school districts may:
3.13    (1) promote instruction and use of materials that are age-appropriate;
3.14    (2) provide information that is medically accurate and objective;
3.15    (3) provide instruction and promote use of materials that are respectful of marriage
3.16and commitments in relationships;
3.17    (4) provide instruction and promote use of materials that are appropriate for use
3.18with pupils and family experiences based on race, gender, sexual orientation, and ethnic
3.19and cultural background, and appropriately accommodate alternative learning based on
3.20language or disability;
3.21    (5) provide instruction and promote use of materials that encourage pupils to
3.22communicate with their parents or guardians about human sexuality;
3.23    (6) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that teach
3.24abstinence from sexual intercourse as the only certain way to prevent unintended
3.25pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, chlamydia, and human
3.26papillomavirus (HPV), and provide information about the role and value of abstinence
3.27while also providing medically accurate information on other methods of preventing and
3.28reducing risk for unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections;
3.29    (7) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that are
3.30medically accurate in explaining transmission modes, risks, symptoms, and treatments for
3.31sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, chlamydia, and HPV;
3.32    (8) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that address
3.33varied societal views on sexuality, sexual behaviors, pregnancy, and sexually transmitted
3.34infections, including HIV, chlamydia, and HPV, in an age-appropriate manner;
3.35    (9) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that provide
3.36information about the effectiveness and safety of all FDA-approved methods for
4.1preventing and reducing risk for unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections,
4.2including HIV, chlamydia, and HPV;
4.3    (10) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that provide
4.4instruction in skills for making and implementing responsible decisions about sexuality;
4.5    (11) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that provide
4.6instruction in skills for making and implementing responsible decisions about finding and
4.7using health services; and
4.8    (12) provide instruction and promote use of age-appropriate materials that do not
4.9teach or promote religious doctrine or bias against a religion or reflect or promote bias
4.10against any person on the basis of any category protected under the Minnesota Human
4.11Rights Act, chapter 363A."
4.12Amend the title accordingly