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Republicans say amendments gutted parental bill of rights; emergency clause would bar referendum
Summary
Speakers at the press conference criticized late amendments to the parental bill of rights, argued the changes 'gut' the initiative and raised concern that an emergency clause would prevent a citizen referendum despite roughly 400,000 signatures on the original initiative, according to the transcript.
Reporters pressed Republican leaders about amendments to last year's parental bill of rights and whether the late-night floor fight felt like a defeat. An unidentified speaker who took questions said the amendments "gut" the bill and repeated that an emergency clause in the revised text would "prevent a referendum," limiting citizens' ability to challenge the change at the ballot box.
Drew pointed to the petition campaign behind the original measure, saying in the transcript that "400,000 people signed an initiative to give parents more rights over what happens to their kids in schools." He and his colleagues said they spent late hours on the floor trying to preserve parental authority and criticized what they described as inconsistent positions by lawmakers who had previously supported the initiative.
Reporters and speakers also discussed procedural moments on the floor: one member was "gaveled down for being too graphic" while attempting to read materials, and another speaker warned about a separate bill that would change initiative signature-gathering procedures and potentially add fines and jail time for signature-gathering violations.
Why it matters: The exchange highlights a contentious education and civic-process debate that could affect implementation of the parental rights initiative and citizens' ability to use referendum as a check on legislative changes. Republican leaders said they will continue to press the issue as the session proceeds.
The press conference did not produce a legislative outcome on the amendments; the questions and criticisms were offered from the Republican side and no Democratic response was given during the availability.
