Parent Notification Of Sexually Explicit Content Bill Advances In VA Senate

VIRGINIA — On Wednesday, the Virginia Senate advanced legislation to require parental notification on sexually explicit material taught in public schools.

The bill, introduced by state Siobhan Dunnavant (R-Henrico), would direct the Board of Education to develop a policy requiring public elementary and secondary schools to notify parents about "instructional material that includes sexually explicit content." Parents would be able to review instructional materials with sexually explicit content and be able to request nonexplicit instructional material as an alternative.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin released a statement in support of the legislation, which is part of his Day One legislative agenda.

"The passage of this bill, signals to schools that parents will not be silenced," said Youngkin in the statement. "Notifying parents is just commonsense, and I look forward to signing it when it reaches my desk."

The legislation received a 20-18 vote in the Virginia Senate, including support from Sens. Lynwood Lewis, Jr. (D-Accomack) and Monty Mason (D-Williamsburg). As reported by Virginia Mercury, opponents of the legislation argued there were already notifications to parents at many school districts about instructional materials that could be considered controversial.

A similar bill was passed in the Virginia General Assembly in 2016 but was vetoed by then-Gov. Terry McAuliffe. The House could not reach the 67 votes required to override the veto.

In the veto explanation, McAuliffe wrote, "This legislation lacks flexibility and would require the label of 'sexually explicit' to apply to an artistic work based on a single scene, without further context. Numerous educators, librarians, students, and others involved in the teaching process have expressed their concerns about the real-life consequences of this legislation's requirements."

The previous legislation vetoed by McAuliffe was featured in a campaign ad from Youngkin. In the campaign ad, Fairfax County parent Laura Murphy discusses the legislation seeking to notify parents about explicit content taught in classrooms. In 2013, Murphy had pushed for Toni Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning book "Beloved" to be removed from Fairfax County classrooms, according to The Washington Post. But with the school board rejecting her request, Murphy sought to seek a policy on the state level for more parental involvement in their children's instructional materials.