Senate Bill 2775

AN ACT RELATING TO PARENTAL RIGHTS; TO SUBJECT CIVIL GOVERNMENTAL INFRINGEMENT UPON PARENTAL RIGHTS TO STRICT SCRUTINY; TO DEFINE TERM; TO SPECIFY WITHOUT LIMITATION CERTAIN RIGHTS RESERVED TO PARENT; TO CLARIFY THAT MEASURE DOES NOT CREATE ADDITIONAL REPORTING OBLIGATIONS UPON SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER SCHOOLS; TO CLARIFY THAT MEASURE NEITHER AUTHORIZES UNLAWFUL CONDUCT BY PARENTS NOR PROHIBITS COURT ORDERS; TO PROVIDE THAT ATTEMPT TO PERSUADE OR COERCE MINOR CHILD TO WITHHOLD INFORMATION FROM PARENT SHALL BE GROUNDS FOR EMPLOYEE DISCIPLINE; TO CREATE NEW SECTION 37-7-313, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF TRUSTEES TO DEVELOP PROCEDURES TO ENCOURAGE PARENT INVOLVEMENT; TO PROHIBIT SURGICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH PROCEDURES UPON MINOR CHILD WITHOUT CONSENT OF PARENT OR GUARDIAN; TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS; TO PROVIDE PENALTIES; TO REQUIRE VERIFICATION OF IDENTITY UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. (1) This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Parents Matter Act."

(2) Any branch, department, agency, instrumentality or political subdivision of the State of Mississippi and any official or other person acting under color of law of this state shall not infringe on the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing, education, health care and mental health of their children without demonstrating a governmental interest as to all minor children that is compelling, and that the governmental interest as applied to the child involved is of the highest order, is narrowly tailored and is not otherwise served by a less restrictive means.

(3) For purposes of all sections of this act, "parent" means the natural or adoptive parent or legal guardian of a minor child.

SECTION 2. (1) All parental rights are reserved to a parent of a minor child without obstruction or interference from any branch, department, agency, or political subdivision of the State of Mississippi, any institution owned by one or more political subdivisions, and any official or other person acting under color of law of this state, including, but not limited to, the following rights:

(a) The right to direct the education of the minor child;

(b) All rights of parents identified in Title 37 of the Mississippi Code of 1972;

(d) The right to direct the moral or religious training of the minor child;

(e) The right to make health care decisions for the minor child, unless otherwise prohibited by law;

(f) The right to access and review all medical records of the minor child unless otherwise prohibited by law or the parent is the subject of an investigation of a crime committed against the minor child and a law enforcement agency requests that the information not be released;

(g) The right to be notified in advance and to refuse or to consent in writing for a biometric scan of the minor child to be made, shared or stored;

(h) The right to be notified in advance and to refuse or to consent in writing before any record of the minor child's blood or deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is created, stored or shared, except as required by Section 45-47-1 or Section 99-49-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, for the investigation of crimes, by the Mississippi Uniform Law on Paternity (Sections 93-9-1 through 93-9-49, Mississippi Code of 1972), or unless authorized pursuant to a court order;

(i) The right to be notified in advance and to refuse or to consent in writing before the state or any of its political subdivisions makes a video or voice recording of the minor child, unless the video or voice recording is made during or as a part of a court proceeding, by law enforcement officers during or as part of a law enforcement investigation, during or as part of a forensic interview in a criminal or Department of Human Services investigation, or to be used solely for any of the following:

(i) Security or surveillance of buildings or grounds, including the maintenance of order and discipline in the common areas of a school or on student transportation vehicles;

(ii) A purpose related to regular classroom instruction or other legitimate academic or extracurricular activity; and

(iii) A photo identification card; and

(j) The right to be notified promptly if an employee of this state, any political subdivision of this state, any other governmental entity or any institution owned by one or more political subdivisions, suspects that a criminal offense has been committed against the minor child by someone other than a parent, unless the incident has first been reported to the police or sheriff's department having jurisdiction and notification of the parent would impede a law enforcement or Department of Human Services investigation. This paragraph does not create any new obligation for school districts and charter schools to report misconduct between students at school, such as fighting or aggressive play, that is routinely addressed as a student disciplinary matter by the school.

(2) This section does not authorize or allow a parent to engage in conduct that is unlawful or to abuse or neglect a child in violation of the laws of this state. This section shall not be construed to apply to a parental action or decision that would end life. This section does not prohibit courts, law enforcement officers or employees of a government agency responsible for child welfare from acting in their official capacity within the reasonable and prudent scope of their authority. This section does not prohibit a court from issuing an order that is otherwise permitted by law.

(3) Any attempt to persuade or coerce a minor child to withhold information from the child's parent shall be grounds for discipline of an employee of this state, any political subdivision of this state or any other governmental entity, except for law enforcement personnel of the police or sheriff's department and district attorney's office having jurisdiction.

(4) Unless those rights have been legally waived or legally terminated, parents have inherent rights that are more comprehensive than those listed in this section. The Parents Matter Act does not prescribe all rights of parents. Unless otherwise required by law, the rights of parents of minor children shall not be limited or denied. The act shall not be construed to apply to a parental action or decision that would end life.

SECTION 3. The following shall be codified as Section 37-7-313, Mississippi Code of 1972:

37-7-313. (1) The board of trustees of a school district, in consultation with parents, teachers and administrators, shall develop and adopt a policy to promote the involvement of parents and guardians of children enrolled in the schools within the district, including:

(a) A plan for parent participation in the schools which is designed to improve parent and teacher cooperation in such areas as homework, attendance and discipline;

(b) Procedures by which parents may examine the course of study for their children and inspect learning materials at the district's central office or at the school building where their child is or will be enrolled, including the source of any supplemental educational materials and digital or online content;

(c) A procedure by which parents who object to any learning material or activity on the basis that it is harmful may withdraw their children from the activity or from the class, class period, or program in which the material or content is used. Objection to learning material, content, or activity on the basis that it is harmful includes objections based on human sexuality, invasion of privacy, morality or religion;

(d) Procedures by which parents will be notified in advance of and given the opportunity to withdraw their children from any instruction or presentations regarding human sexuality in courses other than a formal sex education course offered pursuant to Section 37-13-171, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(e) Procedures by which parents may learn about the nature and purpose of clubs and activities that are part of the school curriculum, as well as extracurricular clubs and activities that have been approved by the school;

(f) A procedure by which parents will be notified, prior to distribution to students of any portable digital device such as tablets, laptop, notebook, or net book computers, of any agreement, memorandum of understanding, or contract whereby the school district or board purports to consent for the supplier or manufacturer of the devices or the owner of any software programmed into the device to observe or acquire data about students' search queries, web browsing activity or history, or electronic communications;

(f) Procedures by which parents may learn about parental rights and responsibilities under the laws of this state, including the following:

(i) The rights pursuant to Section 37-13-173, Mississippi Code of 1972, to advance notice, to preview the curriculum, to withhold or give consent for their child to attend the program of instruction and to withdraw their child from sex education instruction if the school district offers any sex education curricula for their child's grade level pursuant to Section 37-13-171, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(ii) The rights pursuant to Section 37-15-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, to transfer their child from the district of residence to a nearer school in an adjacent district if the bus ride to the school within the district of residence is farther than 30 miles, to transfer their child to a school within a district that employs either parent as an instructor or certificated employee, and to transfer their child to a school district of their choosing if active members of the United States Armed Forces or civilian military personnel and residing on a military base;

(iii) The right to opt their child out of assignments pursuant to this section;

(iv) The promotion requirements prescribed in Sections 37-177-3 and 37-177-9;

(v) The minimum course of study and proficiency requirements for graduation from high school established pursuant to Section 37-16-7, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(vi) The right to review test results;

(vii) The right to have their child considered for participation in gifted programs pursuant to Sections 37-23-173 through 37-23-179, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(viii) The right to receive a school report card;

(ix) The attendance requirements prescribed in Section 37-13-91, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(x) The right to public review of courses of study and textbooks as set forth in Section 37-43-25, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(xi) The right for their child to be excused from school attendance for religious purposes as set forth in Section 37-13-91, Mississippi Code of 1972;

(xii) Policies related to parental involvement adopted pursuant to this section;

(xiii) The right to participate in any parent-teacher association and organization approved or recognized by the board of trustees of a school district;

(xiv) The right to opt their child out of any data collection survey or instrument at the school, district or state level that would capture data for inclusion in the state longitudinal data system except what is necessary and essential for establishing a student's public school record of academic achievement; and

(xv) The right to withhold or give consent for the district to share personally identifiable data about their child or the parents' religion, political party affiliation, biometric information or voting history with the federal government or with an entity that markets or develops commercial products or services.

(2) The board of trustees of a school district may adopt a policy to provide to parents the information required by this section in an electronic form.

SECTION 4. (1) Except as otherwise provided by law, no person, corporation, association, organization, state-supported institution, or individual employed by any of these entities may procure, solicit to perform, arrange for the performance of, or perform a surgical procedure or a physical examination upon a minor or prescribe any prescription drug to a minor without first obtaining written consent from a parent or legal guardian of the minor.

(2) No hospital, psychiatric hospital or ambulatory surgical facility as defined in Section 41-7-173, Mississippi Code of 1972, nor any state hospital as defined in Section 41-17-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, may permit a surgical procedure to be performed upon a minor in its facilities without first having received written consent from a parent or legal guardian of the minor.

(3) The provisions of this section shall not apply when it has been determined by a physician that an emergency exists and that it is necessary to perform the surgical procedure for the treatment of an injury or drug abuse, or to save the life of the patient, or when the parent or legal guardian of the minor cannot be located or contacted after a reasonably diligent effort.

(4) The provisions of this section shall not apply to an abortion, which shall be governed by the provisions of Sections 41-41-51 through 41-41-59, Mississippi Code of 1972, and Rule 10.01 of the Uniform Chancery Court Rules.

(5) Unless a felony statute applies to the conduct charged, a person who violates a provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year, or by both fine and imprisonment. This section shall not prohibit prosecution under any other criminal statute of the state.

SECTION 5. (1) Except when ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction, no person, corporation, association, organization or state-supported institution, or any individual employed by any of these entities, may procure, solicit to perform, arrange for the performance of or perform a mental health evaluation in a clinical or nonclinical setting or mental health treatment on a minor without first obtaining the written consent of a parent or a legal guardian of the minor child; provided that, if evaluation, consultation, or treatment is conducted through telemedicine, then oral consent by the parent or guardian shall suffice provided that a health professional verifies the identity of the parent at the site where consent is given.

(2) This section does not apply when an emergency exists that requires a person to perform mental health screening or provide mental health treatment to prevent serious injury to or save the life of a minor child.

(3) A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year, or both.

SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2016.