Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022
Did Katie Hobbs co-sponsor a bill to start age-appropriate sex education in kindergarten?
While serving in the Arizona Legislature in 2016, then-Democratic Sen. Katie Hobbs co-sponsored a bill that would have required medically accurate, developmentally accurate and age-appropriate sex education from kindergarten through grade 12. The legislation stalled after failing to get a committee hearing.
The bill defined “age-appropriate” as “topics, messages and teaching methods that are suitable to particular age and developmental levels, based on the cognitive, emotional, social and experience levels of most students at that age level.” Medically accurate was defined as peer-reviewed research with accepted scientific methods that are accurate and objective by leading medical organizations.
The bill also would have changed Arizona’s opt-in system (where parents can review the curricula first and then give written permission for their child to participate) to opt-out. Parents would have been able to opt their child out before the curriculum was taught.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Arizona Legislature Senate Bill 1020 2016
- Arizona Legislature Senate Bill 1020 (2016) status
About fact briefs
Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.
See all fact briefs
The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting is the state’s only independent, nonpartisan and collaborative nonprofit newsroom dedicated to statewide, data-driven investigative reporting. AZCIR's mission is to hold powerful people and institutions accountable by exposing injustice and systemic inequities through investigative journalism.
Learn MoreLatest Fact Briefs
Do the 10 U.S. states with the highest maternal mortality rates have abortion bans?
Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025
Do most medical schools require courses in nutrition?
Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025
Is more Medicaid fraud committed by providers than beneficiaries?
Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025