Idaho committee approves parental-consent opt-in language for instruction addressing 'human' topics after extended debate

BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho House Committee on Education voted Feb. 7 to introduce a sponsor request that would require written parental permission before students receive instruction that addresses certain "human" topics, after an extended committee debate over the measure’s scope and an amendment narrowing its language.

Representative Barbara Ehart of District 33 presented RS 32287 as an opt-in parental-consent bill. "This is about consent, not content," Ehart told the committee, describing the draft as a restoration of parental control and transparency over instruction she said has been appearing across multiple subjects and grade levels. Ehart said the language would not change existing sex-education statutes and proposed inserting the three words "specifically and narrowly" immediately after the phrase that addresses the covered subject matter to limit the bill’s reach.

Ehart walked the committee through…