Parents must be notified and have opt-IN rights for surveys, health screenings, or instruction on controversial subjects. Schools must be prohibited from withholding information from parents about a childs mental, emotional, or physical health.
Require parent opt-in for surveys, health screenings, and instruction on controversial subjects, and prohibit schools from withholding child health information from parents.
Occurrences
control over their children’s health care decisions
In bid for governor, John James proposes 'bill of rights' for Michigan parents
Evidence
legacy_unverified · Source version not recorded · locator unknown
The House report says H.R. 5 required prior notice and parental consent before medical examinations or screenings, prior written parental consent for covered student surveys, parent inspection rights for instructional materials, and a right to know when school staff address a student's mental health or safety. It also records that Rep. John James offered an amendment on curriculum/library review access without nondisclosure agreements, adopted by voice vote.
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Congress.gov lists H.R. 5 with the status Passed House. The actions show House passage on March 24, 2023 by recorded vote 213-208, followed by the latest action on March 27, 2023: received in the Senate, read twice, and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Assessments
The promised federal requirement was not enacted. H.R. 5, the Parents Bill of Rights Act, covered key parts of the promise including parental consent for certain surveys and screenings, parental access to curriculum/materials, and parent notification rights related to student health or safety, and John James materially participated through an adopted amendment. But the bill only passed the House on March 24, 2023 and was referred to the Senate HELP Committee on March 27, 2023, with no Senate passage or public law. Under the federal campaign context, this is a serious same-term legislative attempt, not delivery of the promised binding requirement.