California Becomes First State To Ban School Policies Requiring Parents Be Notified About Student Gender Identities

California has just made history as it becomes the first state in the nation to ban school policies requiring that teachers and other staff notify parents about student gender identities.

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On Monday (July 15), California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new bill into law called AB 1955, which prohibits school districts from notifying parents if their child uses different pronouns or identifies as a gender other than the one that’s listed on their school record; becoming the first U.S. state to do so.

California’s AB 1955 has already been praised by the LGBTQ+ community and advocacy groups who claim that, by banning school policies requiring officials to notify parents about student gender identities, it will help protect transgender and gender-nonconforming students who live in households with parents or guardians who are not welcoming.

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However, those opposing the new bill say the new rule will hinder schools’ ability to be more transparent with parents. Speaking on the new bill, Brandon Richards, a spokesperson for Newsom, said in a statement, “This law helps keep children safe while protecting the critical role of parents.”

The statement continued, “It protects the child-parent relationship by preventing politicians and school staff from inappropriately intervening in family matters and attempting to control if, when, and how families have deeply personal conversations.”

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The new law also arrives after several school districts in California passed policies requiring that parents be notified if a child requests to change their gender identification at school. The policy resulted in much pushback by Democratic state officials, who claimed that students have a right to privacy.

Speaking on the legislation, Tony Hoang , executive director of LGBTQ+ advocacy group Equality California, said it was “critical” to further protect LGBTQ+ youth against forced outing policies. Hoang said, “[AB 1955] provides resources for parents and families of LGBTQ+ students to support them as they have conversations on their terms, and creates critical safeguards to prevent retaliation against teachers and school staff who foster a safe and supportive school environment for all students.”

Meanwhile, Jonathan Keller , president of the California Family Council, said the bill violates parents’ rights. Keller explained, “This bill undermines their fundamental role and places boys and girls in potential jeopardy. Moms and dads have both a constitutional and divine mandate to guide and protect their kids, and AB 1955 egregiously violates this sacred trust.”

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