HARRISBURG –A hearing by the PA Senate Education Committee has been scheduled for October 17 to examine legislation to make parents aware of sexually explicit content their child may be provided in school and give them the ability to deny their children access to such content. The sponsor of Senate Bill 7, Lancaster County Sen. Ryan Aument says it’s an important hearing for parents. Pennsylvanians over the age of 18 can view examples of the sexually explicit content on a webpage Sen. Aument launched to help educate the public on the extreme nature of the material. Senate Bill 7 would would require schools to identify sexually explicit content in curriculum, materials, and books; create an opt-in policy that would notify parents of the sexually explicit content by including a list of the book titles on the form, give parents the opportunity to review the materials, and require parents to give direct consent for their children to be provided or have access to sexually explicit content. It would also provide the child with non-explicit alternatives if their parents do not opt-in. The bill would not ban any books, but rather empower parents to control what their own children have access to in school.
SEN. RYAN AUMENT