On Thursday, Democrats in the Washington House of Representatives voted against an amendment that would have required school districts to immediately notify parents if their student is the victim of sexual misconduct by a school employee. Republican Rep. Travis Couture, who proposed the amendment, expressed his outrage on X, stating, “How any sane person could deny my amendment is outrageous.”
The House Education Committee rejected the amendment to House Bill 1296, legislation Democrats are using to rewrite the Parental Rights Initiative, which was overwhelmingly supported by Washingtonians last year. Instead, Democrats are pushing policies requiring school districts to address the needs of “gender-expansive” students, including withholding information about students’ health and mental well-being from parents.
Couture emphasized the alarming rise in incidents of sexual misconduct involving school employees. “We have seen a stunning amount of sexual misconduct and sexual assaults by educators in our schools just in the last year itself, including two principals in a Vancouver school district that hid from parents a statutory rape of a 16-year-old female student in their school by one of their staff,” he stated during the committee meeting.
He continued, “As a parent myself, I would be disgusted and sickened to know if my kids had some kind of sexual abuse put upon them by staff and I wasn’t notified immediately.” Couture further pointed out, “This happened actually in my kids’ school district where an eighth-grade school teacher was grooming and having inappropriate sexual relationships with eighth-grade boys.”
“This is all too commonplace, and parents deserve to know right away whenever there is any kind of criminal activity, sexual abuse, or allegations against staff that impact the safety of their children.”
Despite Couture’s urgent appeal, Democrats rejected the amendment.
The Democratic-controlled Legislature has been attempting to dismantle Initiative 2081, known as the Parents’ Bill of Rights, since before the legislative session began. The initiative grants parents the right to review educational materials, receive notifications regarding their child’s physical and mental health, and opt out of sexual health education.
Democrats have also been trying to challenge the legislation in court, despite its passage last year.
Earlier this week, a King County Superior Court judge granted a motion for summary judgment in favor of Initiative 2081, permanently dismissing a legal challenge against it with prejudice. This ruling ensures that the Parents’ Bill of Rights remains intact and enforceable, solidifying parents’ legal rights to be informed about their children’s education and well-being.
