With many bills on the House agenda for March 11 and 12, we recognize that this is not practical. If you choose to email your state representatives on the following House bills, mention in the subject line that you are a resident of the rep’s district. As always, the best messages are brief, clear, and courteous.
The following bills are listed in the order in which they appear in the House agenda (calendar).
BILL: HB 1163-FN, School Records Noting “Non-binary” Identity
CORNERSTONE POSITION: Cornerstone OPPOSES HB 1163-FN. However, we understand the practical implications of recently-enacted gender policy legislation. See Cornerstone’s testimony on HB 1163-FN.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Contact your representative and ask him/her to vote to support the committee recommendation of “interim study” on HB 1163-FN. This bill is on the so-called “consent calendar” because the committee vote was so lopsided.
BILL: HB 1251, Participation in School Sports for Female Student Athletes (Save Women’s Sports)
CORNERSTONE POSITION: Cornerstone SUPPORTS HB 1251, and opposes the committee recommendation of “inexpedient to legislate.” The research and science are clear. Allowing biological males to compete against girls robs girls of the opportunity to win or participate. See Cornerstone’s written testimony on HB 1251.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Contact your state representatives and ask that they overturn the committee’s “inexpedient to legislate” report, and instead vote “ought to pass” on HB 1251.
FYI: A minority on the Education Committee supports the bill. Rep. Rick Ladd (R-Haverhill) wrote a minority report for his colleagues, with this important reminder: “The bill won’t deny any student the opportunity to play sports. It will provide an objective way to keep girls’ teams for girls. It will keep things just and fair.”
BILL: HB 1306, Relative to Recitation of Lord’s Prayer in Elementary Schools
CORNERSTONE POSITION: Cornerstone OPPOSES HB 1306. Read our testimony on the bill. Our position is a cautious one. While it in no way impacts student-led prayer, the original purpose of this law was to permit using the prayer text for an academic/historical purpose. We would not want to take that flexibility away from school districts.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Contact your representative and ask him/her to vote to overturn the committee’s recommendation of “ought to pass” and instead vote “inexpedient to legislate” on HB 1306.
BILL: HB 1423, Regarding Educational Tax Credit Scholarships
CORNERSTONE POSITION: Cornerstone OPPOSES HB 1423. It is an unnecessary bill that would impose on families receiving education tax credit scholarships reporting requirements that violate pupil privacy laws.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Contact your representative and ask him/her to vote to overturn the committee recommendation of “ought to pass” and instead support the committee minority’s report of “ought to pass with amendment” on HB 1423.
BILL: HB 1459, Parental “Opt-Out” on School Surveys
CORNERSTONE POSITION: Cornerstone OPPOSES HB 1459. A similar bill was voted down last year. By requiring parents to “opt out” of non-academic surveys rather than “opt in,” parents are at risk of not getting those “written notices” sent home with students, opening the door to exposing children to questions and material parents would oppose. See Cornerstone’s written testimony on a similar bill from 2019.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Contact your representative and ask him/her to vote to overturn the committee recommendation of “ought to pass with amendment” and instead vote “inexpedient to legislate” on HB 1459.
BILL: HB 1404, Prophylactic Treatment for HIV/AIDS for Minors Without Parental Consent
CORNERSTONE POSITION: Cornerstone OPPOSES HB 1404. By leaving parents out of the knowledge/consent process for dispensing prophylactic drugs to minors engaging in high-risk sexual behavior, we are failing to care for and adequately protect our children.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Contact your representative and ask him/her to vote to overturn the committee recommendation of “ought to pass with amendment” and instead support the minority report of “interim study” on HB 1404.
[Editor: There are five more bills for consideration. Please check back for part two of this Legislative update or click the link below to see them all.]
