California became the first U.S. state to bar school districts from requiring staff to notify parents of their child’s gender identification change under a law signed Monday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The law bans school rules requiring teachers and other staff to disclose a student’s gender identity or sexual orientation to any other person without the child’s permission. Proponents of the legislation say it will help protect LGBTQ+ students who live in unwelcoming households. But opponents say it will hinder schools’ ability to be more transparent with parents.
The law comes amid a broader debate over local school districts and the rights of parents and LGBTQ+ students.
“Politically motivated attacks on the rights, safety, and dignity of transgender, nonbinary, and other LGBTQ+ youth are on the rise nationwide, including in California,” Democratic Assemblymember Chris Ward, who authored the law, said in a statement. “While some school districts have adopted policies to forcibly out students, the SAFETY Act ensures that discussions about gender identity remain a private matter within the family.”
The new law comes after several school districts in California passed policies requiring that parents be notified if a child requests to change their gender identification. That led to pushback by Democratic state officials, who say students have a right to privacy.
But Jonathan Zachreson, an advocate in California who supports the so-called parental notification policies, opposes the law and said telling parents about a student’s request to change their gender identification is “critical to the well-being of children and for maintaining that trust between schools and parents.”
States across the country have sought to impose bans on gender-affirming care, bar transgender athletes from girls' and women’s sports, and require schools to out trans and nonbinary students to their parents. Some lawmakers in other states have introduced bills with broad language requiring that parents are told of any changes to their child’s emotional health or well-being.
The California law led to heated debate in the state Legislature. LGBTQ+ lawmakers have shared stories about how it was difficult for them to decide when to come out to their families, arguing that transgender students should be able to share that part of their identity on their own terms. State Assemblymember Bill Essayli, a Republican representing part of Riverside County, is an outspoken opponent of the law. He has criticized Democratic leaders for preventing a bill he introduced last year — that would have required parents to be told of their child’s gender identification change — from receiving a hearing.
In Northern California, the Anderson Union High School District board approved a parental notification policy last year. But the teachers union recommended that teachers not enforce the rule while the union is involved in a labor dispute with the district over the policy, said Shaye Stephens, an English teacher and president of the teachers association at the district.
The notification policies put teachers in an unfair position, Stephens said.
“It’s kind of a lose-lose situation for teachers and administrators or anybody that’s being asked to do this. I don’t think it’s safe for students,” she said. “I do not think that we are the right people to be having those conversations with a parent or a guardian.”
