California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill this week that allows schools to hide information from parents about their child’s gender identity.
AB 1955 is the first of its kind in the United States. It prohibits school staff “from enacting or enforcing any policy, rule or administrative regulation that requires an employee or a contractor to disclose any information related to a pupil’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression to any other person without the pupil’s consent.”
The law—which passed through both chambers of the state’s Democrat-controlled Assembly—means that children can identify by their biological sex at home and a different gender at school. The bill claims that it is designed to protect children and teens by keeping such critical information from parents.
Jonathan Keller, president of the California Family Council, pointed out that the bill strips parents of their rights and endangers children. “Governor Newsom’s signing of AB 1955 is a direct assault on the safety of children and the rights of their parents. By allowing schools to withhold vital information from mothers and fathers, this bill undermines their fundamental role and places boys and girls in potential jeopardy,” he said in a statement. “Moms and dads have both a constitutional and divine mandate to guide and protect their kids, and AB 1955 egregiously violates this sacred trust.”
The Liberty Justice Center has already filed a lawsuit to challenge AB 1955. “PK-12 minor students, most of whom are too young to drive, vote or provide medical consent for themselves, are also too young to make life-altering decisions about their expressed gender identity without their parents’ knowledge. But that is precisely what AB 1955 enables—with potentially devastating consequences for children too young to fully comprehend them,” said Emily Rae, senior counsel at the Liberty Justice Center
Eight states—South Carolina, North Carolina, Idaho, North Dakota, Tennessee, Alabama, Iowa and Indiana—have laws protecting parents’ rights and requiring school staff to notify parents if their child identifies as a different gender at school. At least five more states are currently pursuing similar legislation.
Above: California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a file photo from 2022.
Photo: Noah Berger / AP